This course examines evolving ideas of the good life and the metrics we use to measure it–as the central goal of design and shaper of its practice, particularly in housing and urban districts. It traces the shift from “thick” to “thin” metrics in the process of modernization–a transition where direct experiences were traded for precise but monodimensional data points. By re-examining historical and contemporary cases, we aim to recover the thickness of metrics, balancing and expanding existing measures to better model present and near-future challenges–and, in the sense that what we measure is what we change, to better inform designers and amplify their agency to make real-world impact.

Following introductions to i) evolving ideas of the good life and ii) the problems of metrics and measurement in design, the course is organized around six broad ways of thinking about and measuring the good life: 1) Civic Abundance, 2) Ecological Embodiments, 3) The Social Fabric, 4) Pathways to Fulfillment, 5) Vitality and Repose, and 6) The Generational Pact. Each surveys examples from a range of historical periods and cultural contexts, identifying patterns and distinctions amidst recurring themes and contending with how local insights translate globally. Weekly sessions combine lectures, extended conversations with guest speakers, and review of ongoing student projects.

The main deliverable is an original metric of the good life, developed through four stages and presented at each stage as a visual manifesto formatted as a 10-15 slide social media think-piece, engaging critically with how contemporary platforms compress metrics today, often turning them into simplified proxies for complex realities. The sequence begins with 1) research into a specific metric category and proposal of original concepts, followed by 2) immersive fieldwork to ground the metric in direct observation, and 3) an expert interview to deepen the inquiry. Finally, projects are 4) tested with normative and extreme cases and developed into a “patent-style” diagram and document–instructing users on how the metric is defined, measured, and interpreted–establishing its value as a better way of framing and measuring design outcomes today.