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Curralo, Ana Filomena; Miranda, Micael; Lucena, Iris; Curado, Antonio

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This paper presents the design and development of a Pedagogical Innovation Space (PIS) within a higher education institution. Conceived as a dynamic and inclusive environment, the PIS aims to promote experimentation, collaboration, and cultural diversity across disciplines such as engineering and design. It operates as an educational laboratory where teachers, students, and researchers can co-create and test solutions using user-centered and challenge-based methodologies. Grounded in the principles of experiential and project-based learning, and inspired by Design Thinking, the PIS integrates multiple functional areas—Creative, Collaborative, Research, Interactive, Development, and Presentation—that support transitions between ideation, experimentation, reflection, and sharing. By linking physical and digital environments, the space encourages active, autonomous, and collaborative learning, fostering technical, creative, empathetic, and social skills. The Design Thinking process guides the transformation of traditional teaching models through its human-centered stages—Empathy, Definition, Ideation, Prototyping, and Testing—enabling the creation of innovative solutions that reflect the complexity and diversity of the educational context. The project adopts inclusive pedagogical and participatory design practices aligned with contemporary trends in collaborative design education, promoting interdisciplinary knowledge exchange. Ultimately, the PIS seeks to cultivate co-creation, critical reflection, and empathy, positioning equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) as pillars of innovative higher education. It aspires to become a reference model that integrates education, design, and diversity, preparing a new generation of professionals to create more human, collaborative, and inclusive solutions.

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