Einblick - Human-Computer Interaction - # Transforming Design Education and Practice through Post-growth Values

Rethinking Design Education and Society: Exploring Post-growth Values Beyond Efficiency and Convenience

Q: How can design education better prepare students to challenge the prevailing focus on efficiency and convenience, and instead embrace post-growth values?

Design education can better prepare students to challenge the prevailing focus on efficiency and convenience by incorporating a more holistic and critical perspective on the impact of technology on society and the environment. This can be achieved by introducing students to alternative design philosophies, such as post-growth values, that prioritize sustainability, resilience, and human well-being over mere efficiency and convenience. One approach is to encourage students to engage in design projects that require them to consider the long-term consequences of their designs on the environment, society, and individual well-being. By challenging students to think beyond the immediate benefits of efficiency and convenience, they can develop a deeper understanding of the complexities and trade-offs involved in design decisions. Furthermore, design education can emphasize the importance of empathy, ethics, and systems thinking in the design process. Students should be encouraged to consider the needs and values of diverse stakeholders, including future generations and marginalized communities, when designing products and services. By fostering a more inclusive and ethical approach to design, students can develop a greater awareness of the social and environmental implications of their work.

Q: What are the potential barriers and challenges in transitioning design practice towards a post-growth approach, and how can they be addressed?

Transitioning design practice towards a post-growth approach may face several barriers and challenges, including resistance from industry stakeholders, limited awareness of alternative design philosophies, and the entrenched focus on efficiency and convenience in mainstream design culture. One key challenge is the dominant economic paradigm that prioritizes growth and profit maximization, which may hinder the adoption of post-growth values in design practice. To address this barrier, designers and educators can advocate for alternative economic models that prioritize sustainability, equity, and well-being, such as the circular economy or degrowth movement. By promoting these alternative models, designers can demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of transitioning towards a post-growth approach. Another challenge is the lack of awareness and education about post-growth values and their relevance to design practice. Design schools and professional organizations can play a crucial role in raising awareness about these values and integrating them into design curricula and industry standards. By providing training, resources, and support for designers interested in adopting a post-growth approach, the design community can overcome the barriers to change and foster a more sustainable and ethical design practice.

Q: How can the concept of "de-automation" be further explored and applied in other domains beyond the examples provided in the paper?

The concept of "de-automation" can be further explored and applied in other domains by reimagining the role of technology in everyday life and promoting a more balanced relationship between humans and machines. Beyond the examples provided in the paper, designers can explore ways to design products and services that empower users, promote skill-building, and encourage active engagement with technology. For instance, in the field of healthcare, designers can develop medical devices that require patients to actively participate in their treatment, rather than passively relying on automated systems. By designing tools that promote self-care, education, and empowerment, designers can help patients take control of their health and well-being. In the field of education, designers can create learning platforms that prioritize hands-on experimentation, collaboration, and critical thinking, rather than passive consumption of information. By designing interactive and engaging educational experiences, designers can support students in developing essential skills and competencies for the future. Overall, the concept of "de-automation" can be applied across various domains to promote human agency, skill development, and meaningful engagement with technology, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable and equitable society.

Kernkonzepte

Design education and practice should move beyond the focus on efficiency and convenience, and instead embrace post-growth values to foster sustainable transformation in society.

Zusammenfassung

This position paper presents Municipan, a design artifact created by students as part of a design research project. The authors argue that the prevailing human-centered design approach, which is primarily focused on efficiency and convenience, leads to deskilling, technological dependency, and the progression of the climate crisis.

The authors challenge the students to envision an alternative persona, one that is willing to invest time and effort and learn new skills. Municipan, a pan that can only cook a few portions at a time, is the result of this design experiment. The authors suggest that integrating this approach into design education can act as a "nucleus" to bring forth design professionals inclined to create technologies that have the potential to gradually transform society towards post-growth living.

The authors provide examples of such technologies, such as navigation systems that reduce routing assistance, robot vacuum cleaners that only work when the sun is shining, and heating systems that slowly lower indoor temperatures to widen the comfort zone. These designs are based on the assumption that people are willing to learn and invest time, in contrast to the prevailing focus on efficiency and convenience.

