On March 28, UNAVEX hosted its 5th Virtual Exchange (VE) Day, themed “Design in the Ecological Transition.” The plenary address was given by Prof. Ezio Manzini, Honorary Professor at Milan Polytechnic. He emphasized that “often, the challenge is not about creating new inventions but about better applying existing technologies to local conditions.” Following his presentation, Prof. Manzini engaged with students by answering their questions. The event was chaired by Prof. Francesco Spampinato from the University of Bologna.
Initially, over 2,000 students from universities across Europe and Africa expressed interest in the course, but ultimately, 350 students registered and confirmed their participation. On the 5th day, the Zoom session reached a peak of 162 participants.
After the plenary talk, students worked on their Climate Action tasks and gathered to share their sustainability initiatives. Feedback was also collected to enhance future UNAVEX Virtual Exchanges, with the next session scheduled for autumn 2025. Here below, a screenshot from the closing session and the Miro board where students have collected their thoughts on Climate Action
Short CV for plenary speaker
E Z I O M A N Z I N I (http://www.desisnetwork.org)
For over three decades he has been working in the field of design for sustainability. Most recently, his interests have focused on social innovation, considered as a major driver of sustainable changes. In this perspective he started DESIS: an international network of schools of design, active in the field of design for social innovation for sustainability.
In 2024, the Design Research Society awarded him the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Presently, he is President of DESIS Network and Honorary Professor at the Politecnico di Milano. He has been guest professor in several design schools world-wide, as (in the past decade): Elisava-Design School and Engineering (Barcelona), Tongji University (Shanghai), Jiangnan University (Wuxi), University of the Arts (London), CPUT (Cape town), Parsons -The new School for Design (NYC)
His most recent books are: “Design, When Everybody Designs”, MIT Press 2015; “Politics of the Everyday.” Bloomsbury, 2019; “Livable Proximity” Egea, 2021, “Plug-ins: Design for City Making in Barcelona” (with Albert Fuster and Roger Paez, Elisava and Actar Publishers 2023; Fare Assieme, Una nuova generazione di servizi pubblici collaborativi (con Michele D’Alena), Egea, 2024