During the Cumulus Athens 2026 conference, the DHEA Working Group session “Designing with Care. Nurturing Care & Creativity in Higher Design Education” brought together educators, researchers, and practitioners to reflect on the role of care within higher design education.
Starting from the idea of moving from “Health” to “Care”, the session opened a discussion on care as a systemic, relational, and pedagogical dimension shaping educational environments, teaching practices, and institutional cultures.
The EduCare project (Erasmus+ KA220-HED) was presented together with its vision, framework, and ongoing activities. Through presentations, discussions, and an interactive mapping session, many relevant insights, experiences, and critical questions emerged around.
The Working Group also marked the launch of the EduCare questionnaires, aimed at collecting perspectives from both educators and students across the Cumulus network.
Even if you were not able to attend the session, you can still contribute to the ongoing research and stay connected with the project activities.
Participate in the questionnaires
• Educator questionnaire: [link]
For educators involved in higher design education (teaching staff, researchers, and academic staff across all levels).
• Student questionnaire: [link] For students enrolled in Design programmes (Bachelor, Master, Postgraduate, and Doctoral levels)
Follow EduCare
Website: https://educareproject.eu/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61582110317389
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/educare__project/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/educareproject/posts/
We warmly invite the Cumulus community to continue contributing to this collective reflection on care, inclusiveness, and creativity in higher design education.
