A Room of Their Own

Abstract

In this chapter we focus on the context within which creative activities occur. It is clear that certain contexts are more conducive to creativity than others. We provide examples ranging from city planning and online learning to argue for including the final users of the design in the design process itself. Christopher Alexander, architect and theorist, suggests that the only way to design “lived spaces” is to either have the inhabitants of the living space inform the design right from the beginning or to have the architects of the space closely observe the organic interactions of inhabitants before initiating the design process. We suggest that the experience of real-world interactions, and the needs of real-time, real-life users, must seamlessly become a part of a design.