Five months after completing “Common Room” I’m finished a frantic period of travel, freelance work and reflection and finally getting around to the final blog post.

“Common Room” was presented to Jenna Date, Director of MHCI at Carnegie Mellon University, Mette Harrestrup, Ph.D, Communication Design Department at Kolding School of Design and Sergio Paolantonio, Design Team Manager at Microsoft Research Asia.

The feedback I received was mostly positive but most of all I was delighted to walk away from the project with a new understanding of the design process – a process I can now call my own and one I can continue to reflect upon and adjust in my future work.

The exhibition of the final projects at CIID was attended by over 800 people during three days and I took great pleasure in seeing the smiles and delight on the faces of visitors as they learned about each of the projects. I was working among a group of the most talented people I’ve ever met during the past year – and this was our moment to shine.

CIID is an amazing experience, and my final project has fulfilled all of the goals I set out with three years ago when I began to process of applying to study there. There are, however, many people to thank.

Ishac Bertran – my advisor and CIID’s resident genius is as helpful and humble from day to day as he is prolific in the concepts he creates. Ishac was there to tell me how the first idea is sometimes the best, to encourage me to build faster and test sooner and to re-assure me when to everyone but myself, I was right on track.

Helle Rohde – as table-buddies for the duration of the final project, Helle, Marco and I supported one another through highs and lows. It was awesome. I owe Helle a big thank you for seeing the wood from the trees in my early phases and suggesting the context. It took an outsider to point out that I might as well work in one of my all time favourite contexts while I still had the chance.

Sleep-in-Heaven Hostel, Nørrebro, for their absolute enthusiasm for my work. Long before any concepts were created, the staff and management at this hostel provided time and access to their business in facilitation of my research. Later, they voluntarily agreed to allow me prototype my concepts and were a dream to work with during an intense few weeks. If you’re visiting Copenhagen, I couldn’t recommend this place more.

Jack Schulze (Berg), for turning up halfway through and scaring the crap out of me with some lovely feedback. The work that comes out of Berg is wonderful and I think I’ll be drawing confidence from our conversation for many years to come.

Brian Rink – for sound advice on the occasions that I sought it, on my journey from software developer to designer Brian supported my work towards a personal design process, an understanding of my own strengths and weaknesses, and the collection of a set of tools to help with both.

Alix Gillet-Kirt – for being there to offer font choices and graphic design bullying when it was needed. Also for listening every now and again to my bitching and moaning throughout the project.

All of the faculty and staff at CIID – especially Simona Maschi (for assuring me I’m a designer!), David Gauthier and Jakob Bak (for being there when I was frantically ordering XBees) and Eilidh Dickson (for bringing some of the world’s finest chocolate in an hour of need). The team that has assembled in Copenhagen is really quite special, and they share not just talent but an amazing culture of co-operation and encouragement. You really need to be there, you can feel it in the air.

My wonderful classmates. I am humbled to have been a part of this group of individuals and I am already taking great pleasure in hearing the stories of how they’ve already spread around the world achieving great success.

My parents and family for so much love and support – and not just during the past year. I’m am the luckiest on Earth in this regard,

And to everyone I’ve forgotten to include, this is my fault, I’m terrible at this sort of thing. Don’t take it to heart, just remind me next time we meet and I’ll apologise and buy you a drink.

Go raibh míle maith agaibh go leor. Tusind Tak. Thanks a million.