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100 hours talk about globalization, sustainability, education and design collected in a new book published by INDEX:
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Quotes &
Contradictions
DESIGN TO IMPROVE LIFE
The focus of INDEX: on Design to Improve Life was established during conversations with many hundreds of people in many parts of the world. To keep the focus alive and vibrant, we depend on listening.
In early autumn 2008, we listened to 50 people talk to us about globalization, sustainability, education and design. We listened and discussed for more than 100 hours.
What we heard was intriguing, interesting and insightful – and filled with contradictions, doubts and uncertainties. What you are about to read are the headlines and main quotes from our many conversations. You are about to explore a variety of views on some of the major trends and potentials in the world right now.We have not weeded out the contradictions, the uncertainties or the doubts, because they are precisely what describe our world today.
Major thanks go to those who gave us their time to help us better understand the world and thus to better explore and promote Design to Improve Life.
Enjoy!Kigge Hvid, CEO of INDEX: & Gunnar Näsman, Project CoordinatorCopenhagen, January 2009
DESIGN TO IMPROVE LIFE
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Among the six people in the INDEX: office in Cop enhagen, there has for some years been a shared under-
standing that something good is going on in the world – in spite of wars, financial crises, hunger and seemingly unsolvable global challenges. For the past few years, we have called this phenomenon “the Tribe” and have referred to people as Tribe members wherever we identified their striking efforts, endless energy and intel-ligent approaches to improve life for other people around the world.
During our conversations, the Tribe was mentioned again and again in different ways. But always the concept was invoked as referring to something open, based in action, inclusive and preoccupied with new power, shared network-power, loathing old fashioned power, the kind of power that’s pursued only to be kept to oneself.
Here is what people told us about the Tribe.
THE TRIBE
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Marshall McLuhan
porter anderson
”For tribal man space was the uncontrollable mys-tery. For technological man it is time that occupies
the same role.”
“They swirl, these tribalists do, with radiant energy when they get together. But can such diverse crea-
tivity be focused enough to accomplish the great work? or do we end up with what john sayles calls an ‘anarchists’ convention’?”
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“T“TThihis s momovevemementt without a male leaddder is prprobobaba lyly thehe bese t t t thing that has ever happened inin the worldld. It ccan’t be measured, captured,
ststopo ped! There are so o mam nynn of them that it has an effect on the world. The resourcees s are huge.”
Bruce Mau
Paul Hawken may be the person who knows most about ‘the Tribe’. One day he realized he had thousands
of business cards from people, groups or companies dedicated to improving the state of the planet by acting/living/being environmental, social etc. He started looking into this and found what he calls
The Movement. What we call the Tribe is to Paul Hawken the largest movement on Earth and its defining characteristics include no leaders, no name and a quick worldwide spread. It is a bottom-up move-ment found in every city, every town, every culture and religion.
“We have worked harder here than we would do for any client and we didn’t even get paid”
Arnold Wasserman, after a four-day seminar planning INDEX: strategy for the coming years.
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“It isis aalmmosst liikeke I amm in a tower lookingng o out on a a fooreeestststs fulu l ofof p peooplple e whw o are lookining g fofofor a beettttere wwayyy t to o livev . ThTheyey come from all oovevver r ththththe ee
wowworlrld d anana d I find d myyyseseselflflf talking to people whom II hahaaavevevee nnno o ococonnnnection tto, aandnd wwe arara e talkking the same languguagagage,e,e nnn no omattttere our rreleligiggioion,n culltutut raral heeritage, nationality, iiincncncomee eetetee c.” ”
Chris s JoJoJoordananananan
“There is a netwt ork of peoplp e rising. Thhese e people are interested in ‘ggoodod’’ isissues andn societal change. It is very exxccititingng.. Muhammmadd
YuY nun s did itt and what he did was to sts art small and then iitt developeed d and spread to the entire wwororldld.. If you start small yoyou u uu cac n n rereeally make a diffffererence.”
AlAlan Webber
THE TRIBE
Globalization in its literal sense is the process of transforma tion of local or regional phenomena into global ones.
It can be described as a process by which the people of the world are unified into a single society and function together. This process is a combination of economic, technological, sociocultural and political forces. Globalization is often used to refer
to economic globalization, that is, integra-tion of national economies into the inter-national economy through trade, foreign direct investment, capital flows, migration and the spread of technology.
This is what we heard from the people we talked to:
GLOBALIZATION
Here is what Wikipedia tells us about the complex, interlinked and diverse con-cepts of Globalization:
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“The 40-foot container is a much stronger driver for globalization than facebook, myspace, etc.”
Christian Madsbjerg
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Amid globalization, the world has seen enormous changes and has be-come so much smaller. This creates a
lot of new possibilities for those who can afford them, and those possibilities are triggering more logistical hurdles, such as a massive rise in global air mileage
and products travelling the world in the manufacturing process before reaching their end-users. This, in turn, is a major environmental challenge: It connects the pressure of globalization with the prize of sustainability.
“Globalization is driven by ece onommmicic and political developmemeennt, car-ried by communication. Alsssoo thhe e dedesis re to rule the world plaaysys a rolololle eeein globalization.”
Peter r Byyyysssts ed
“The more you connect and d d d the momoree cururioious you arer aboutut new places, the more you travel. I f yoyou u dodo bbussiiness in china sooner ororo later you will have to go to chhhih nana.”.”
Simonnanna MMMasaa chi
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“When it comes to culture, it is very complex - and globalization brought pro-
found cultural changes that are both positive and negative ” Sali Sasaki
This new ‘small world’ is challenging us. We are provided with a massive flow of information, and when something happens we know about it instantly. Globalization moves so fast that
the human mind and emotions have difficulties understanding and accepting our differences, which leads to some of the conflicts that we see in the world today.
