LCD Weekly Issue - 053 - The Game Has Changed!

Jun 12

⛰️ Words from the mountains:

It's not always easy to practice what you preach, but in late February, we decided to hit the PAUSE button to slow down and rethink our approach at the Life-Centered Design School. Things weren't running as smoothly as they should have been, and we felt a little off. We were searching for something, but I wasn't sure what it was. While we know we have beautiful courses, content, and materials, we realized they weren't reaching our audience and community—meaning you.

As designers, we often feel tempted to discard everything and create something entirely new when things aren't working. However, after speaking with our volunteers and marketing expert, Dennis Cup, we recognised that we had great content, but it needed to be presented in a slightly different way. We've learned to adopt the mindset of entrepreneurs, and that's what we've begun to do.

Today, we are excited to share a big reveal!

Our website has undergone significant improvements thanks to our collaboration with Taylor Kaus, who has been working with us for the past four months. We have exciting new features to share, especially highlighting our new Consultancy Offerings!

Our Life-Centered Design Fundamental course has metamorphosed into the Life-Centered Design Incubator. In this program, you can join us for three months to work on your Life-Centered Design project, with weekly mentorships by us and more professionals in the area!

A new era has arrived at the school! We go beyond theory, delivering practical knowledge and tools you can apply from day one. If you’re ready to lead a transformative movement and create real impact, there’s only one place to begin: with us. The time is now. Become the change the world needs.

🔥 Hot in the School

La Insólita - La escuela de verano de La Nave Nodriza:

This summer, we will travel to Madrid to co-host a wonderful 4-day workshop in collaboration with La Nave Nodriza as part of their Summer School, La Insolita. Check all the information here: Life-Centered Design Leadership.

Please note that it will be in Spanish.

Something special is on the horizon... Escape Festival arrives this October 2–4 in our hidden corner of the Pyrenees, Sobrarbe. What's planned? You'll have to wait and see. Stay curious — details coming soon.

🐅 LCD in the Wild

This Week's Inspo:

New Blog: Insights from our Life-Centered Design Survey: The Life-Centered Design School survey showed strong momentum for life-centered design, with nearly 70% of respondents already considering ecosystems or non-human users in their work. However, turning ideas into action and gaining leadership support remain key challenges. To help bridge this gap, we are developing services and tools to embed LCD into strategy and practice.

Book: Just Enough Design by Taku Satoh: Explores the Japanese principle of “hodo-hodo” — doing just enough in design to invite personal meaning and connection. Through restraint and simplicity, the book shows how thoughtful design can create richer, more mindful experiences.

Inspiration: The Calm Design lab's approach redefines calm not as silence, but as an experience that invites full presence—through design that supports sensory richness, emotional depth, and embodied attention. Integrating tactile materials, thoughtful ambient elements, and meaningful transitions, Calm Design fosters connection, awareness, and resilience.

Have an LCD-inspired find? Reply to this email & share it with us!

📢 Community Voices

Reader Question: I want to start my LCD Journey, but I don't have the resources or the time. Tips? Katia. H.

Our Take: Have you seen our self-paced courses? They are affordably priced, and we have a new one coming soon: Introduction to Life-Centered Design. We focus on the practical aspects so you can start implementing it today!

🔎 Do you have any Life-Centered Desgin related questions? Reply to this email, and we might feature your question next issue!

🛠️ LCD Toolbox

Skills for Planet Blue Print - Design Council.

The Design Council's Green Skills Blueprint sets out to upskill one million UK designers by 2030 with essential green and regenerative design capabilities—empowering them to create sustainable, resource-smart products, buildings, and services.

The initiative highlights the urgent need to reform design education and professional training to meet environmental challenges. It's encouraging to see major organizations like the Design Council leaning further into life-centered design and sustainability, recognizing the vital role designers play in shaping a positive future for people and planet alike.

❓ LCD Provocation

What type of holiday are you taking this summer?

Reply with a:

⛰️: Mountain

🌴: Beach

🏙️: City

Reply with your ideas or pictures; we will showcase them next issue!

——

See you soon!

Jeroen and Marce

Jeroen Spoelstra

I am a passionate designer and mountain biker focusing on bringing people forward using a human centered approach. As a designer you could call what I do Social Design, but nowadays there are hundreds of different design names. So for me I am a designer and try to be humble to the world. I like solving issues together with other people in co-design and I love helping people reach there goals.

I find inspiration in mountain biking, traveling and in my current home the Spanish Pyrenees. I use sports, traveling and being outside to get inspired for my work as a designer.

Design to me is constantly shitifing between making meaningful products to creating impactful and real solutions/ approaches/ business that can make a difference.

The Design profession shouldn’t solely be reserved for the designer (in developed world), but for everyone! I design for impact and help people bring out their little designer in himself or herself. I am not saying everyone should become a designer, but I do think people can use a little bit of design to help themselves forward in their personal/ professional life.

https://www.unbeatenstudio.com