Towards Sustainable Design Development

Time

8 October, 2015

Location

AHO Auditorium 3

This research seminar primarily explores radical approaches to pressing matters of climate change, the transformative potential of design and new strategies for making and research. As a continuation of discussions held at different events and projects, design scholars have for a while been talking about the urgent need to widely advocate a more general approach and critical approach to Sustainable Design. This seminar takes this up directly.

This two day seminar will bring together design researchers that already have these issues high on their own agenda and already acknowledge that we can’t ‘grow’ our selves out of this predicament. Development as we know it – and as championed in the west/north – has successfully exported a global single-lane path to prosperity that again and again has proved to be inherently unsustainable. Based on this, in this seminar we will discuss the following matters:

How can we move from knowledge about the need for radical change to effecting actual change? How can we move from Sustainable Design (sustaining what?) to a more radical transformative design? How can we move away from Development (as we know it) to what we tentatively can label ‘Real Progress’ and what role is there for design?

The event will include short presentations but primarily share and build knowledge about how we as a design community best can contribute to the change (of the change).

The presenters are:

Dr. Mathilda Tham from Goldsmith in London and Linnæus University in Sweden, will talk about Learning for change and how we can educate for futures of sustainability.

Prof. Håkan Edeholt from the Oslo School of Architecture and Design will talk about what kind of visions we need for direction and ask what kind of concrete activities that could entail.

Prof. Mugendi K. M’Rithaa from CPUT in Cape Town and the next president of ICSID will talk about ICSID as a vehicle for addressing these very global challenges.

Prof. Jun Zhang from Hunan University will address challenges and opportunities as seen from a Chinese perspective.

Prof. Andrew Morrison from the Oslo School of Architecture and Design will discuss Design Fiction as a vehicle to explore alternative futures.

Registration:The seminar is free of charge and everyone interested in exploring design’s ability to contribute to an appropriate and positive change of the present climate change is welcome. Please register by sending an email to angelikidimaki@gmail.com . The deadline for registration is 6th of October 2015

Programme

 Thursday 8 Oct

10:00 – 11:00       Socialising and ‘breakfast’ for early birds

11:00 – 12:00       Introduction of the seminar and presentation of participants

12:00 – 13:00       Lunch

13:00 – 14:00       TALKS 1-2: two short presentations and discussions about visions and design education

14:30 – 15:30       WORKSHOP: Identification of appropriate key themes, approaches and activities

15:30 – 17:00       SMALL GROUPS (with refreshments): Concretizing identified themes, approaches and activities

17:00 – 18:00       TALKS 3-4: two short presentations and discussions about global challenges and opportunities

19:00 – late         Social dinner

Friday 9 Oct

08:00 – 09:00       Socialising and ‘breakfast’ for early birds

09:00 – 09:30      TALK 5: a short presentation and discussions about Design Fiction

09:30 – 10:30      SMALL GROUPS (with refreshments): Compiling the themes, approaches and activities to be presented

10:30 – 12:30       Presenting and concluding key goals and directions. Developing a feasible plan of relevant actions

12:30 – 13:30      Lunch and departures

13:30 – ___        Post-seminar wrap up and discussions