“We are connected financially. The rise of corn prices in the US affects the price of a tortilla on the streets of Mexico City.”
Ged Davis
“Today, there is not one thing on the dinner ta-ble that was available 60 years ago. And I did not grow up a starving child.”
Richard Saul Wurman
“Facebook is a tool for communication where 90 percent of your friends live within five miles.”
Christian Madsbjerg
“With globalization, we have to understand that we are part of a bigger whole.”
“Today, ideas and concepts are flowing through the internet without borders which is very demanding
since ideas look very different according to which cultural lens it is seen through. So there is a huge need for cul-tural interaction and under standing.”
Peter Bysted
Richard Grefé
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“Gloobabalil zazatioon has opened upp ddiviverersisityty ffoor thee inndidivivivvidududdd alal. . AsAs o our wwororld shrininnkskkk , wewew b beecoome momooorererr aaa aawawawaw rere of ththe e woworlrldd aroundndd us, wwe e cocommmmu-
nicatee gglolobababallllllly,y,yy, w wwe e ee mimim x,xx, aa andnd i inn n tutututurnrnrn ww wweee wiwiwiillllllll eee e eveveeventntntntntuaualllly y hahhh ve onoo e gglobbalal ccccululultutturerere m mmadda e ee upupp oo offf f iniindidiivivivv duduualalal o o objbjbjjeececttitiveve m mmmiindsds that aare nnotttt r eppreresssssededed b bbby y raaracece, rerelilil gigiiionono o oor r grgrg eeeeeedd..” ”
KKaKaKarririmm RaRasshshhhididid
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“Sometethih ng interesting hapappeens when tradition and cucultlture meets techhnonolologgy. Designg is able toto a andd sshould d integrate the notion o off cultltururalal
ididenentityt in tetechchnolologyy oor vice versa.” Sali Sasaki
“In my work the issue of globalization surfaces in the use of local resources and local ornamen-tation. I confront them with morre e unu ivi ersal and
contemporary, name it ‘global’, languages. I ddonon’t counter ‘globalization’ and I don’t merely embrace locala ity,y I strong-ly belief in the combination. Progress and sustainnability go hand in hand.”
Hella Jongerius
“Globalization is spreading no matter what. Sustainability is up to us.”
Tore Kristensen
“In general, people only relate to own experiences and experiences conveyed to them by someone they trust. To understand what happens in Africa, you need to have been there or you need to know someone whose life depends on political and social developments in the
region. Therefore, we need to grow people’s awareness and understanding of issues like famine and mal-nutrition, poverty and diseases by showing that such problems can actually be solved through creativity, innovation and design.”
Steinar Mowatt Valade-Amland
As Mahatma Ghandi said: “Be the change you want to see in the world.” To make the best use of globaliza-tion and to improve sustainability, you have to look and search globally – but act locally.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GLOBALIZATION AND SUSTAINABILITY
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GLOBALIZATION
After years of focusing, acting and buzzing sparked by Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth, the dominant
temptation could be to give up in frustra-tion on sustainability. Everywhere, there seems to be a growing recognition that sustainability is not only complicated but very complicated. No easy solutions are available because of the complex, inter-linked coherency required for genuine sustainability.
Think about it: A recent study concluded that for people living in Denmark, buying tomatoes from Spain is more environ-mentally sustainable than growing them locally because more energy is spent on ripening them in Danish greenhouses than on transporting them from Spain. However, other research points to the fact that the energy used to ripen the Danish tomatoes is harvested primarily via solar cells and other sustainable en-ergy sources. So which is true – which tomato should Danes buy?
Faced with such paradoxes, we might ex-pect to see people growing indifferent to the agenda. They could be forgiven for waiting until there’s enough data and experience to confidently and efficiently address sustainability on the basis of long-term actions. And yet, they tell us, this is no time for throwing in the towel. Here is what we heard:
SUSTAINABILITY
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“The AAAl l l GoGoGorerere m m movoo ie raiaiaiseses d d d a a lololot ofofo aawawawarrreneeessssss and dd pupuput t t sososomememe g g glamoooururur ooon n n thththe e e isisissususue.e.e. B BBututut thehe debatetete d d dieieied d d ououout tt agaiaain”nn
HeHeHeatatatheheher rr MaMM rtinnn
“The biggest emerging thing in my opinion is sustainability, and it covers both business and personal life. It’s about survival, and it will dwarf all other trends. Nothing can be more
important than survival.” Olle Zachrisson
“Transparency is growing. It is getting harder for shady companies to hide. The same companies use
green washing because it is good for business” Petz Scholtus
Customers want sustainable and genuine brands. The corporate world has to adapt and is delivering in large numbers, but there still is a long way to go.
HOW DOES BUSINESS REACT TO SUSTAINABILITY?
