Discover the foundations of design thinking and how it supports human-centered problem solving in complex emergencies. Explore how this collaborative approach can bridge gaps between emergency managers, humanitarian actors, development planners, and military professionals.

Key Topics:

• Outline the history and evolution of design thinking from the 1960s to today.
• Understand the five core phases—empathize, define, ideate, prototype, and test—and their role in solving real-world challenges.
• Explore how design thinking helps align diverse stakeholders around shared goals.
• Learn from a humanitarian case study (e.g., Ukraine) that shows design thinking in action during crisis response.

By the end of this module, participants will be able to describe the roots, process, and interdisciplinary applications of design thinking in crisis and emergency contexts.

See how design thinking comes to life across emergency, humanitarian, development, and military planning. This module explores how different sectors adapt their strategies using human-centered approaches to tackle real-world crises.

Key Topics:

• Outline how emergency managers use design thinking to adapt to evolving crises.
• Trace how humanitarian and development planners tailor solutions to specific local needs.
• Explore how military professionals apply design thinking to enhance planning in complex operations.
• Learn from a case study focused on the food–water–energy nexus in urban crisis planning.

By the end of this module, participants will be able to describe how design thinking strengthens planning across sectors and identify strategies that improve outcomes in diverse crisis contexts.

Explore why today’s crises demand more than isolated responses. This module examines how urbanization and complex emergencies require emergency managers, humanitarians, development experts, and military planners to work together toward shared goals.

Key Topics:

• Outline how urban growth creates new challenges for crisis planning and response.
• Identify how shared objectives help align diverse sector efforts in emergencies.
• Examine the benefits and challenges of integrated planning across sectors.
• Learn from the Haiti earthquake case study on civil-military coordination.

By the end of this module, participants will be able to outline urbanization’s impact, explain integrated planning benefits, and draw lessons from real-world coordination efforts.

Learn how design thinking enhances structured planning across military, emergency, and humanitarian settings. This module explores how empathy, iteration, and collaboration strengthen planning tools and lead to more adaptive crisis responses.

Key Topics:

• Distinguish how design thinking phases support flexibility and responsiveness in military joint planning.
• Explain how emergency operations planning benefits from iterative development and whole-community input.
• Analyze how humanitarian and development planning use empathy and feedback to meet evolving needs.

By the end of this module, participants will be able to integrate design thinking principles into existing planning systems to improve coordination, adaptability, and impact.

The FAQ session is a one-on-one discussion between Crisis Lab and the course instructor. It aims to provide a deeper understanding of the course content by addressing frequently asked questions and offering additional insights and perspectives.