Institute of Technology Carlow this week signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Top 100 World University ranked McMaster University in Canada that will see designCORE, the Institute’s design-led research hub, assist and facilitate a greater design-thinking approach by the Ontario-based university and help position McMaster at the very forefront of global research in the science of healthcare and aging.

An academic team from MIRA (McMaster Institute for Research on Aging), an institute of McMaster University, undertook a three-day visit this week to designCORE, led by its scientific director Prof. Parminder Raina.  The MOU signed during the visit will result in a graduate exchange programme between MIRA and the Institute of Technology Carlow with designCORE assisting and facilitating a more holistic design-thinking approach within MIRA’s multi-disciplinary health science, social science and technology research community. The two institutions will also collaborate on research projects with desigCORE undertaking a return visit later this year to facilitate the process.

The design-led approach to address complex problems and systems in the areas of policy and social design and the research conducted at designCORE has been identified by McMaster as a strategic approach in building a more integrated research infrastructure at McMaster University. The partnering with designCORE for design research and practice is seen as a huge endorsement for the working being undertaken by the design-led enterprise hub. MIRA at McMaster will use this design-thinking approach to position McMaster University at the very forefront of global research in the science of healthcare and aging.

“The signing of this MOU between designCORE IT Carlow and MIRA at McMaster marks the commencement of a unique and progressive collaboration. It offers unparalleled opportunities to create new interdisciplinary research approaches and epistemologies within Design and Gerontology; from the Health, Social, and Natural Sciences to Engineering, Business, and Humanities”, commented Dr. PJ White of designCORE at Institute of Technology Carlow.

“Design research methods and design-thinking are increasingly being used in the areas of policy, organisational and social development, and designCORE is leading the way in design-led research”, said Colin Deevy of designCORE.

Based in Canada’s Ontario, McMaster University is ranked 83rd according to the 2016 Academic Ranking of World Universities. It operates six academic faculties, across Business, Engineering, Health Sciences, Humanities, Social Science, and Science. McMaster University is a member of the U15, a group of research-intensive universities in Canada, and has a world reputation for research in the area of health.

McMaster University established MIRA (McMaster Institute for Research on Aging) to conduct research in cross-faculty teams and engage the older adult community, their families, healthcare providers and other key stakeholders through every stage of the research process, from design to evaluation and implementation of interventions and technologies.