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“At t t ssomeee l eveveveeel thehehereree is grgrreeeeeenn n wwaw shhiniinng g gg gogogoinininng gg g onon. . BuuBuButtt t whwhwhetetheheherr r thththe e e grgrgreeeeeeenn n wawawashshshshinininng g g hahahasss aa a rererealala ii impmpmpaacacttt is qqueu stiooonananablbblble. If f it mmakakese a ddiffeer-enncece, I’mm m nononottt compmmplaaininninng.g.g.g ” ””
AdAAddemememollololaa AdAdesesininnnaaaa
“GG“GGrererereenen pp peoeeoeoplpplplee e araree ststarartiiingngg tto o ininfilfiltrtratate e e coompananieies s asa oooffiffifficeceerrrs andnd didirrerectors ananddd hhigh-levelel mananaggagererss anand d shhhsharehollloldddederrs. Soo t t thhheh commm--paapaninnieses a aarere ww wakakakining g upup f frorom m m thththeee inininsisisidedede. EmEmEmpplployyoyeeeeeeess s s wawawaw kekeke u uup p pp ananand d d sasay:
‘HHolo y shshshititit, ,, ththtt isis iis not whwhhattat II wannnnttt t too hhhappen.n ’””” ChChChriririsss JoJoJordrdanan
“We e arare e nononoot t tt crcrreating aa h holo istic fuf ture ffororr a aaallllll , , bububub t tt mimim crcrcrcro-o solululutitititiononoons s for r rououursrssseleleelveveeves.s.ss. IIII ww wworooro ryyry tthahah t t wewew a areree ccrereatatatininningg g g ‘g‘g‘ggrerereennenen’’ sososolulluutittitiononnss s totto j jjjususustitifyyfyfy our neneneneedededed f ffforoor c cccooono sumpmptititionon insteead of adopoptingngngng aa c cululttural shshhhhififififttt t ininini theee
ususu e e ofofofof ooo ourururur p p prorr duductctctss s ananannddd d bubububuilildidingngs.s.”” CCCamamamererononon SS SSininninclclc aiairr r
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“We have a genuine need for consumption: Pleasure, beauty and ‘no’ will not solve the problem. People don’t want to get
out of cars. The car is not a failure, but rather a success as a design. The damage on the environment is the real failure.”Bruce Mau
GREEN CONSUMPTION
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“A more sustainable development requires - not altruism – but an understanding of causes and effects, perhaps even a little fear. Somehow, we need to be touched on a personal level; to worry about the wellbeing of our children and grandchildren, before we are genuinely
concerned. Only few people are able to fathom sustainability as a question of saving the planet for the planet’s own sake.”
Steinar Mowatt Valade-Amland
“More and more companies want to generate both profit and social impact. Now, when I present the idea of social invest-
ment, people understand it instantly. That tells me that there has been a change and people are up for it.“ Ademola Adesina
IS SUSTAINABILITY REAL?
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“Susstat inabilitity y y isis a an imimperativev . But inn the reaall world d it iis s onlyl aa c chohoicice e fofofor thhoso e who can afa -ford it.” ”
PeP teeer r Bysted
“I“I t hihhinknn ‘eco frff ieendly’ productss w wwilili l be arounnd d for quite a while. It is thhe fifirsrsst tt massive shift I have seen in prod-ucuctsts andnd aa fewew c colold d wiwintntnterrs s will notot kkill it. Therere ee isis sso o mumuchh research that validates the eco problem and climate chhangege. ThThe e dedeesisigngngn c cchahalllll eenengegeg I seee n nowow iis s hohoww too develop a communications stratet gy tthah t t shhifififtst thhe way we
(s(sococieietyty) ) acact.tt TTheh re are so o maanyny m mesessasas gegges ss ouuo t t ththhere e,e so o hohow ww cacaan n thththesesese e bebee ssstrtt eaeae mlmlini edd andnd ttaiilolorered dd totto creatte ee hthhe impact requqq irreded to geeneneeraraatete a aa s socociaiial l momovev mem ntn iin respsponse tto o clllimiimate change?”?””
Emma Loades
“I tthihihinknk the desire fofofor r chchanannge is reealal i in n momostst p peoeoplplle,e, bbut ffewew a arere willing gg tototototo take the radical consequeenncncesees tthahat t arare e rereququirirededd. susuchch a as sgivingngg up flying,g buying imported foood,d, eeeeetctctctc. . OfOfteten,n, ppeoeoplple e ththinink k ththata
buying organic mmmili k isiis enough”. Ademmola AdAdA esesinina
“Most companies are committing random acts of greenness — a disconnected set of initiatives, sometimes impres-sive ones, but not really a strategy. The question they need to ask is whether they’re moving the needle, both for their companies and the planet, or whether it’s too little, too late.”
Joel Makower
“Waste management of certain products has become difficult to deal with. Awareness just stops at the fact that we know we
have a problem, but there is minimal drive to put systems and policies in place to deal with it.”Eric Anane-Antwi
IS IT ALREADY TOO LATE? Quite a few of the people we listened to say they are worried that the plane has crashed already into the mountain: Irreparable dam-age has happened.
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“Most companies are committing random acts of greenness — a disconnected set of initiatives, sometimes impres-sive ones, but not really a strategy. The question they need to ask is whether they’re moving the needle, both for their companies and the planet, or whether it’s too little, too late.”
Joel Makower
“Waste management of certain products has become difficult to deal with. Awareness just stops at the fact that we know we
have a problem, but there is minimal drive to put systems and policies in place to deal with it.”Eric Anane-Antwi
IS IT ALREADY TOO LATE? Quite a few of the people we listened to say they are worried that the plane has crashed already into the mountain: Irreparable dam-age has happened.
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“Change occurs with the conception or actuality of catastrophe. It is only because we think we are in a disaster we do something about it.”
Richard Saul Wurman
“We cannot keep 20 percecentntt off ththe e e woworlrld’d s popopupulatiion prosppering (and dying from m well-being) while the rest sufferrs s in debt bebehihindnd t traradede bbararriers, leading to some oof f the most tragic conflicts of our time.” ”
Jesper Nørgaard Pagh
”We are in a bottle neck. We won’t have this problem forever. We will hit9 billion people in about 50 years or so, and then the growth will stop. After that, we will be less people again. Buut how do we get people, spe-
cies etc. through this period?” Bruce Mau
“Sustainability has been around for over 20 years, but it has taken time for the concept to sink in and now we are getting there. It is like everything else. For example, in the beginning nobody used
seatbelts in a car, and now almost no one gets into a car without strapping themselves in. Or take smoking – for years we knew smoking is dangerous, but it isn’t until recently that people have begun to stop smoking. Similarly, I believe behaving in a way that enhances sustainability will become part of our life.”
