The Bigger Picture: Festival of Interdependence

Responding to current economic, social and environmental crises, London’s NEF (New Economics Foundation) are this month running “The Bigger Picture”, a series of creative activities and events, exploring the possibilities of ‘a new kind of economy’, an economy which is low in carbon and high in well-being.

The event series culminates in a large-scale, public “Festival of Interdependence” in central London on 24 October 2009 when an interactive, living exhibition will be staged in the dramatic post-industrial setting of the Bargehouse on London’s South Bank.

Filed under: On Culture, On Ethics, On Events, On Social Design, On Society , climate change, Festival of Interdependence, NEF, New Economics Foundation, The Bigger Picture, Well-being

Bruce Mau: In Good We Trust 2010

In Good We Trust

Filed under: On Community, On Culture, On Ethics, On Events, On Social Design, On Society , Bruce Mau, In Good We Trust, Massive Change

The Age of Stupid

The Age of Stupid is a 90-minute film about climate change, set in the future, which will have its world premiere in London on March 15th 2009 and then be released in UK cinemas on March 20th 2009, followed by other countries. Oscar-nominated Pete Postlethwaite stars as a man living alone in the devasted world of 2055, looking back at archive footage from 2007 and asking: why didnt we stop climate change when we had the chance?

Filed under: On Community, On Culture, On Ethics, On Research, On Society, On Sustainability , age of stupid, Change, climate change, Film, future

“Globalisation Era Spearheaded by Individuals”

Pulitzer Prize winning New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman speaks on the MIT campus in a talk entitled The World is Flat 3.0, where he discusses the 2007 update to his bestseller The World is Flat and provides a preview of his latest book, Hot, Flat, and Crowded.

Filed under: On Culture, On People, On Social Design, On Society , Flatland, Globalisation, Hot Flat and Crowded, The World is Flat 3.0, Thomas Friedman

The Good Consumer

Via. BonfireoftheBrands.com

Filed under: On Culture, On Ethics, On Society , Bonfire of the Brands, Consumerism, Good Consumer

Dancing the Commute!

‘Dance’, the latest Saatchi & Saatchi commercial for T-Mobile, was filmed at 11am on Thursday 15th January 2009 at London’s Liverpool Street station and aired less than 48 hours later. Although (to us savvy users of Web 2.0) flashmobs may not be a new concept, when I saw the smile on my fathers face as he saw this ad on friday night, I realised how such a simple act of community collaboration (and dance!!) can add a little bit of happiness to the daily routine of the commuter. Wonderful – I love how the elderly lady joins in at the end too!

Filed under: Art & Design, On Culture, On Society , Dance, Saatchi & Saatchi, T-Mobile

Tie Me To Your Favourite Thing

If you had to tie a red balloon to your favourite thing, what would you tie it to?

As part of her undergraduate project Douceurs, post graduate service designer Lauren Currie, (a.k.a Red Jotter), took a dozen red balloons to a park in Edinburgh, and to encourage traditional communication between the public asked people she met to tie them to their favourite thing.

Filed under: Art & Design, On Community, On Culture, On People, On Social Design, On Society , Balloons, Community, Design, Douceurs, Lauren Currie, RedJotter, Research

Service Design Project nominated for Design of the Year Award

Last Tuesday the UK Design Museum announced the nominations for the 2009 Brit Insurance Design of the Year award, including a nomination for the first EVER service design project to be included in the awards – The Social Innovation Lab for Kent (SILK), by Engine.

SILK is a project and a platform Engine have been developing with Kent County Council (a local government authority in the UK) that helps users and providers of public services create better services together using design tools and processes.

Read the full story at Engine and see a video here.

Filed under: On Community, On Culture, On Ethics, On Social Design, On Society , 2008, Award, Brit Insurance, Design Museum, Design of the Year, Engine, Service Design, SILK, UK

Graduates Train for Social Design Workshops!

In preparation for The Real Work Experience workshops later this month, last Thursday nine graduate and undergraduate designers took part in an engaging afternoon of workshop training!

Arriving at the thinkpublic studio from Bristol, Brighton, Bournemouth, Glasgow, London, Kent and Leeds our leading designers are each running workshops on Friday 21st November to explore what young designers need to enable them to use their skills for social causes.

Filed under: On Education, On Ethics, On Graphic Design, On Social Design, On Society , Design for Social Change, Designers, Education, Graduates, Social Design, student, students, The Real Work Experience, ThinkPublic, Workshop

Design for Social Change Workshops!

On Friday 21st November, final year and graduate designers will run simultaneous workshops up and down the country, in an exciting stage two of The Real Work Experience.

