Indigenous Design Collaborative
A lab for life‑centered design
Shaping design practices that benefit all people, spaces and places
The Indigenous Design Collaborative (IDC) in The Design School at Arizona State University is an Indigenous‑led design and media lab that advances community‑driven, land‑based and culturally grounded futures. We center local and regional Indigenous voices across disciplines. The skills and knowledge we co-create contribute to Indigenous scholarship, with the intent to benefit all collaborators, and those beyond.
Indigenous design is grounded in relationality, ethical community engagement, environmental stewardship and sustainable building practices that offer unique models for many disciplines and professions, including designers, planners and policymakers.
IDC is guided by two Indigenous trailblazers in the architecture field, including Director Tammy Eagle Bull, member of the Oglala Lakota Nation, the first Indigenous woman licensed as an architect in the United States. IDC’s founder, Institute Professor Wanda Dalla Costa, member of the Saddle Lake Cree Nation, is the first Indigenous woman licensed as an architect in Canada.
What we do
The IDC stewards collective learning, Indigenous centered research, partnership and advocacy pathways that connect students, faculty and communities in real-world Indigenous design and media practices. We collaborate with Indigenous and non-Indigenous Peoples to strengthen allyship and advance public education on integrating Indigenous design into community-based initiatives and research projects.
We offer research and hands-on, community-centered courses in placekeeping, history, media, data, landscape meaning and design justice. Students learn through immersive studios, seminars and land-based experiences that build real skills for working with Indigenous communities and in culturally diverse design contexts. This includes:
- Courses for graduate and undergraduate students
- Placekeeping studios and fieldwork
- Training in Traditional Ecological Knowledge, participatory design and cultural research
- Media, visual communication and digital storywork through Indigenous perspectives
Indigenous Placekeeping and Design
In addition to our courses, students can pursue a Master of Science in Indigenous Placekeeping and Design. This degree program is open to students of all backgrounds and is for Indigenous and non‑Indigenous students interested in cultural fluency, community work and global design justice. It fosters collaboration with communities worldwide to explore life-centered design practices that strengthen connections between people and place through meaningful, sustainable solutions. Contact our admissions team at [email protected].
Our Community Design Center collaborates with and supports tribes on projects that include housing, planning, cultural research and land-based design.
IDC partners with Indigenous communities, focusing on culturally grounded design and planning initiatives. We operate a Community Design Center for tribal nations that collaborates with and supports tribes on projects that include housing, planning, cultural research and land-based design. Our projects aim for community-led and relationship-centered initiatives. We collaborate on:
- Residential design and prototyping
- Housing studies in Native communities
- Cultural and historical research
- Indigenous planning, policy and governance
- Applications of emerging tech and digital systems
- Indigenous futurity
- Indigenous data visualization
- Visual communication
- Visual language preservation and revitalization
- Visual Sovereignty
We conduct applied research on human–land–built environment relationships, which focuses on relationships between people, land, culture and the built environment. Life-centered design (LCD) is deeply rooted in Indigenous knowledge systems, which have emphasized balance, stewardship and interconnectedness for generations. The rise of LCD is not a new invention, but is “remembering” and formalizing principles that Indigenous cultures have practiced for millennia.
- Holistic worldview and interconnectedness
- Long-term generational thinking
- Reciprocity and responsibility
- Place-based and context-specific solutions
- Community-centered approach
Our faculty lead nationally and internationally funded research on how Indigenous communities relate to place, story, land, identity and design. Focusing on how Indigenous perspectives strengthen well-being and resilience for Indigenous and non-Indigenous Peoples. Research areas include:
- Indigenous placekeeping practices
- Cultural landscape meaning and attachment
- Indigenous data, mapping and representation
- Architecture, housing and environmental resilience
- Digital and media-based cultural communication
- Placemaking, public space and community facilities
- Built-environment analysis and land-use challenges
We offer students opportunities to work directly with faculty and Native partners, building pathways into professional, academic and community-based careers. Students gain experience in:
- Fieldwork and interviews
- Data gathering and cultural analysis
- Mapping and representation
- Media production, storywork and documentation
- Supporting community design studios and workshops
- Conceptual design of community-based design projects
IDC shares research, stories and design practices across conferences, publications, exhibitions and community platforms. Our work elevates Indigenous perspectives; however, its impact extends far beyond Indigenous communities. Principles such as reciprocal design, land-based stewardship, cultural resilience and community-driven methods inform global conversations about sustainability, climate adaptation, social justice and ethical development.
Dissemination of the work:
- Conference presentations
- Peer-reviewed publications
- Public talks and exhibitions
- Community showcases and workshops
- Partnerships with museums and cultural centers
We collaborate with tribal and Indigenous organizations with advocacy grounded in sovereignty, design ethics and community-led processes. This work ensures communities have allies across design, planning, research, and governance.
Areas of advocacy:
- Cultural sovereignty + representation
- Ethical, decolonizing design approaches
- Indigenous data sovereignty
- Environmental justice + land protection
- Heritage + cultural resource safeguarding
- Policy support and community advisement
Reflecting the expertise of our faculty, IDC develops creative and culturally rooted media for Indigenous storywork and knowledge exchange. This includes:
- Visual storywork and design media
- Indigenous-centered mapping and data visualization
- Digital archives and oral histories
- Communication design across languages and cultures
- Experimental media and emerging digital tools
Want to learn more about work?
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Partner with us
We welcome sponsorship, collaboration and partnerships rooted in Indigenous community reciprocity.
The IDC collaborates with:
- Tribal Nations and organizations
- Indigenous communities worldwide
- Non-Governmental Organization or Cultural organizations
- Municipal and institutional partners
- Academic disciplines, labs, or related institutions
- Design firms and other professional practices
Support us
We invite you to become part of of the Indigenous Design Collaborative by supporting our efforts.
Meet our faculty
IDC’s faculty represent diverse Indigenous and allied design disciplines, reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of the MS in Indigenous Placekeeping and Design (IPD).