Pamela Hartigan
“70 or 80 years from now people will look back at this period of history and understand that this was a crucial, pivotal time They will conclude that there were many factors involved, including de-
mographic trends, the emergence of new world orders, climate change, the im-pact of new information and connectivity technologies on the mindsets of the young, and so on. Historians will also argue that this was a second Renaissance period, although the new thinking, the new science and the new growth clusters once again emerged in some surprising places. 2009 may well be seen to rank alongside 1929, 1939 and 1989 in terms of watershed moments in our collective history.”
John Elkington
g “In 2015, we will have 700 million people moving!into the middle class worldwide. That is two USA’s!
The capacity to solve the problems will have to be quite The capacity to solve the problems will have to be quiteimpressive, thus making the capacities a part of the prob--lem themselves.”bruce mau
SUSTAINABILITY
Open source and sharing is not a new idea. Digitalization, however, which gives millions of people access to the same information at the same time, is new. This democratization is
massive and many digital products and programs are designed for change, many are contributing. The technological tools becoming very cheap and people being able to use them is bound to lead to radical change.
OPEN SOURCE & DEMOCRATIZATION
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“OOpep nn source is most probably the mmost powerrfufufull l annanddd d inininnonn vavatit ve develoloopment in globaal l citizenship inn t the pasast t 10010000 yyears, and iitt is a rerereressususultltlt oo o ooff ff increasingngngg s sssocococociaiaiaialll l awawawawarenneess and soooccial entrepreneuuurrshhip arararouundn thehe globe.”””.”
Jacquess Langgee
“OOuurr iiiiinnnntimmaacyyyy wwwwiiiilll bee cccchhhhalllleenged tttoooo aaan eexxxtttrreeemmeeee..”””” AAAllexexee B Blancchh
“T“TThhehe hh huguguge oppoortrtrtunununititityy y fofor r desisiggn and innovations is tto innovate ourselves oout ofofof w whah t we iinnnovatateded ooourururseseselvlveess i intnto”o
ArArnooldldldd WW Wasasa serman
“It is like being in 1981 and asking; are personal computers going to fade away?”
Joel Makower
“In the early days of computing, there was a community that shared and discussed everything regarding computers, but then came the let’s-make-this-a-business era and now we have the wildly competitive ecosystem that is Silicon Valley. Study the work of economists like Nikolai
Kondratiev and Joseph Schumpeter, and it is clear that the cycles of innovation and entrepreneurship, of industrial revolution and creative destruction, will rise and fall - often at the same time”.
John Elkington
WILL OPEN SOURCE LAST? Democratization and sharing offer huge possibilities for creating positive change and breakthrough innovations. Open source seems to be in its childhood now and most say they believe it will undergo immense chances and developments but stay around for a long time … as in always.
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“Thanks to open source, there is definitely a grow-ing focus on transparency in business and practice,
which encourages better ethics.” J. Carl Ganter
“There has to be motivation for the open-source thought. There is a tendency for blogs to be read only by bloggers. But it is
very real for the people involved” Ged Davis
TRANSPARENCY NOW! Bloggers are evaluating brands. Customer experiences, scandals are leaked and everything is accessible online in a split-second. Communication cannot be controlled and the smallest negative blog post can set off an avalanche. Corporations are forced to adapt to this new dynamic.
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“The wwweb is the neneeww w coocommmmmmunununititity y y ccec ntre. Where pepeeople used to meet in the vvvillalaagegege c c chuhuhurcrcrchh,h, t thehey y nononow w w memm et on the web.b..”
David Kester
“T“The aggreegated d d knknknowowowledgdge and skilllsls oof f ththe e woworld’s s populatit onn are ala most infifinin te. ItIt’s the e bobordr ers of patatentst , trade limits and corpo-ratetete sssilililosoo tthhat arre keepping g us down.””
Jesper NNørgaard Pagh
“Self-fabricated products are predicted to save re-sources and energy; since you only make what you
need at home, there is no over- or under-production, no inventorying, packaging or shipping.” Arnold Wasserman
“When people start seeing the money and other possibilities related to ideas, etc. they will start re-assessing.“
Tore Kristensen
BUSINESS IMPACT OF OPEN SOURCE
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“Businesses are frightened by open souource approaachchess bbecause they don’t fit their business models whicchh are based oon intnteellectuaal l property.”
PaPameela HHarartigann
“Businesses will find otherer w wayays s ofof m makkakiiing profits. All services in the future will be fffree of costt. J Jusustt like ffreeee e email and free information, the future holldsd free banking, traveeel, ffood, education, hospitality,
news, entertainment - any seervice yoy u can think ofof.”” SuSudhdhdhirir SSShahah rmrmrmaaa
“The Democratization of Innovation is spreading. Economics favors user-based design under many conditions. With the passage of time, many producer-bases d design departments will be displaced by dis-
tributed user designgn commuunnitiiese .”Eric Von Hippel
“The notion of getting your things from stores and brands is here to stay. Stores make products easier to find and brands establish a sense of trust. Other channels have their place, but I don’t see many buying
an open source developed pacemaker from a no name shop. Sometimes you simply want the best there is.”