Exploring how designers can play a role in social improvement, we are asking young designers to consider what “The Real Work Experience” could do for them? Could it be an online network that bridges the gap between education and seeking (socially engaged) work? Could it be a mentoring program, or a regular series of events that discuss design’s wider potential? What do designers and graduates need, to be able to use their skills to tackle social issues? What does a movement toward socially responsible design look like to you?

Filed under: Art & Design, On Education, On Ethics, On Graphic Design, On Social Design, On Society , Design for Social Change, Graduates, Kate Andrews, Social Design, social responsibility, students, The Real Work Experience, ThinkPublic, University, Work Experience

Green Spin: Should we believe the hype?

On Friday evening, as part of the magnificent Greengaged hub of sustainability events (at London’s Design Council), a series of leading speakers will debate; “Should we believe the hype? Green Marketing, spin and substance.”

In 2007, 70% of the US’s GDP was generated from consumption. UK household waste has been growing by 2% – 3% per cent a year. The average shopper in the developed world shopper adds 3 tonnes of CO2 to their carbon footprint by simply buying stuff. Products and services are clicking on to the big sell of green. In the climate of economic down turn how can we create behaviour change in consumers who are bombarded by advertising and bored of green wash.

Chaired by Lucy Siegle from The Observer, the speakers include: Ed Gillespie (Futerra), Sophie Thomas (thomas.matthews), Stewart Rassier (Saatchi & Saatchi S), Richard George (Plane Stupid), Chris Sherwin (Forum for the Future), John Grant (author of The Green Marketing Manifesto).

To join the debate visit Greengaged.com and book your place! Kick off is at 6.30pm.

Filed under: Art & Design, On Culture, On Education, On Ethics, On People, On Research, On Social Design, On Society, On Sustainability , Green, greengaged, greenwash, London Design Festival 2008, sustainability, thomas matthews

How Design Can Save Democracy

In conjunction with NYTimes.com, the AIGA’s Ric Grefé and Jessica Friedman Hewitt have developed an interactive demonstration of how good ballot design can improve the voting experience.

Filed under: On Graphic Design, On People, On Social Design, On Society , AIGA, Ballot, communication, Design, Good Design, Graphic Design, How Design Can Save Democracy, Jessica Friedman Hewitt, NYTimes.com, Ric Grefé, Typography, User Experience, Voting

Deborah Szebeko Shortlisted for British Council Award

Deborah Szebeko, Founding Director of Thinkpublic has been shortlisted for the British Council’s UK Young Design Entrepreneur Award 08.

Illustrating the power and potential of using design thinking to tackle some of the UK’s greatest social issues, Deborah and the team at Thinkpublic have helped make significant improvements to communications and patient experiences in the NHS.

“We are faced with a growing amount of social challenges, including an ageing population, social exclusion and global warming to name a few. Designers need to adapt their skills to play a role in helping solving these challenges. Not by designing posters or products, but by using their skills to involve people and communities in the problem solving process. Together we can understand how we can solve these big issues and design sustainable, useful and usable solutions that work in different households, communities, regions and counties.”* – Deborah Szebeko.

Alongside 5 other UK entrepreneurs Deborah has been shortlisted to the top six finalists. The winner will be announced at 100% Design, on 19th September 2008.

Filed under: Art & Design, On Ethics, On People, On Social Design, On Society , Award, British Council Award, Design Entrepreneur, Design Thinking, Entrepreneur, Improvement, NHS, Social, Social Change, UK, UK Young Design Entrepreneur Award 08

Collective Lens, Photography for Social Change

I have just rediscovered Collective Lens, an online network promoting social change through the use of photography. This is such a fantastic idea, that I hope more people get involved with. The website has a whole wealth of forums, articles and photo essays to explore. To get involved, you can upload a photo or a nonprofit organisation and help raise awareness to important social issues.

Filed under: Art & Design, On Ethics, On Social Design, On Society , Collective Lens, photography, Social Change, Social Design

Maciej Dakowicz

When scanning the RSS feeds, emails and articles there are few static visual elements able to stop me still. Last night however, in a focused search through Flickr for humanitarian related photography, I discovered the unique work of Polish born Maciej Dakowicz. For the third issue of the inspiring NEED Magazine, Dakowicz has visually captured a story about HOPE organization helping children in Kolkata, India.

Dakowicz currently lives in Cardiff, completing a PhD in computing and freelancing as a photographer. Do take a moment to explore his work at MaciejDakowicz.com.

