180 days work
259, 200 minutes of learning
5,000 people engaged
12,000 post-its used
10 birthdays celebrated
350 blog posts
27 inspirational speakers
16 books reviewed for book club
5 project presentations to outside groups
11 weekly hour-long radio shows recorded
100,384 visitors to the blog

As a goodbye, we would like to pass on what we learnt – 12 steps for delivering powerful projects.

Thank you to everybody who has supported the projects over the past number of years.

Signing out!
The Designing Dublin team

There was a sold out crowd at the Science Gallery on Thursday as Susan, Brian and Eimear presented the Love the City project on behalf of the team. They brought the audience on a whistle-stop journey of the past 9 months, reviewing the Designing Dublin ethos, the project brief, the steps towards ‘100 exciting things you did not know about the city centre’, identifying the working area, discovering the potential of the Markets Area, developing 8 projects and creating a Prototype Extravaganza. From this work, the team condensed their learning’s into 12 steps to delivering powerful project, giving the audience pieces of advice to apply in their own projects, work and life. Members of the Love the City team also gave insights into their learning’s and what they will be bringing into their future life. It was a wonderful evening and the Love the City team were delighted to see the positivity, support and enthusiasm in the people attending

Designing Dublin launched a ’100 exciting things you didn’t know about the City Centre’ book, based on the exhibitions held in Filmbase and DCC Atrium during the Love the City project. The book was unveiled at the Love the City team graduation, where each team member was presented with a copy. There are a very limited number on sale at The Winding Stair Bookshop and Article in Powerscourt Townhouse.

How can the City become a place that magnetizes people towards it?
How can an area of the City be transformed to reach its full potential?
How do we grow peoples love for the city?

The ‘Love the City’ team spent 6 months answering these questions by engaging the City in conversation, uncovering and sharing it’s hidden gems and getting into the nitty-gritty of Dublin. In the process, they talked to 5,000 people, produced an exhibition and book of 100 exciting things you didn’t know about the City Centre, imagined 1,500 ideas, conceptualised 11 projects, used 12,000 post-its and held a Prototype Extravaganza day.
Designing Dublin will share the outcomes of the ‘Love the City’ project, explain their working process and reveal their learning’s in a spectacle of insights, wisdom and love.

18.00 Thursday 19th May at the Science Gallery.
Admission is free and to reserve places go to www.sciencegallery.com

Have a watch here:

Do YOU Know Your Markets?

Sleeping beauty took a bite and fell asleep for a thousand years (Time depends on who your talking to or who’s telling telling the story ) and was only woken by a kiss from a handsome prince or was it a frog who turned into a handsome prince. This begs the question, what had the frog/handsome prince eaten. The other question i would ask is ‘Would the ugly frog know it’s a frog or does it see itself as a prince. Is it aware that it is ugly or presume it is a handsome prince. I suppose what i am getting at is, do we change or is it the frog. Suppose by a princess eating a red apple, the whole world changed  and we see things differantly, except the princess of course. As i said, i dont have all the answers, just the questions. A good question, just like a  red apple will lead to good outcomes but you must find your own answers, red apples and good questions enable this.

The reason i’m exploring this, is to look at the consequense of biting one of these apple to-day and falling asleep for a thousand years. Would the world wide web still exist and if it did, how much information would be on it. How long would your beard be, could the pretty princess have a beard, if she did, would the frog kiss her?

Would you wake up in the same bed and have bed sores. If you had bed sores would you be able to sleep for a thousand years. It may seem that these questions are uninportant but if you have bed sores your priorities change.

Just imagine what the bed would be worth or would it have deteriorated. The antique’s road show may still be around, depending on the price of fuel or will their transport be driven by red apples, well! you never know? Mind you, it would be rational to call it the ‘antique road show’, if it’s still travelling.

What is it about red apples as opposed to green or yellow apples, could it be allure or to be more precise, ‘Lure’.

Life would be better if we asked more questions and ate more red apples?

Dublin-a City defined by it’s ‘Lure’

Podcast Week Eleven

This Friday, the team gathered to celebrate all of the work we have achieved over the past seven months! The details of the days were kept hidden from the team, with one surprise leading on to another, much to some team member’s frustration!! Quite aptly, the day took in a few of Dublin’s hidden gems; a trip to IMMA, a walk along the Canals and lunch in Nellys Café in Portobello. The team were then whisked off to Woodquay venue for a graduation ceremony, where we were met with close friends of the project. Vannesa presented the journey of Designing Dublin, from the beginning of Clongriffin to the Prototype Extravaganza of Love the City, the outcomes for both the project and it’s participants. Jean Byrne and Jim Dunne spoke about Design Twentyfirst Century and the importance of design to tackle the challenges we are facing in Ireland today. John Tierney, City Manager, and Dick Gleeson, City Planner, spoke about how the City can build on the learning’s of Designing Dublin to develop a new work approach to working in Dublin.

The team were surprised with Love Awards to acknowledge their contribution to the City, team leaders gratefully received Loving Leading Awards and Out Louder’s and project helpers were offered medals to express our appreciation for their effort and dedication to the Love the City project. Another surprise for the gathering was the unveiling of a book of ‘100 exciting things you didn’t know about the City Centre’, which was distributed to past and present Designing Dublin team members and the Steering Group. The graduation ceremony was a suiting conclusion to the Love the City project – filled with empathy, joy and optimism, as well as a few well-timed surprises to keep everyone on their toes!