Participatory design for change: Francesco Rodighiero’s vision in his interview with Il Bagno Oggi e Domani
In the November–December 2025 issue of Il Bagno Oggi e Domani, Francesco Rodighiero – a Design for All designer and an authoritative voice in the field of inclusive design – offers a clear and insightful reading of the social transformations that are reshaping contemporary design. The conversation focuses on demographic, cultural and behavioural changes that will significantly influence the design landscape in the coming years.
Rodighiero highlights that “the society of the future will be increasingly articulated, faster and culturally more complex,” a condition made evident by the simultaneous coexistence of five generations, each with profoundly different rhythms, habits and expectations. Population ageing, he notes, is one of the most decisive factors: “By 2050, one third of the population will be over 64,” a demographic group destined to play a central role not only in consumption patterns but also in collective choices.
From this emerges the need – no longer postponable today – to rethink design as an open and inclusive process. Rodighiero states clearly: “We can no longer design for a single category or for ourselves: we must begin to imagine places and objects for everyone.” This approach embraces the entire life cycle of individuals, including temporary fragilities and those situations in which changes in daily habits require new systems, new products or simply new ways of inhabiting spaces.
The interview also highlights the central role that research and development processes must play within companies. Sustainability, adaptability and attention to transversal needs become, in Rodighiero’s view, the structural pillars of contemporary design. Participatory design, understood as a practice of structured listening and responsible interpretation of needs, emerges as an essential tool to avoid self-referential solutions and to generate social value.
Rodighiero’s contribution fits into a broader dialogue on the future of the bathroom design sector and the innovation scenarios that lie ahead. His perspective reminds us that design cannot limit itself to responding to the present; it must anticipate the future with a vision capable of embracing differences, diversity and continuous evolutions in everyday life.
