The course is about using the elements of design in the built environment to make spaces that evoke joy and happiness. Students will listen to interactive lectures, get hands-on crafting and making, will experience learning through field trips, discussion, and group work. They work individually to develop a skill, apply it in a group, and work together to create a project that exemplifies their design for happiness in the built environment. They get busy making objects out of origami, prototyping designs that elicit happiness, testing material strength by building bridges and towers, and working together in groups on their final project for public exhibition – all the while, the students are interacting with their newfound knowledge in designing for happiness through discussion, diagramming, and practice.
In the course, research on human physiological and psychological responses to place and space is introduced to students to help them better understand how to apply pro-happiness elements and qualities into the design of happy places. Topics introduced include nature, light, and water; resilience, access, and reparative justice; identity and belonging; and safety and comfort. Students apply these principles through assessment tools in evaluating existing places and also in designing new places. The final output from class is the design of an object for a pavilion that exudes the qualities of happy places. Through this, students better understand what designing for happiness means and can practice this in existing environments by evaluating for pro-happiness elements and qualities.