Thoughts about What I've Read...

So, when we were first assigned the five readings as a part of the introduction to the class, I thought, "oh boyyy." But, the readings really did end up catching my interest and made me want to dive into the class even more. I feel like a nerd, but it really is making me get more excited about the topic of Social Design as a whole. Do Good Design, which talked about how designs should be functional and practical for the issues of today, rather just look pretty -- these designs should serve a purpose (like the new, much more functional emergency signs in the German airport which might actually save lives if it were to go up in flames again). The author made it a clear, apparent point that as designers, WE have to take responsibility for what we make. Max Bill said 90% of a designers efforts should go toward making the design work, while only 10% should go toward making it look good. Might sound silly to some, but shouldn't the main purpose of a design be it's functionality? Min Wang described "good design" as "conducive to the planet and humanity and that is aesthetic and benevolent." I couldn't agree more. The reading also stressed that "creativity can defeat habit" aka creating design to better the world and referring back to the statement that designers have more power than they think -- that their designs CAN make a difference and a change in the world. *"Designers have an essential social responsibility because design is at the core of the world's largest challenges and solutions." Before reading these articles and looking deeper into what social design is, I hadn't viewed designers in this way. One of our biggest challenges today is creating a sustainable future. Designers, Visionaries, and Other Short Stories discusses how design is a "needed, necessary, and valuable process of invention and innovation with the potential to take us to a sustainable society." Potential as in we need to WORK toward making this a reality or it's only going to get worse, and absolutely not better. As human behavior is the reason for all production and consumption, sustainability is (clearly) a challenge -- a design issue for design activists. Which, leads to Design Activism. If only all designers were activists -- using their power of design to better humankind and nature, leading us to a better, healthier, sustainable future. Two quotes that really stuck with me, one from Massive Change and one from Cradle to Cradle are that change is "not about the world of design, it's about the design of the world," and that "design is a signal of intention." It's what we intend to get out of our designs, whether we want it to just sit and look pretty, or if we want it to be stronger than that and have a purpose, to create a possible change in the world, or change the minds of people who could contribute to a positive change in the world. And that ultimately, responsibility for these designs is taken by the designers, because just as we are responsible for our actions, we should be responsible for the affect that our designs have on the world. Personally, I'd rather design and create something that means more than just it's aesthetic value -- even something as small but potentially worldly effective as Michael's idea of recyclable shoes! I think in this case, the possibilities really are endless!