This inspiring collaboration originated during an Erasmus teaching mobility in February 2024, when Anika Kronberger (Institute of Design & Communication, FH JOANNEUM) conducted a workshop in Lahti on Augmented Reality for designers. At the same time, the Finnish partners at LAB University of Applied Sciences Lahti were developing a course concept focused on radical innovation and interdisciplinary and international cooperation.
The benefits for our Design students were immediately clear, and the Institute of Design and Communication joined the initiative with enthusiasm.
A Week of Speculative Design at CERN IdeaSquare
As part of the i2P Design for Future Program—jointly hosted by CERN IdeaSquare, LAB Lahti, and FH JOANNEUM—four Interaction Design students traveled to Geneva in April 2025 for an intensive project week. In collaboration with students from Finland, they developed speculative concepts for human settlement on Proxima Centauri B, guided by input from CERN and NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC).
Focus Topics of the Project
Working in interdisciplinary teams, students explored four key aspects of space living:
- Communal and Individual Spaces
- Collaboration & Conflict Transformation
- Resource Management
- Social Living and Wellbeing
Through workshops, collaborative ideation, and interim presentations, the students developed early-stage concepts for space habitation. This international collaboration will continue over the coming weeks as teams refine their ideas.
