Practice-Based Methodologies: Participatory and Collaborative approaches in practice-based design research within the fields of clothing, textiles and accessories
- ECTS-point
- 4
- Deadline for admission
- 1 March, 2027. Please send an email with your name, your home institution and the title of your PhD project to Christina Stind Rosendahl csr@dskd.dk
- Price
- The course is free. Please be prepared to cover your own meal costs. Check the international office at your home institution for possible financial support through Erasmus.
- Education
- PhD
- Course responsible
- Ulla Ræbild
- Course instructors
- Ulla Ræbild, Louise Ravnløkke
- Guest lecturer
- Anne Louise Bang, Docent, PhD, VIA University College, Centre for Textiles, Design and Circularity and Julia Valle Noranha, Assistant Professor, PhD, Aalto University, Department of Design
- Location
- Kolding School of Design, Ågade 10, DK-6000 Kolding
- Spots available
- 8-20
- Date and time
- 10-14 May, 2027
- Instruction language
- English
About the course
The PhD course thus explores the research question:
How can participatory and collaborative approaches in practice-based design research foster innovation and change within the fields of fashion, clothing, textiles and accessories?
We will explore the research question together by moving through four interconnected participatory/collaborative lenses: 1) the wider system of actors, including manufacturers and companies, 2) end-users, 3) products and 4) the designer/researcher role(s). The work will incorporate literature, students' own projects, and position papers, as well as visual mappings and exemplars.
In the early stages of a PhD project, students can use the course to build an understanding of participatory and collaborative approaches in the field and/or to develop their own methodological approach with collaborators (such as manufacturers, companies, end-users, designers, etc.). Or, in the later stages of their PhD projects, students can reflect on, refine, or gain new insights into an already-described methodology. Overall, the PhD course supports students undertaking a practice-based PhD in developing their research methods and theory within the network of other design research fellows.
Programme
The course is structured around the aforementioned lenses, allocating time to dive into aspects of each, as well as a self-study day to develop one's own work for sharing in the concluding plenary presentation and discussion with course participants and facilitators.
The five days will be a mix of lectures, presentations, workshops, and individual work, along with discussions and small-group, hands-on workshops based on participants’ own projects.
Please note that the course will be held in person at Kolding School of Design in Kolding, Denmark.
A detailed programme, including a reading list and other preparation information, will be sent to participants by mid-March.
Target group
Danish and international PhD Students working with practice-based research, research through design, constructive design research and similar approaches, within the broader fields of fashion, clothing, textiles, and accessories design.
Background
To comply with the recently enacted EU Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, the fashion and textiles sector must increasingly adopt innovative methodologies to develop circularity and longevity business models, production methods, and value chains (Ravnløkke et al, 2024; Harsaae & Bang, 2026).
Practice-based research can play a vital role in researching, developing, and testing participatory, multi-actor methodologies across the public, private, and civic sectors, thereby fostering creative innovation through research-informed practice.
Key details
- Preparation
- A 1-page position paper connecting individual PhD research to the course theme and literature (deadline for submission: April 12, 2027. Please send to Christina Stind Rosendahl csr@dskd.dk)
- Readings: 8-10 texts selected from a brutto list of 30, shared with participants after the registration deadline on 1 March.
- Course Activities on participatory and collaborative approaches: May 10-14, 2027
- Writing/Mapping/Reflection Day: May 13, 2027 (No scheduled classes, access to classroom/workspace)
- Plenum session and Wrap-Up: May 14 afternoon, 2027
References
Harsaae, M., and Bang, A.L. (2026) The act of crafting textile dialogues, in Simeone, L., Gray, C. M., Verhoeven, A., de Götzen, A., Bakırlıoğlu, Y., Zohar, H., Stead, M., and Buwert, P. (eds.), DRS2026: Edinburgh, 8–12 June, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.2207
Ravnløkke, L., Ulla Ræbild, J. & Valle-Noronha, J. (2026) “Design for Longevity: The Need for Participatory Approaches”. In GFC 2024, Global Fashion Conference. (Eds.) I. Cantista. Springer Nature Switzerland AG, pp. 72–89, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-032-02070-3_6
