Norway at London Design Biennale 2018

How might inclusive design transform educational environments? For the second edition of London Design Biennale at Somerset House (4–23 September), DOGA (aka the Norwegian Centre for Design and Architecture) showcases two different but connected Norwegian innovations that bring together inclusive design strategies and digital comms technology to reinvent the schoolroom setting. In response to the Biennale’s 2018 theme, Emotional States, DOGA curator and inclusive-design champion Onny Eikhaug has created an interactive classroom installation that invites visitors to discover the schoolroom of the future – a place where virtual gaming platforms can open up new ways of teaching and studying, and long-term illness is no barrier to learning. The two products exhibited are the transformative online social-learning tool Kahoot! and No Isolation’s pioneering telepresence robot AV1. Kahoot! enables both teachers and students users to create and share games and quizzes customised to any topic and to play in real time with other schools in 180 countries. Created to ensure that students unable to attend school can maintain a link to their studies and social lives, AV1 is an app-linked robot avatar that acts as their eyes and ears in the classroom.

Having worked with DOGA and the Royal Norwegian Embassy on numerous projects and exhibitions over the years (including Norwegian Presence in Milan, 100% Norway in London, and the Embassy’s Norwegian Arts cultural platform), we are thrilled to get the chance to promote their Biennale show. We’re helping Onny and the DOGA team to tell the world about this fascinating and thoughtful exhibition, and how it reflects Norway’s unique approach to inclusive design.