ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the emerging new role for academia and new ways to produce knowledge for education and for society. It provides examples of modern design and art education through examples at Aalto University in Finland, to understand what actions should be taken to reach this goal. The chapter presents several trends in government policies and initiatives supporting art and design. It also attempts to identify future developments in art and design education and proposes transdisciplinary activities in order to consolidate and evolve product-service system know-how in curricula and thereby better implement sustainable design education for a future society. The interconnected and multicultural nature of contemporary social reality provides a 'specific opportunity to stimulate the design creativity aiming at socio-sustainable innovations'. The education in the creative sustainability programme promotes a systems approach and enhances strategic thinking in various scales in order to support a sustainable future: from complex ecosystems, urban and industrial infrastructures, technologies and business to individual choices.
