Dr Joseph Lindley Awarded Future Leaders Fellowship

(I realise that this website doesn’t show who wrote a post.. so, for clarity and to make the first person text below make sense I wrote this and I am Joseph Lindley!)

I’m absolutely delighted to be able to announce that I’ve been awarded a £1.2m UK Research and Innovation Future Leaders Fellowship: Design Research Works. The scheme offers significant funding for transformational projects that will run for up to 7 years.

Design Research Works is focused on developing and promoting the role of Socio-Technical Design Research across a wide array of contexts and sectors (e.g. innovation, education, research, policy, government). Kicking off in November 2020, the project will focus on understanding current challenges and opportunities relating to AI, Data and the Internet of Things that my project partners (including Microsoft, the RSA, and several Universities) are facing. Based on this initial exploration I and my team will iteratively develop Design Research interventions in order get the most out of emerging technologies whilst minimising any risks associated with their adoption.

By the end of the fellowship we will have put together a long-term, cross-contextual, practice-based exploration of Design Research’s many methods, attributes, and roles – the aim is to elevate and strengthen the field by showing the incredible power of Design Research.

During my time at Imagination Lancaster (initially as a HighWire PhD student, then as a postdoctoral researcher, and most recently as a lecturer) I’ve made some amazing friends, taken part in some quirky-yet-profound research projects, and helped to push the Design Research field forwards. The fellowship provides a unique opportunity to extend and accelerate this work; to build on the collaborations I already have, to build a team, and to provide solid foundations for the next generation of Design Research.

A huge thank you to all those that have helped me along the way and to the UKRI for supporting me!