Erik Almenberg
“Open source will see companies less controlling, with a greater deal of sharing and collaboration. Businesses will let the consumers in, and that is new. There will be greater mind-sharing.”
Simon Roberts
“Therere are aa llotot oof f fofounundations,s corpooraratitiononons ss ananand d dd veveveventntntururu e e ee cacacaapipipip tatatalll--ists sstatartrtinng g toto invest t inn o open sos urce. ItIt i is s ababouout t mamakikingng a a c cchahahangnge e inin t thee wwororldld.”
AlAlanan W Webebbbebeerrr
© Torben Stroyer/Polfoto
OPEN SOURCE & DEMOCRATIZATION
With a few exceptions, education is still building on the idea that a teacher’s job is to know everything and teach it. This strategy worked fine when knowledge and information were
inaccessible and development was slower. It works far less well in a world of fast changes, interconnectivity and knowledge-sharing. At the same time, information is far from equally distributed lead-ing to a growing gap in accessibility between the developed and developing worlds.
EDUCATION
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“Edududucacacattitional sysy tems neee d to chaangnge. T They are oouou dtdatatateed and dddo o o not relate to totoodadaday’y’y’s s s life.”
SSSudhir Shahaharrmrmaaa
“The way we are measuring education iss r rididiculous. Foror e exxaxample, the PiPP sa testing sysystetem is just hardcore knowledge-testing aandnd d does not coonnsididder a persoon’n’s s ability and will-ingness to contribute, nor does itt c cononsisideder r making usee o off f tht e person’s knowledge in a
meaningful way to society or a company. ThThatat i is s hoow w you would testt a product in a manufacturing company. And that does not make sensse e whwhenen y yoou deal with people.”
LaLavrvrv aans Løvlie
“““We live in a a wowoworlrlr d with much-accelerated chhhananangegege a a andnn it t t isisis hh hard fof r education tototo c c cata ch up.” SSiSimmomon Roberts
“Thee e educational systems of thththe e e ddedevveloped world arre e betttterer t ttaiaiailololored tototo t t thhehe n nneeee ds ooofff tototomomom rrowww t thahahann thththoso e of the developinng gg wwoworld.”
CoCosmas Okolili
ARE WE EDUCATING THE RIGHT WAY?
45
WHAT IS MISSING IN EDUCATION?
“The most inteterereststingg technooloogyg is thee huhumaaann n brbrbraiain.n IIt t is wheherer itt tall starts. And wewe doon’t knoww a thing abbouo t itttsss cacaapapabibilil ttiess yyet.”
Richharara d d SaSaulul WWurrmamann
“The education system doesn’t teach emotional intellligigennce.”
Chrris Jordrdanan
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“I make a living based on what I learned outside school and from daydreaming in school while some teacher tried to knock the row of kings into my head.”
Lars Lusenberg Nielsen
“In general, we see and learn a lot online nowadays and of course education has to follow that trend.” Ged Davis
SELF-LEARNING
With the Internet and the possibilities of getting information in mind, there is a great opportunity for self-learning. When the Mas-sachusetts Institute of Technology makes curriculums available online it is quite a radical step, but on the other hand you get the full studying environment and meet the professors only if you go to MIT.
“Hollywood stars earn zillions and teachers very little. It says something about our priorities.”
Pamela Hartigan
“Hollywood stars earn zillions and teachers very little. It says something about our priorities.”
Pamela Hartigan
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“I never liked strict teachers, but at the same time too much freedom is dangerous. You should not just give the freedom to create – you should guide, mentor, enforce concepts, ideas, dogma and instill passion.”
Karim Rashid
“Business and academia need to work closer together to design secondary and tertiary cur-ricula. They need to understand each other’s needs better.”
Emma Loades
“We should be preparing students for jobs that don’t exist yet – jobs that use technologies that haven’t been invented in order to solve problems we don’t even know are problems yet.”
Arnold Wasserman
HOW CAN EDUCATION BE IMPROVED?
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“There are great possibilities for cross-cultur-al and cross-generational learning.”
Hael Kobbaayasa hi
“When I teach, I don’t teach the students as much as they have to find out on their own. It is more about guidance than tradi-tional teaching.”
Petz Scholtus
“MManany yoyounu g g pepeopo lee, ata least in my perceptptioion,n, aarere missingng the classisical refef rencces, thhe e underpinninggs of thought and personal ethos.”
J. Carl Ganter
EDUCATION
As companies look for tools to foresee and adapt to change, many turn to design and innovation for possible solutions. To some extent, the terminologies have started merging and are
treated as the same. We asked people to define the two words and it turned out that there is no guaranteed correlation between the term “innovation” and how it relates to design. This is what we heard.
INNOVATION
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“Without design there cannot be innovation. But without innovation there can be design. It is called bad design.”
Cameron Sinclair
“Design and innovation are related and interdependent, but they are distinctly different concepts – one is an attitude (innovation) while the other is a skill (design).”
Jacques Lange
“We need to distinguish between the kind of innovation that designers could/should be involved in (the professional aspect) and innovation as a basic human activity (the reason we’re not still living in caves).”
Patrick Whitney
“Innovation gives us new processes that influence how we solve prob-lems”
Hael Kobayashi
WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DESIGN AND INNOVATION?
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“’Innovatitiononn’ is a worrd d that tthehehe b busussininesese s s cocoommm--munity undnddersttanands aand lovves. It seeems to hahahaveveve mm mororore ee tototo dd doo o wiwiwiththth ss scicic enenncecece aandnd enginneering
thanan witth h ae tsthhetics aanndd experiience. TThe iirony heree is that mooossst peeople adore ththe e aestheticscs a annd expxperience pap rts – thososo e arre tht e ones tthahaat resoonate with ththem. But ifif busi-neeessss wanntss to ususe e ththe wwword innnnovation, thah t’s fine. AAs long as wwwe aggree e that wwhatt t wwwe’re alll really talkiking here ababout is deessiign thhinkking.”
