KISS-DU Organizes Talk on ‘Solving Problems with Design Thinking’

The School of Tribal Resource Management, KISS Deemed to be University organized a National Seminar Talk on  ‘Solving Problems with Design Thinking’ on 29^th April 2022. Dr. Richa Agrawal, Associate Professor, Centre for Management Studies, IIT Madras was invited as a distinguished speaker. Delivering the talk, she stated that each one of us faces the challenges and problems in our day to day life which is the main cause of stress. However, there is always a solution to every problem and we must have faith that our positive approach can bring us out of our problematic situation”, she said.

Talking on the relevance of the Design Thinking Technique, she said that it is an imaginative human-centred process. “It is a problem-solving process. Believing it is possible to find a solution, is the backdrop of design thinking. We should always be positive, and proactive in all types of situations. Design thinking is an intentional process. It involves changing our status quo to solve our own problem which invariably is created by self”, she explained. Dr. Agrawal’s presentation covered phases of Design Thinking and touched upon key aspects like brainstorming, and think-out-of-the-box.

While talking in the context of tribal communities, she presented a case about the drought-prone Kalahari Desert of Africa, where getting a drop of water to live was a problem.  Solving this problem, tribal people strive to get near the source of water. They observed from their environment that it is only the monkeys in the desert who know the source of water. People with the help of their out-of-box thinking understood that only observing a thirsty monkey running for the source of water can lead them to reach the banks of the water source. By offering salt to the monkey and by following the running thirsty monkey they reach the source of water, she elaborated.

The talk was followed by a question and answer session by students, faculty members and research scholars from the KIIT School of Management (KSOM). Speaking earlier, in her welcome address, Dr. Snigdharani Panda, Dean, School of Tribal Resource Management spoke about KISS-DU and some of its innovative practices. Professor R.N. Swain, School of Tribal Resource Management offered a vote of thanks.