What We Believe In

At the GID Lab we believe in the power of creativity and collaboration to solve complex problems at scale. Our mission to create the conditions for inclusive innovation means that we are campus serving, interdisciplinary, student centered, and community engaged. Our vision is a world of ethical and creative problem solvers.

Our faculty and practitioners are international scholars and designers, bringing lived experience and training from around the world to facilitate design thinking workshops, advise interns, and teach in the Minor in Innovation and Design. The GID Lab is part of the Institute for Innovation and Global Engagement (IIGE).

What is Design Thinking?

Design thinking is a generative and creative approach to innovation that places the human experience at the heart of its process. It is widely used across the world in industries, non-profits, government, and academic institutions. Design thinking inspires us to ask better questions, redefine problems, increase agility in finding solutions, deepen collaboration and expand opportunities. Learning from failure, embracing ambiguity, and acting collaboratively are germane to the process.

Minor in Innovation and Design

The Minor in Innovation and Design (25 credits) is open to all UW Tacoma students, equipping them with ways of thinking, creating, and intervening in problems in the world in a way that invites collaboration and ethically engages communities. Students will participate in iterative cycles of design thinking, a generative and creative problem-solving approach that places the human experience at the heart of its process. The Minor will draw on methods and theoretical perspectives from the human sciences and the design disciplines.

GID Lab Internship

The Global Innovation and Design (GID) Internship is an outstanding competitive opportunity for students to gain professional experience working directly with community organizations. Students earn micro credentials, receive a $750 stipend, and academic credit, while developing need finding, problem solving, facilitation, and presentation skills. More importantly, students gain a deep and empathetic understanding of community issues, while broadening their knowledge of innovations around the world. The competitive opportunity is open to all UW Tacoma students.