Filed under: On Ethics, On Social Design, On Society , Maciej Dakowicz, NEED Magazine, photography, Photojournalism

The ColaLife Campaign!

Over the last month, I have been helping Simon Berry (CEO, ruralnet|uk) promote his latest idea, and what an idea it is! “ColaLife” is a campaign aiming to leverage Coca Cola’s distribution muscle to distribute life saving medicines to children in developing countries. The idea is so simple, but until now has been difficult to evolve. The power of web 2.0 and social networking media however, has allowed Simon to digitally document his progress and to build a digital support network to develop the campaign.

“We can distribute Coca Cola all around the World but we can’t seem to get medication to save a child from something as simple as diarrhea and I think that that is wrong.” (Annie Lennox)

Since the launch of the campaign and due to the power of a Facebook group, Simon was invited by Salvatore Gabola, Coca-Cola’s Global Head of Stakeholder Relations, to a meeting to discuss the idea further at Coca-Cola’s European HQ in Brussels. The campaign’s Facebook group has reached over 3,890 members since its inception on 18 May 2008. It was nominated for the NewStatesman’s New Media Award in June and showcased at London’s 2gether08 festival on 3 July.

Filed under: On Ethics, On People, On Social Design, On Society, On Sustainability , Aid, Children, coca-cola, coke, ColaLife, Creativity, Kate Andrews, simon berry, social media, Social Networking

The UK Design Council launches ‘The Good Design Plan’

Building on its 2004 strategic plan, the Practical Power of Design, the UK Design Council has launched “The Good Design Plan”, a new three-year national strategy for design. Defining good design as ‘sustainable design’, it highlights five objectives for the council.

Filed under: Art & Design, On Society, On Sustainability , Design Council, Good Design, Service Design, Sustainable Design, The Good Design Plan, UK, What is Good Design

Can Coca Cola Save Children’s Lives?

David Wilcox reported this week about an inspiring initiative founded by Simon Berry:

Twenty years ago Simon Berry was a development worker in North Zambia, conscious that while he could buy a bottle of Coke anywhere, children were dying through inadequate distribution of simple medical treatments. In many cases they simply needed rehydration salts. Wouldn’t it be possible to reach an agreement by which Coca Cola used a small part of its superior distribution capacity to get the medicine to children?

Filed under: On People, On Social Design, On Society , campaign, Children, coca-cola, coke, Distribution, facebook, Health, Humanitarian, media, simon berry, social media

The GreenHouse Project: Sustainable Living in Johannesburg

Short feature written for Inhabitat:

In the heart of South African city Johannesburg, a green focused community is transforming one urban park into a seedbed for sustainable living. Directed by Dorah Lebelo, The GreenHouse Project takes a holistic approach to integrating green building and design, efficient and renewable energy, recycling and organic farming into the city’s mindset. The Global Oneness Project recently interviewed Dorah to find out her motivations and intentions for this fantastic sustainable initiative.

Located in the northwest corner of Joubert Park, Johannesburg, The GreenHouse Project is an environmental NGO demonstrating sustainable living and development. In the Global Oneness Project video interview, Dorah explains how the five-pronged project approaches sustainability, by utilizing the skills of rural South African people and describes how this urban environment has everything it needs to sustain its community, without demanding more from further afield.

+ The Global Oneness Project
+ The Berkana Institute
+ Leader Network: Dorah Lebelo

Copyright photos courtesy of The Global Oneness Project.

Filed under: On Social Design, On Society, On Sustainability , Community, Johannesburg, South Africa, sustainability, Sustainable, The Global Oneness Project, The GreenHouse Project

The State of Design Criticism Today

To launch the much anticipated MA in Design Writing/Criticism at London College of Communication, Stephen Bayley (design critic for The Observer) presents the first of a series of new talks this month, surrounding the current state of design writing and criticism.

EVENT: Tuesday, June 24, 2008 from 6:00pm – 7:30pm. For more information visit, The State of Design Criticism Today

Filed under: Art & Design, On Graphic Design, On People, On Research, On Social Design, On Society , Anna Gerber, Design Criticism, Design Writing, Design Writing Criticism, London College of Communication, Stephen Bayley, Teal Triggs, The State of Design Criticism Today

The Global Oneness Project

It is continually inspiring to discover new social design initiatives, increasingly springing up from a wealth of industry sectors, however this week I came across a project that (I feel) deserves huge creative and social credit. It’s name, The Global Oneness Project.

Founded and directed by Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee, The Global Oneness Project offers a remarkable insight in to the creative intelligence of human nature. This web-based video initiative aims to explore “how the notion of oneness can be lived in our increasingly complex world.”

