Lecture German Design Council Speaker
MY LECTURE At GERMAN DESIGN COUNCIL.
For all those who want to deal with or discuss issues of social sustainability.
The conference "Shaping Society! Social Sustainability through Design" focuses on hitherto neglected contexts of social sustainability and spans a wide range of topics such as anti-racism and decolonisation, gender justice and inclusion. All presentations are based on the question "Where is the German design industry today in processes of social sustainability? A one-day conference will give an overview of design in these fields.
When: Tuesday, 13. December // 9:00 am to 5:00 pm
Location: Evangelische Akademie, Römerberg 9, 60311 Frankfurt am Main
Live stream: Participation is possible in presence and online/hybrid (please select when registering).
>> Admission free
Please mind: The event will be held in German language only!
THE ISSUE
All-encompassing social sustainability can only be attained when ecological, economic, and social measures intermesh as factors of equal importance. The “Agenda 2030” formulated by the UN spells out further decisive universal principles calling for a just and sustainable life. The sustainable development of all these closely interconnected aspects is indispensable for a society fit to meet the challenges of the future.
Nearly all sectors meanwhile make use of initial design processes. Designers are being accorded key responsibility and a decisive influence in the shaping of a sustainable world of the future. The services and products they develop have a major impact on how we organize our lives and perceive our environment, how we participate in that environment, and whether we all have equal access to it. When the persons affected are not involved, and when certain needs are neglected in the planning process, it can lead to the exclusion of entire user groups. And where problematic symbols or emblems are used unreflectingly, prejudices and discrimination endure.
Discussions about a sustainable future often revolve around ecology and the economy, side-lining the social factor—along with considerations such as diversity, access, inclusion, equal opportunity, and cultural development. Yet social sustainability can only be achieved where, from the very start, the design process is conceived in terms of mutual respect and appreciation and a form of co-existence in which everyone belongs, in which outward appearances, language, physical/cognitive conditions, cultural origins, and gender play no role.
The aim of the conference is therefore to direct the focus towards this pillar of society, which is still all too often neglected, and to embrace a broad spectrum of topics such as antiracism, decolonialization, gender equality, and inclusion. The lectures will all address themselves to the question “Where does the German design industry stand in social sustainability processes today?” A one-day conference will provide an overview of design in these fields.
https://www.german-design-council.de/aktivitaeten/wissen-bildung/nachhaltigkeits-konferenz
