ABSTRACT
Design can offer a more nuanced framing of problems, generation of new ideas and concepts, meticulously crafted user experiences, and, for some, and organizational transformation. This chapter explores some of the insights, illustrates through applications of design in the adolescent and youth sexual and reproductive health sector and the work of American Refugee Committee. Design is a creative approach to problem-solving that starts with people and arrives at solutions tailored to their needs. As a practice, design has its own underlying philosophy that goes beyond these make/test cycles. A design approach resists defining a solution pathway too quickly. The expectation is that the solution–be it a messaging campaign, a digital product, or a service refinement–will emerge through the design process. Much has been written about the promise of design for social impact, largely within the burgeoning social innovation media but also within the academic design and innovation literature.
