Suzie Norris has spent the last 15 years of her professional career as an academic at Southampton Solent University (SSU) and currently Heads the School of Design at Southampton Solent University in the UK. She is a Fellow of the HEA (Higher Education Academy), a member of CASIAD (Centre for Advanced Scholarship in Art & Design), a member of the Life Long Learning Network and the Creative Industries Curriculum Group, SSU. More recently her research has focussed on the dynamic capabilities of WEB 2.0 media and the immersive environments of virtual worlds. This has led to research exploring new learner types and innovative pedagogy using Virtual Learning Environments(VLE's). 'Real life Second Life': Contemporary learners & learning relationships was co- written & presented at the CLTAD (Centre for Learning & Teaching in Art & Design) Conference, New York, April 2008, (CASIAD Funded). With a particular interest in fashion forecasting and trend prediction, she remains a practising designer specialising in the design and sample development of leather fashion accessories and is currently studying for a Doctorate in Design Practice in the area of Multi-dimensional product development and 2D/3D virtual sampling.