Sharmistha Banerjee
  • Home
  • Lab
  • Projects
  • Work Experience
  • Publications
  • R&D
  • Collaborations
  • My Journey
  • Leisurely loves
Looking for PhD candidates in the broader domain of Design for Sustainability. Some of the areas of interest in this arena include:
- Industry 4.0 & Sustainability 
- Artificial Intelligence for solving Design for Sustainability challenges
- Industry 4.0 applied to Sustainable Distributed Economy
- Circular Economy
- Sustainable Product Service System Design

For Indian applicants, view 
https://www.iitg.ac.in/

For international applicants, view https://www.iitg.ac.in/aer/admissions.php​
  • PhD
  • MDes Thesis
  • BDes
  • Interdisciplinary
<
>
Picture
Design for Do-It-Yourself in Emerging Countries for the Rural and Semi-Urban Context.
Abstract: The coming of the Maker Movement brought in a new wave in human history. From mass production and passive consumerism, the production systems of the society moved to more personalized and identity creating forms. Hence, the Maker Movement and Do-It-Yourself (DIY) have been widely studied by scholars to either understand its repercussions on conventional production-consumption systems or the motivations behind it. However, not much research has been conducted on understanding what DIY is in the context of the Emerging countries, a segment which consists of more than half of the global population. Though MIT opened FabLabs around the world, the question persists whether a deeper contextual understanding of DIY in these communities is necessary to give meaning to these physical spaces. In our research, we focus on rural and semi-urban India and study the DIY motivations and behaviorism of young subjects who are in their early teens.We seek to understand how a DIY product can be developed for them such  that holds it motivational meaning for the subjects and facilitates adoption of the DIY practice. We further contemplate on how the practice can be diffused in the community of young subjects. Toward this end, we seek to understand how the social network structure of the community of young teens can be tapped and dissemination material can be designed such that knowledge of the practice diffuses naturally in the network. Imparting a Maker Culture is as much about understanding what making means to a makers as it is to impart skills and provide tools.

Picture
Pedagogic pathways to sustainable development of crafts and craftsperson
Abstract: There is a third wave of revival in the craft industry, which talks about consumer preferences and multi-cultural aspects of it, unlike the first and second wave, which focused on artisanship and was seen as an anti-thesis of industrialization. The third wave of revival focuses on consumerism which views the craft sector as an emerging market. Thus, design and socio-economic interventions in various aspects of the craft sector have been recognized as key craft revival techniques. For example, new craft industries and markets are emerging because consumer buying habits are shifting towards sustainable and handmade products which increases the value of ownership of hand-crafted products. Crafts' material and tactile qualities are valued in the modern market and create its unique appeal. Traditional crafts can have its application in a wide spectrum of artifacts ranging from fashion accessories to home décor. Consequently, it has a huge potential for growth. Various studies suggest that the craft industry may contribute to redefining and shaping a new economic model. However, the craftsperson feels insecure making crafts for this emerging market due to several reasons, major being a lack of global and local market information and the design and marketing capability to adapt to the emerging landscape. According to India Brand Equity Foundation, in 2020, India exported crafts worth US$ 3.53 billion. As per Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, annual report 2019–2020, in India, 35.23 lakh artisans work in handloom and 68.86 lakh artisans work with handicrafts. Nearly 15% of cloth production in India is from the handloom sector; and in the production of handwoven fabric, India constitutes 95% of global production. India Handloom Census 2010 found that 35% of handloom households did not want their children to continue with the occupation of craft. According to the United Nations, over the past three decades, the number of Indian artisans has decreased by 30%. Even today, on average 10–15% of craftspeople leave crafts as an occupation annually.  
Data shows that there is a huge demand for hand-crafted products in the international and national market. India also has a rich heritage of crafts. Craft sector is the second largest economic contributor to the Indian rural economy after farming. It also helps in creating alternate source of livelihood during the agricultural off-season. However, rather than exploiting this scenario to its best potential while enjoying the self-reliance of being self-employed, craft persons are tending to leave their occupation and pursue other non-skilled occupations such as construction jobs, security guards, and so on. They also do not want their next generation to continue with the traditional occupation.  
Thus, the key research questions of my thesis are: 
  1. What are the gaps and shortcomings between the current craft training programs run by governmental or non-governmental agencies or the traditional family learning methods (genera to generation) and the needs of the craft marketplace to keep its workforce pursuing the craft sustainably? 
  2. What can be an appropriate crafts pedagogy which can train the craftsperson in a manner that sustainable development of the crafts sector can be achieved?  
  3. Should all this pedagogy be delivered to individuals interested in becoming a craftsperson or be taught to a consortium of individuals where each one specializes in a part of the trade?

2021-22

Picture
Pranav Lokhande (20420502) - Flood Mitigation with the use of an Information System for Mumbai
Picture
Phuntsok Choephel
(204205016) - Design Intervention for Thanka artists in Sikkim
Picture
Anjali Venugopal (204205029) - Design Intervention for Environmental Sustainability in the Food Delivery Industry
Picture
Muskan (204205014) - ​Increased screen time affecting school children in India

2019-20

Picture
Minakhi Das (184205012) - Design a smart assistive walker for Osteoporosis patients
Picture
Abhishek Kunjappan (184205001) - Redesigning a skull cutting device for forensic pathology

2016-17

Picture
Shyam Krishnan (154205008) - Aid for facilitating creative problem solving in Product design.
Picture
Uzair Iqbal (154205011) - Design Intervention for Improving School Education in Kashmir.

July 2021 - April 2022

Picture
Vidhi Bhati
​Social connectedness while working remotely among ​employees of an organization
Picture
Nueman Hanif
​A platform for group shopping
Picture
Pragnya Ramjee
Smartphones & Senior Citizens: Settings & Troubleshooting
Picture
Aditi Rathi
​
Smartphones & Senior Citizens: Settings & Troubleshooting
Picture
Rishab Gupta
​Polaris: A Novice Design Researcher’s Guide to writing papers

July 2018 - April 2019

Picture
Abhishek Gore
Use of home automation in Indian context
Picture
Nawaz Hassan
HCI based aid for writing research paper for novice researcher
Picture
Partha Sarathi
Toolkit for sustainability-oriented design
Picture
Sentur Balaji
B2B service system for software component version management
Picture
Chetan Manda
Voice modulation training for the hearing impaired
Picture
​Sree Mahit Munakala
Voice modulation training for the hearing impaired
Picture
Surendra Singh​
Designing a calls details record analysis software for police

July 2016 - April 2017

Picture
Jithin Krishna CT
​Design and Development of Material Selection Software
Picture
Aditya Kaushal
​
Design of Curriculum for Agriculture Education for Rural Middle School Children
Picture
Purnanga Borah
​Design of an ICT based Healthcare Data Management Platform for Auxiliary Nurse Midewife (ANM)
Picture
Pranjal Sutradhar
​​​Design of an ICT based Healthcare Data Management Platform for Auxiliary Nurse Midewife (ANM)
Picture
Kunal Katre
Design of a Platform for Aphasic care
Picture
Sagar Malik
​Learning through increased interaction (Developing a self sustainable culture encouraging students in a closed institution to make best use of available resources & create opportunities for self and others)

July 2021 - April 2022

Picture

July 2016 - April 2017

Picture
Pallavi Yellamelli

Department: Computer Science & Engineering

​​Design and Development of Material Selection Software
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • Lab
  • Projects
  • Work Experience
  • Publications
  • R&D
  • Collaborations
  • My Journey
  • Leisurely loves