The Global Oneness team are traveling the world, filming interviews with people from a variety of disciplines, asking them to share their stories about living and working from a perspective of interconnectedness. The films and interviews document an array of social initiatives from across the planet – in the fields of sustainability, conflict resolution, spirituality, art, economics, indigenous culture, and social justice.

There are already countless videos on the site, documenting some really insightful social projects, namely the “Not Just a Piece of Cloth” video about the Goonj recycling centre in New Delhi (the western world could really learn a lot from this one) and Johannesburg’s “GreenHouse Project”, run by Dorah Lebelo.

The library of films is available for free from the website or on DVD for event and educational use. This resource is an inspiring example of how design and social technologies can globally promote human creativity and social change.

Filed under: Art & Design, On Culture, On Ethics, On Society , communication, Creative Intelligence, Film, Global Oneness Project, Goonj, Social Change, Social Design, Social Innovation, sustainability, The GreenHouse Project

The Social Lab

Award winning public service and communication design agency ThinkPublic launched The Social Lab last night, a project space set up for people to meet and discuss design-led concepts to address social challenges.

Each lab event is given a theme and invitations sent to an array of people with professional expertise spanning countless industry sectors. During the labs, attendees explore particular challenges using design tools and techniques, gain fresh insights and propose future steps for social development. Current Social Lab projects include The Real Work Experience, Public Service Thank You and ithinkpublic.

I am looking forward to watching this project evolve.

For more information visit www.thesociallab.com or contact the team at hello@thesociallab.com

Filed under: Art & Design, On Culture, On Research, On Social Design, On Society , Communication Design, Design Thinking, Events, london, Public Service Design, Social Change, Social Design, The Social Lab, ThinkPublic, UK

Social Design: We Cannot Not Change the World

It has been some time coming but it is here, a comprehensive exploration into what is ‘Social Design’. This great (if promotional) video comes from the team at the socialdesignsite.com.

Filed under: On Ethics, On People, On Social Design, On Society , Design, Social Design, socialdesignsite, Society, video, what is social design?

Images of Consumer Culture, by Brian Ulrich

Reading the archive of MotherJones this afternoon, I came across a photo essay entitled “American Happiness and the Need to Consume”, featuring the work of American photographer Brian Ulrich, who is known for his photographic exploration of consumer culture.

Filed under: On Culture, On Social Design, On Society , brian ulrich, consumer, Consumerism, Culture, photographer, photography, Society

Creative For A Cause

Last night I came across a magnificent online resource and initiative dedicated to socially conscious design, its name Creative For A Cause. Founded and set up by Denver based Graphic Designer Heidi Cies, Creative For A Cause (A Resource for Visual Communications Educators) aims to assist teaching social responsibility in design education.

“While social responsibility is being discussed more and more frequently within the Visual Communications industry and among educators today, no standards or guidelines currently exist to aid in the implementation of these concepts into the higher education curriculum. Where social responsibility is not already part of a Visual Communications program, and there is little or no administrative support for inclusion, it is left to individual instructors to decide how to best integrate this topic into their syllabi.

This site is a collaborative resource for educators of Visual Communications who wish to instruct their students on the importance of adopting a social and ethical approach to their work. If you know of additional resources that you feel would be of value, please contact us.” (Heidi Cies, Creative For A Cause).

Heidi, well done – this is a fantastic project that is certainly going to prove useful. I look forward to our future conversations.

+ Creative For A Cause
+ Via. Randy J. Hunt

Filed under: Art & Design, On Education, On Ethics, On Graphic Design, On People, On Research, On Social Design, On Society , Creative For A Cause, design education, ethical, heidi cies, Randy Hunt, resources, Social, Social Design, social responsibility, Syracuse, Visual Communication

Citizen Scholar, Inc

In my search for socially-based designers, working with contemporary and intelligent design thinking, I have come across a number of inspiring U.S based designers/agencies/projects this evening.

The first I am going to mention has to be, Citizen Scholar, Inc, founded by designer Randy J. Hunt. This New York design consultancy specialise “in creative services for cultural institutions, educators, artists, non-profits and social entrepreneurs.” Although the website only profiles the work in a blog format, it is worth a look around.

Hunt also blogs on design, for UnderConsideration and AIGA/NY at Designy.

Filed under: Art & Design, On Ethics, On Graphic Design, On People, On Social Design, On Society , AIGA/NY, Citizen Scholar, Creative For A Cause, Designer, Designy, New York, Randy Hunt, Social, Social Design, Society

Communication Designers Need to Catch Up Fast

Article for DesignSessions: Are You a Good Designer?

