The CoDesign Commons Model

The CoDesign Commons is an initiative of the Irsay Institute, bringing together university researchers, local communities, older adults, and entrepreneurs to co-create solutions for the challenges and opportunities of an aging society. Located in the Endwright East Active Living Community Center, the Commons serves as both a studio and a community hub—hosting educational workshops, design sessions, exhibitions, and research projects.

We take a participatory approach — where older adults are active partners in creating the environments, interventions, technologies, and services that shape their lives. This marks a transformative shift: from designing for to designing with an aging society. 

We train both older adults and professionals in codesign methods such as storytelling, prototyping, and visioning, to build local capacity and cultivate innovation. Research suggests that co-developed solutions are more accessible, engaging, effective, and sustainable than those produced using experts alone. Our approach is based in best practices of Creative Aging to foster empowerment and social engagement. Plus, it’s fun!

We host regular educational programming, called Fridays @ Endwright East, to develop skills and build community. We also support CoDesign Teams, which are small-groups dedicated to working on specific aging-health challenges in the community. Currently, there are two standing CoDesign Teams:

• Dementia Friendly Bloomington: Working to create a community program connecting dementia caregivers with needed resources
• Neighborhood Activity: Exploring ways to make walking safer and more enjoyable for older adults in the community

All activities are free and open to the public— we encourage you to stop in! Researchers and organizations interested in working with (or starting) a CoDesign Team of older adults should reach out to Dr. Drew Pickett through CoDesign@iu.edu.