Explore DesignShifts
Here, you’ll find the DesignShifts we’re exploring both in theory and in practice. Each topic explores Shifting the posture, power, perspective, practice, and the purpose of design.
DesignShift: From Mindset to Access
DesignShift: From Solving For Symptoms to Changing Systems
“To expect ourselves to change without changing the environment in a dopamine overloaded world is to expect ourselves not to be human.”
Recently I listened to the podcast "The Path to Enough" where the Psychiatrist Anna Lembke discussed the addictive nature of our devices and how our behaviors are influenced by the environment we find ourselves in. As a designer passionate about designing for real human needs, this quote hit home for me.
Through our products and services, we tell people that with the right device or app, they can achieve more or become healthier and happier. However, behind our design solutions are systems that make change next to impossible. We’ve created environments where our jobs and our lives keep us inside for most of the day. We spend 8+ hours at the computer and the pace of work limits our ability to go for a walk or take a break. Yet... we design products and craft messages that tell consumers that all they need to get back in shape is a well-designed fitness tracker on their wrist.
DesignShift: What if… rather than solving for individual symptoms, we started changing the system that is actually holding us back? What if we designed environments are actually conducive to being human?
DesignShift: From How Might We to At What Cost
Good design is a dance between curiosity and criticality. As designers, we love asking, “how might we” but we also have to ask “at what cost.” Design can heal but it can also harm. As designers, we must balance possibilities and responsibilities. We must be curious AND critical.
DesignShift: From Solving to Serving
Designers love to talk about how we’re problem-solvers. We’re not just making things pretty, but we solve COMPLEX problems.
But what if people don’t need us to solve their problems? What if people already have the answers within themselves? What if the people closest to the problem are more equipped than designers to solve things?
DesignShift 4: What would it look like to shift designers from solvers to servers? From heroes to helpers?
What would it look like to de-center ourselves, our frameworks, and our ⬦⬦ processes in service of sustainable change? Could design actually be a way to help other human beings get to their own conclusion?
(This post is inspired by movements like community building/design, co-design, design justice, participatory design)
Let’s shift together
No one knows it all. Together we know a lot. See a Shift that aligns with your current work or passion? What to co-write a shift or host a collaboration session? I would love to connect.