AAllan Chocochinov
“D“D“Desesigiign n iiis aaa ppowowere ful l iingr dediieennt in innovavav tion, butt nonot t ththhe e ononly oone!””
Erik Almenene berg
“Innovovatatiooonn is the reealization oof potentiaal. This can be achchhieeveved throough designg .”
Marielle NNadal
“Don’t telell me wwhat will hhapappepenn inin t thehe ffututurure –– yoyoyouu u wiwiwillllll b bbeee wrwrwrononong.g.g. W W Whahatt t yoyoy u really wwant to know is:: W WWhahat t are the forcees that willl ccreate change in n tththee fututure?”
Arrnonold WWasasseserman
INNOVATION
DESIGN
It is important for designers to understand that more often than not, the challenges of this world is quite complex and it is only when we embrace this complexity that we truly are
able to solve them. This is, of course, likely to lead to designers working in interdisciplinary teams in order to provide real solu-tions to the actual challenges of this world.
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“Young designers must acknowledge their power to improve and save lives
on our planet from Day One of their careers.” Omar Vulpinari
Design to Improve Life is a subset of design, not preoccu-pied only with form and aesthetics. Design to Improve Life is about designers realizing that when you have the ability to
respond, then maybe you also have the responsibility to do so. In INDEX:, we call this “RespondAbility”.
DESIGN TO IMPROVE LIFE
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“As a designerer y youou h havave e a a reresps ononsisibibililityty a andnd I fifindnd iit t imimpoportr ant to thih nk about whhatat mmasass s prp ododucuctitionon canan d do o toto/f/foror tthehe w wororldld aand hhow it can become richer,r, m morore e inindidivividudual, fofor r ininststanancece wwheenn iit’ss combined d with
other means of productioion.n.“ Hella Joongerius
“Not even the Leonardo da Vincis of totodaday y can n bebeatat t thee iintnter-disciplinary team.”
BiBillll MMogo grgriddgege
THREE PARAMETERS MAKE UP THE EVALUATION CRITERIA OF DESIGN TO IMPROVE LIFE
1. FORMThe parameter form deals with the formal aspects of design, e.g. what you can feel, touch and see. When form is assessed, INDEX: looks into shape, material, color, consistency, interface, aesthetics, etc. In addition to this parameter – a criterion INDEX: shares with other design awards -- INDEX: further assesses design in two other tests.
2. IMPACTThe parameter impact deals with the effectiveness of the design, e.g. the design’s dynamic and positive con-tribution to the world. When impact is assessed, INDEX: looks into relevance, function, potential distribution, level of innovation, economy, sustainability, user-friendliness, the scope of the solution.
3. CONTEXTThe parameter context deals with the arena the design addresses and in which the design is expected to func-tion. Context includes the problem addressed by the design and accounts for the number of people effected by the problem, the level of urgency, the culture, geography, infrastructure, ethics of the community.
EVALUATING DESIGN TO IMPROVE LIFE
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“T“TTheheherrere will alwawaysys b be e aa a nnenn ed foro craftsmmenen andnd style designers, bubut tt mamany desiggnenersr aaarerere m m mmoroorore e cocorprporrate engiginen errs s ddesigning whole cocompmpana ies from thehe iinsnsididde e e ouout.” ”
DaDD vid Kester
““““DDDDeeeesssiiigggn has bbeeccoomme stttaaarrr-drriivveeenn aannd is bbbeeeiiinngggg ccuuratedd aand aucttiioneeddd aaasss aaarrt.”
JJensnsns M MMararartitit nn SkSkibbststed
DESIGN AND DESIGNERS TODAY
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“Service design tot day is where industrial l dedesisigngn was in the 1920s -- humanizing technology for pepeopoplele ”.”
Lavrans LLøvlie
“If you look back iin tt thehehe hh hisisistototoryryy of deesisiggn, you will not be impressed with whatat i iis hahahahappppppeening today.What we see as Creative Desiigngnn t tododo ay is mostly
due to advances in material sciences , mannnufufaacturing and computer technology .”
Sivam Krish
“Desigigigign iss wwwwono derfulllylyyy cc cononseseseservr atatatativivivive. It iss abobout peopleeeee, , , , anand d dd pepepeopopleleee d d d dononn’t’t’tt c c hahaangngngnge mumumuch or r tetend to behavvvvve eee in the sammmme e e e waway.y.y.y. I Inn ththththata wwwwaya , dessign
is a constant science.” ” ””BiBilllll M Moggggriddgeg
“Desigign thinnkikingn is mumuchch t talked aba out.t. I I d do,o, h however, think it is not mumuchch d ifferentnt f from already uncoovevered ththininkiking lliki e adapapctc ivve, syn-theteticic, lateral ththinkingg etc.”
Jenss Mara tin Skibsted
“Design iss a tool for transformation.” Sali Sasaki
“Design is pushing the idea that people are in the center and design is the humanizer that makes us buy what we need and not loads of stuff we don’t understand or need. “
Simona Maschi
“Design thinking is much talked-about. I do, however, think it is not much different from already uncovered thinking – like adaptive, synthetic, lateral thinking, etc.”