When I was first asked to contribute a piece on design ethics to Design Sessions: Notes on Design, I wondered how I could credibly comment on such a complex and highly academic topic. Whilst sitting at the early stages of my creative career, I wondered how many of us really understand what it means to be a “good” designer, and asked myself, if and how, I am a “good” (socially-responsible) designer?

Design Ethics

Throughout every stage of my creative training, I have echoed the belief that design is “quintessentially an ethical process” (Devon and Poel 2002). I strongly believe that Communication Design has a positive and negative ability to affect social change, but recognize that its influential power should be treated with respect and careful consideration, of its use, from all its designers.

Filed under: Art & Design, On Culture, On Education, On Ethics, On Graphic Design, On People, On Research, On Social Design, On Society, On Sustainability , Communication Design, design ethics, Ethics, future, Graphic Design, Kate Andrews, Social Design, Visual Communication

John Thackara on Wodcast

Forever an inspiration voice, John Thackara is a symposiarch who designs events, projects, and organizations. Director of Doors of Perception (Doors), and author of the awe-inspiring publication, In the Bubble, John has for the last two years lead the Design of the Times (dott 07) project in North East England.

“If you attend certain events, read certain books or policy papers it is possible at the minute, to formulate a world view whereby design is the panacea of all ills.” Wodcast.

Recorded at Intersections07, Wodcast recently caught up with John to discuss the dott 07 project, design and social change, sustainability, and design education. Thackara explains how designers should not see themselves as the cause of social problems, or pretend to have all the answers to solve them. The interview is short but definately worth listening to.

All the Intersections Conference podcasts can be found at The Design Council website.

Filed under: On Education, On Ethics, On People, On Social Design, On Society, On Sustainability , Change, Culture, Design, design education, DOTT07, Intersections, interview, John Thackara, podcast, Social Change, Social Design, Society, sustainability, wodcast

Interview: Deborah Szebeko

I have just listened to an interesting interview with Think Public’s Deborah Szebeko, via Wodcast.

Szebeko opens the discussion to talk through her definition of “Public Service Design”. She continues to discuss Think Public’s recent project “The Real Work Experience” – which I am ever more inspired by having (like many of those involved) left my BA degree in Graphic Design a bit lost at how to vehicle my work/skills/education toward positive change, rather than choosing a career path toward the more typical designer routes of advertising, for example. Szebeko further explains her motivation for starting Think Public and the Real Work Experience to have been driven from a frustration that designers have so little awareness as to where they can use their communication skills to design for greater good. Worth taking 12 mins to listen to the interview, if you haven’t come across Szebeko’s work yet.

Wodcast_thinkpublic.mp3

Filed under: On Education, On Ethics, On People, On Social Design, On Society , Deborah Szebeko, Ethics, Health, NHS, Public Service Design, Social Design, Think Public

BANISH the Plastic Bag!

On 13 March 2008, the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling, announced the 2008 Budget, which says it includes “[...] measures aimed at tackling climate change.”

However, it is interesting to note how the greenness of the budget is being widely criticised. In response to Darling’s Budget, the Green Party’s Caroline Lucas described it as a:

[…] criminal wasted opportunity to set the country on the path towards a more sustainable future [...] Instead of seizing the opportunity to reshape our economy to deal with the serious threat of climate change, Alistair Darling used his much-awaited first Budget to set out a weak and flimsy agenda, which brought new definition to the word “greenwash”.

Initially, encouraged that the government is a least listening to the public acknowledgment, that action needs to be taken to tackle climate change, however it was shocking to realise how small a step has been taken to eradicate plastic bags. One of the budget actions, to [potentially] charge for plastic carrier bags, IF retailers fail to take ‘enough’ (?) voluntary action to reduce their use, by next year… is ridiculous. Firstly, by focusing the public attention to the potential cost (one of those many purchasing decision-makers) of plastic bags, in my eyes completely undermines the global challenge that is climate change, blinding them to see problems caused by aviation and the like. As Lucas quite rightly argued, surely the Chancellor should be focusing on the feasibility of phasing out plastic bags altogether? If so many USA states can survive without the carrier, surely we can!?

Unsurprisingly, the UK retailers kicked up a fuss about the bag charges however, on a more positive note, the Daily Mail Newspaper did launch a BAN THE BAG campaign [pictured above], so maybe just maybe such media campaigns are our only hope in helping the public see the reality.

Filed under: On Culture, On Society, On Sustainability , 2008 Budget, Alistair Darling, climate change, Consumerism, Environment, Plastic, Plastic Bag, UK, Waste