Introduction

This chapter begins with an overview of what the Designing for the 21^st_Century Research Initiative is and how it is structured. It explores some of the lessons and insights that can be harvested from Phase 1 of this 5-year programme of research. Academic research in the UK is supported by a number of research councils, each covering their own respective portfolio of disciplines and subject interests. The councils provide funding for research through a broad portfolio of project grants and studentships. Design practice needs to be highly adaptive and innovative to meet the needs of this rapidly changing operating environment. Enhanced facilitation skills are another addition to the designers growing portfolio of skills in a 21^st_century context. The designer often no longer designs solely for a customer, the user or a client, increasingly design solutions are for multiple stakeholders, often with different perspectives, needs and expectations.