Jens Martin Skibsted
“The next big thing within the world of design will be mixed reality: greater convergence of design, media, communications and comput-ing; “design” scoped in its full spectrum from ‘placemaking,’ ‘object-
making’ and ‘imagemaking’” Milton Tan
““It’s taken a while for ‘design research’ to come intoto its own aas a dididiss-tinct discipline, but it’s regrettable that we’re only now recognizing its true value. Good designers always did design research.”
Allan Chochinov
“Thhhe collaboration between different ddisssiscipliinines iis important in or-ded rrr r to make proper use of available techchnnonon loooggygg . In thih s process, de-sssigngngnn can play a key role as bridge builderr.”.””
Lavrv ans LøL vlvlie
We used to compete with our classmates, but now we are competing with the world. It’s almost as if you have to check Google to see if someone has done it before you and the
chances are that many have. So the question is not only whether you have the ability to come up with the right design, but, just as important, whether you can make it happen in the real world.
GLOBALIZATION AND DESIGN
“Designers around the world are trying to get it. As soon as they get it, 10 others
probably also get it. Or 1,000 chinese already have it. Being first matters greatly.” Chris Jordan
“Some of the bigger design companies with pedigrees are doing really bad designs today. Instead of designing they are prioritizing communication strategies. It’s like they don’t know what to do in a world that’s not stable, but instead globalized, fast and dynamic.”
Tore Kristensen
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DESIGN EDUCATION
“Firrstsst of all, designers should have a far mmoro e solid educattiion inin ssciciennntit fic tthiinknkining.g TTThiihihis s does not mmmeae n thatat theyy becommmeee scss ientists, but they should deeepeply understand how scscieencnce ee apaa proaachcheses r reaealiitytytyt , hohohohow w it sshhhapepep ss s ououour r rworld visionnn andndnd its deep influence on technon logy.”
AlAlexex B BBlalalancncnchhh
65
DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY
“Deese igigign n n prpractititicececece, , bybyy i i itststs n naatururure,e,e,e, iii s all abbabout inteention – – whatt we’re tryyyy---iing to do,o w what weweweew ’rr’ree e trtryiyiingngng t t to maaakekek , whhhataa we’e’re tryinng tooo solve. BuBuBuBut tetetett chc nonononolologyggy – – o r ththe e mamarcrchh of ttecechhnololoogy – – – can n takee placce wittthhhoh utt
inininntetentioioionnn; i it’t’s s jjujj ststst a aa aannn immpeperar tiveve, momovivingng oo oon aand d oon. The pprp oblelemm is tthhah t thththoughghghh mumumumuum chchchc of techchhnonononollogigicacalll ininninnovaatitionon i is s a a wowondnderer, , ththe consequeences of thosose ee e iininnonovavva-titit onono s sss offofftetetetenn gogo u unmnmnmmonitored, unnnmemeeasured... . ununapprprprprece iated. WWWe e e arare e seseseeieingnng aa g ggrrreat didivivividedede b betetweweweweenenn w w wwhhah t we “can””” d do o anaa d what wwee “ougggghththtt to” dddo o rir gght t nnnonow w ––– from coconsnssumumumuumerer s ssococo ieetytyty t o energy pppololicicy y tooo health caree a and soccciaiaiaal l seseservrvr iiccees. TThhhheesese are sosososommemm of thththe e grgrg eaeaeatettetet st tensions s inin ouru wororo ldld r right now, anand they aaallll cccaall oouuuut t tt fofoor bet-ter, more sennsibiblelelee d dddesee ign.”
AlAlA lalan n ChChocococo hinov
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“T“TTThehehh wworldddld iis s ss fufuullllll o ooof f tetechchnologygyy yyyou ccanan dddo o annyty hiinngng witith. Thee keyeye questtioioion nn is whyh andd fofofofor r rr whwhwhwhomomomom! !! ! I I ththttt inininink k weww ssshohohoouululuuld ddd d bubububuilililild dddd fofor use e rar thhhherer tt thaahah n bububuililldd d anand dd finfinfind use.”
SiSiSimmon nn RoRobertss
“DDDiaiaialololologuguuue e ee isissis a a a ggooooood d ststarartiingnggg p oiintntn f foro gggettetttit ngg s s icicienentiti tststs s anand d d desiiigngngn-errss toto w wororkkk k tottttogegeg thththerer. . A A lolott ofof ggooood d opoppoporttununnnititititieieieies ss ararree e ofoffteteteet n nn loosttst in nntrrranana slslslslaaatatioioioion.nn ” ”
JeJeJJ sspspererrr N NN Nørørørgagag ararard d PaPaPaghghghgh
“Seventy-five percent of the world’s s desis gng ers are being educated in the West, yet 75 percent of the work needed is in developing na-tit ons.” ”
Cameron Sinclair
“There is s non t t ennouough effort puut t inintot eduucac tingng older geneeraratitionons s aba out tetechc nology” -
HaHael KKobo ayashi
“You need to specialize. Choose for instance to be the best knitter in the world. It may be a very tiny
field, but it’s the only way to become very good. So my credo: Don’t try to improve only the fields in which you are not good, but become better at what you are already good at. I never hire a generalist.”
“Through my educational experience, design becomes a phenomenon rather
than talent and skills.”
Hella Jongerius
Hani M. Al-Huneidi
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“When hiring, we look for the T-shaped designer.”
Bill Moggridge
“Designers are often behind the ‘green door’. When you open the green door there are hammocks, table ten-nis and all that ‘creative’ stuff. So design is often shut in behind the ‘green door’ and that is not the best way to integrate design in organizations.”