The authors believe that design students who have used this alternative persona in their studies are more likely to incorporate post-growth concepts in their future designs, potentially decreasing technological dependence and reducing the resource intensity of everyday life.

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Zitate

"Besides increasing burdens on the planet, delegating capabilities to technology deskills people."
"The logic of technological innovation, which seeks to increase efficiency and convenience through new versions of technology drives consumerism and thus climate change."
"Municipan is not meant to directly function as a bottom-up change towards a postgrowth way of living. Instead, we believe that a bottom-up change can be obtained through the alternative persona that the students engaged with."

Wichtige Erkenntnisse aus

Beyond Efficiency and Convenience. Using Post-growth Values as a Nucleus to Transform Design Education and Society

by Matthias Las... um arxiv.org 04-29-2024

https://arxiv.org/pdf/2404.17264.pdf

Beyond Efficiency and Convenience. Using Post-growth Values as a Nucleus to Transform Design Education and Society

Tiefere Fragen

How can design education better prepare students to challenge the prevailing focus on efficiency and convenience, and instead embrace post-growth values?

Design education can better prepare students to challenge the prevailing focus on efficiency and convenience by incorporating a more holistic and critical perspective on the impact of technology on society and the environment. This can be achieved by introducing students to alternative design philosophies, such as post-growth values, that prioritize sustainability, resilience, and human well-being over mere efficiency and convenience.
One approach is to encourage students to engage in design projects that require them to consider the long-term consequences of their designs on the environment, society, and individual well-being. By challenging students to think beyond the immediate benefits of efficiency and convenience, they can develop a deeper understanding of the complexities and trade-offs involved in design decisions.
Furthermore, design education can emphasize the importance of empathy, ethics, and systems thinking in the design process. Students should be encouraged to consider the needs and values of diverse stakeholders, including future generations and marginalized communities, when designing products and services. By fostering a more inclusive and ethical approach to design, students can develop a greater awareness of the social and environmental implications of their work.

What are the potential barriers and challenges in transitioning design practice towards a post-growth approach, and how can they be addressed?

Transitioning design practice towards a post-growth approach may face several barriers and challenges, including resistance from industry stakeholders, limited awareness of alternative design philosophies, and the entrenched focus on efficiency and convenience in mainstream design culture.
One key challenge is the dominant economic paradigm that prioritizes growth and profit maximization, which may hinder the adoption of post-growth values in design practice. To address this barrier, designers and educators can advocate for alternative economic models that prioritize sustainability, equity, and well-being, such as the circular economy or degrowth movement. By promoting these alternative models, designers can demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of transitioning towards a post-growth approach.
Another challenge is the lack of awareness and education about post-growth values and their relevance to design practice. Design schools and professional organizations can play a crucial role in raising awareness about these values and integrating them into design curricula and industry standards. By providing training, resources, and support for designers interested in adopting a post-growth approach, the design community can overcome the barriers to change and foster a more sustainable and ethical design practice.

How can the concept of "de-automation" be further explored and applied in other domains beyond the examples provided in the paper?

The concept of "de-automation" can be further explored and applied in other domains by reimagining the role of technology in everyday life and promoting a more balanced relationship between humans and machines. Beyond the examples provided in the paper, designers can explore ways to design products and services that empower users, promote skill-building, and encourage active engagement with technology.
For instance, in the field of healthcare, designers can develop medical devices that require patients to actively participate in their treatment, rather than passively relying on automated systems. By designing tools that promote self-care, education, and empowerment, designers can help patients take control of their health and well-being.
In the field of education, designers can create learning platforms that prioritize hands-on experimentation, collaboration, and critical thinking, rather than passive consumption of information. By designing interactive and engaging educational experiences, designers can support students in developing essential skills and competencies for the future.
Overall, the concept of "de-automation" can be applied across various domains to promote human agency, skill development, and meaningful engagement with technology, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable and equitable society.