Co-Design Practitioners
KEY INFORMATION
Dates: Commences March 2026.
Format & Duration: Fortnightly sessions over 7 months.
Delivery Mode: Online.
Co-Design Maturity Model Level: Apply/Integrate.
Keen to join us for Co-Design Practitioners in 2026?
Registrations will open in early 2026. Keep reading below for general details relating to this training, and express your interest below to be the first to hear when applications open.
About this program
Co-Design Practitioners is a transformative professional development program that builds your capability and confidence to lead participatory design processes. Through a thoughtfully designed blend of learning approaches, you'll join a diverse community of practitioners who share your commitment to ethical, inclusive design.
This seven-month learning program is designed to take your collaborative design practice to new heights. Led by Dr Emma Blomkamp, this course is ideal for those with several years of experience in participatory design contexts who are ready to deepen their expertise and strengthen their skills to tackle complex challenges.
Building on your existing knowledge, this program integrates experiential learning, creative techniques, and ethical considerations crucial for public and social innovation. Drawing from real-world experiences across Australia and Aotearoa, we'll explore the joys and challenges of co-designing with diverse communities.
This course is tailored for practitioners actively applying co-design in public purpose settings, providing a supportive environment to refine your skills, expand your toolset, and push the boundaries of participatory practice in your specific context.
Course overview
WHAT’S INVOLVED?
Alongside 10 to 15 other dedicated professionals at the apply/integrate level of co-design maturity, throughout the program we will explore:
Designing and leading effective collaborative activities with a wide range of people
Navigating power dynamics and expanding inclusive engagement
Developing strategies for building trust and combating consultation fatigue
Implementing remote engagement and online facilitation techniques
Assessing and communicating the impact of your co-design initiatives.
Co-Design Practitioners is hands-on and fully immersive. Expect a mix of activities to support learning-by-doing, complemented with academic rigour and grounded in the reality of working with diverse communities and organisational constraints.
Co-Design Practitioners is a series of seven modules, each with a facilitated online training session, peer coaching, and self-directed activities. The live training sessions consist of individual, pair and small group activities interspersed with presentations and facilitated group discussions.
The program takes place over the course of seven months, allowing time to apply, iterate and reflect on the tools, techniques and principles, in order to develop skills and embed learning in practice. In addition, each participant has access to individual mentoring with Emma Blomkamp.
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Core topics include:
Facilitating diverse groups
Power and participation
Relationships before recruitment
Creating with communities
Sense-making and decision-making
Just enough evaluation
Reflection, resilience and resistance
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We cover one module per month, from May to November 2025. The typical monthly structure is:
Week 1: preparatory reading/activity (individual)
Week 2: facilitated, structured online training session (whole group)
Week 3: self-directed learning and practice, with recommended resources (up to you)
Week 4: reflection and peer coaching (small group)
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Co-Design Practitioners has been designed specifically for creative professionals seeking to better engage a diverse range of people to generate more equitable outcomes.
Participants are expected to be experienced practitioners at the Apply or Integrate level of Co-Design Maturity. The majority of participants tend to work in or with the public purpose sector in Aotearoa or Australia. Although this is our shared context, we have welcomed participants from other countries (including Malaysia, Indonesia, US and the UK) and the private sector.
To get the most out of the program, participants need at least a few years of relevant professional experience and a current context where they can apply, integrate and extend their co-design practice.
Many but not all participants have a background in design (e.g. communications, user experience, architecture, product or service design) or social innovation. Previous participants demonstrated that other relevant experience includes: community development, public health, international development, participatory arts, people-centred research and evaluation, community and stakeholder engagement, innovation labs and social enterprise startups.
Co-Design Practitioners strives to be accessible, inclusive and welcoming to all participants. We hold space for difference, including from lived experience, and support different learning needs and preferences.
Participants need to be fluent and literate in English to participate successfully in the program. You also need a computer and reliable Internet access to interact with us online. Participants with any accessibility requirements are invited to communicate their needs and provide honest feedback so that we can enable all to fully participate.
Co-Design Practitioners is limited to 16 participants per year. We run a selection process (see below) to ensure that participants have the right sort of experience, work context and commitment to make the most of this experiential professional development program.
Program inclusions
INCLUDES:
An opportunity to learn and apply co-design principles, methods and tools with an internationally respected, award-winning practitioner and experienced educator
A network of supportive peers with a diverse range of backgrounds, experience and perspectives (and a private Slack channel to connect with each other)
7 x monthly facilitated 2.5 hour training sessions (online, using Zoom and Miro)
3 x facilitated 2.5 hour group coaching sessions
4 x 90-minute peer coaching sessions
1 x 45-minute individual coaching/mentoring session with Emma Blomkamp
Access to a large resource hub with recommended readings and links to many relevant texts, tools, case studies, and audiovisual material
Tailored prompts, tools and resources for self-directed and applied learning each month
Exclusive invitation to join our alumni membership network, with:
Opportunities to learn and share with other participants from diverse backgrounds with common interests— beyond the participants in this year's program.
Ongoing access to our Resource Hub and Slack channels, after the program ends.
Certificate of Completion
RMIT Master of Design Futures students can get elective credits for this course.
PARTICIPANTS ARE EXPECTED TO:
Commit at least 2-3 hours per week to the program over seven months. You will be supported to complete self-directed and peer-led activities between facilitated group sessions.
Be intermediate-level/mid-weight practitioners of a design discipline or innovation approach. Participants need some prior experience as well as people skills to work effectively with diverse groups. This is not an introductory level program for recent graduates or people newly curious about human-centred design.
Be currently working in a field of design, community/public engagement, systems change and/or collaborative practice. Participants need to have a context where you can apply your learning. This could be a side project or voluntary role if you don’t currently have a relevant professional context for co-design practice.
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Keen to join us for Co-Design Practitioners in 2026?
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