Sabine Junginger
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“Many users today cannot design pro-ducts as well as can professional de-
signers, but user-friendly design toolkits will help them improve their results in future.” Eric von Hippel
“There are of course aspects of this that are very threatening for the design world. On the other hand, Tiger Woods is not threatened when an amateur picks up a golf club and the crowds have no trouble deter-
mining which is the professional.”Richard Grefé
DESIGNERS, TRAINED AND SELF-MADE
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DESIGN IS TO BLAME
“HHooww ccaan we ssttiillll lloook at dessiiggnn only iinn tterrmmss off bbeeaauttyyyy,, ffuunnctiionn andd maar-
kkket appppppppppeeaal, ass wwwwwee diiddd 15 years aggoo?” Omar Vulpinari
“With the end of Wororld War II and its scarcity, disposability be-came a marketable design feature. Instead of repairing and keeping things, more and more we began to use them, throw them away and
replace them, ever faster, with the next improved version.“ Arrnon lddd WWasasasses rman
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“There is a theory that people should adapt to technology in order to have a better life. This is totally wrong; technology should adapt to peo-ple and make life better.“
Simona Mashi
“Design should solve for change.” Bill Moggridge
THE ROLE OF DESIGN
“The philosophy of the Buddha was about being in sympathy with nature – NOT the Western mentality of overriding it. If you extend this philosophy into the new age of science - it is about building things in sympathy with the nature of materials and processes and being able
to delight in its simplicity “Sivam Krish
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“Designers should do what they are good at and not all that other stuff.”
Christian Madsbjerg
e“The role of design has always been to humanize technologies – to interpret them.”
Patrick Whitney
s “Great designers are often great innovators, but in reality design’sgreater role is as a nexus point or facilitator of innovation.”
Russel Kennedy
t“Design can push Ghana beyond the term ‘appropriate technology’ which only seeks to meet our present needs, but not what will sustain us for the future.”
Eric Anane-Antwi
Ademoloa Adesina | Business Development Executive | AquiferAlan Webber | Founding editor | Fast CompanyAlex Blanch | Senior lecturer | PUC Design College in Santiago de Chile Allan Chochinov | Partner/Editor | Core 77
THANK YOU:
Bill Moggridge | Industrial Designer and Co-founder | IDEOBruce Mau | Designer and Creative Director | Bruce Mau DesignCameron Sinclear | Co-founder | Architecture for HumanityChris Jordan | PhotographerChristian Madsbjerg | Partner | ReD AssociatesCosmas Okoli | Chief Executive Officer | Mobility Aid Appliances Research and Devolopment, NigeriaDavid Kester | CEO | UK Design CouncilEmma Loades | Manager | World Economic ForumEric Anane-Antwi | Lecturer | Design & Illustration | Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, GhanaEric Von Hippel | Professor and Head of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Goup at the MIT Sloan School of managementErik Almenberg | Principal Experience Planner | Motorola
Hael Kobayashi | Producer/Executive ConsultantHani M. Al-Huneidi | Deputy Dean | College of Architecture & Arts, Petra, Amman, JordanHeather Martin | Designer | Co-founder of Copenhagen Institute of Interaction DesignHella Jongerius | Designer | JongeriuslabJ. Carl Ganter | Journalist and cofounder | Circle of BlueJacques Lange | Designer and Past President | IcogradaJens Martin Skibsted | Designer | Skibsted IdeationJesper Nørgaard Pagh | Partner and designer | MOVE, Denmark
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Ged Davis Co-President of the Global Energy Assessment Council
Arnold Wasserman Founder IdeaFactory
Joel Makower | Author and Head of Green for AllJohn Elkington | Founding Partner & Director, Volans VenturesKarim Rashid | Industrial designerLars Lusenberg Nielsen | Senior Designer, Design ConsultantLavrans Løvlie | Founding Partner | Live|WorkMarielle Nadal | Executive Director | Ideals CreativesMarshall McLuhan | Author, Educator & Cultural CriticMilton Tan | MICA Fellow at the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (MICA), SingaporeOlle Zachrisson | Founder | SmartStuffOmar Vulpinari | Creative director | Visual Communication Department at Fabrica | Vice President of IcogradaPamela Hartigan | Director of the Skoll Centre for Social EntrepreneurshipPatrick Whitney | Director of the IIT Institute of Design, ChicagoPeter Bysted | Rector | The Danish Design SchoolPetz Scholtus | Sustainable designer Richard Grefé | Excutive director | AIGARichard Saul Wurman | Information Architect | Founder of TEDRussell Kennedy | Senior Lecturer Visual Communication, Monash University |President Elect, Icograda Sabine Junginger | Lecturer and Assistant Professor | Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts Sali Sasaki | Designer and illustrator | In charge of FCISimon Roberts | Professor of Law | London School of Economics, LondonSimona Maschi | Co-founder | Copenhagen Institute of Interaction DesignSivam Krish | CEO and Co-Founder of GenometriSteinar Mowatt Valade-Amland | Managing Director, Danish Designers Sudhir Sharma | Director | Elephant Strategy + DesignTore Kristensen | Associate professor | Copenhagen Business School
INDEX: DESIGN TO IMPROVE LIFE
INDEX: 2009 is under the patronage of HRH the Crown Prince of Denmark.
INDEX: Partner City: Singapore.
INDEX: is supported by The Danish Ministry of Economic and Business Affairs, JL-Fondet,
The Marketing Denmark Fund, The Capital Region of Denmark and the Confederation of Danish Industry.
INDEX:
Interviews conducted by: Gunnar Näsman
Grafic design: Gunnar Näsman & Hofdamerne
Print: Illemann Tryk
Printed in Denmark
Number printed: 1500
January 2009
DESIGN TO IMPROVE LIFE
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Quotes
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Contradictions
Quotes
&
Contradictions
IND
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: Quo
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