ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the world of design practice which is large with many separate groups designers specialising in different areas. Learning within a community of practice is an experience of identity formation. It is not just an accumulation of skills and information, but also a process of becoming, in this case, a certain kind of creative and critically minded design practitioner. There are many types of designers. We can include architects, industrial designers, design engineers, graphic designers, fashion designers, interior designers, craft designers, furniture designers, jewellery designers and much more. Each of them represents a significant group of professional practitioners and each one could be regarded as a community of practice. The international group of professional car designers is a good example of a community of practice. Expertise in design thinking is crucial to all sorts of design activity, but because it is generic it also has wide application outside design.
