Reading+Analysis

=**Reading Analysis**=

**Ch. 1 - Scoping the Territory: Design, Activism, and Sustainability**
The first Chapter of Design Activism, ‘Scoping the Territory: Design, Activism, and Sustainability’, provides an overview of what Design and activism entails. Faud Luke states that design and activism are malleable, easily borrowed, and corruptible. This is due in part, to the fact that design and activism crosses a range of fields and disciplinary borders. The chapter also highlights the four sustainability dimensions consisting of; Economic, ecological, social and Institutional. Additionally, the author brings the reader’s attention to the manifestations of design to everyday life. “Everyone designs who devices course of action aimed at changing existing situations, into preferred ones (Simon).” As the chapter progresses, the author dedicates a section for the definitions of ‘Activism Today’. Expression of activism has taken pluralistic forms. Hence, activism can belong to social, environmental, or political movements that are localized and or distributed. Based on collective or individual actions with common purpose is to inculcate change that favours their world view, how they see the current paradigm and the associated issues. Activism operates on a variety of forms of capital that contribute in different ways, and by different means. The author highlights the five capitals: Natural, Human, social, Manufactured, and financial. Natural capital is the capital that underwrites every other form of capital. All life springs from the natural capital. Human capital is held in each individual human and is another primary capital. Social, manufactured, and financial capital are derived from the two primary forms of capital; natural and human.

**Ch. 2 - Past Lesson: A short History of Design in Activist Mode: 1750-2000**
The second chapter of Design activism provides a historical account of design activism as it relates to the different eras and movements that have played a key role in changing or altering societal conditions of the time. As Faud Luke stated, design activism is woven into a wider history of design. Whosoever controls the designers – controls the expression and evolution of design culture. Design has occupied the central role as mediator of cultural acceptability and therefore provides a regulatory service in production and consumption. Faud Luke thoughtfully provides the shifting of phases from 1750 in onward. The first phase, 1750 – 1850, heralded developments in agriculture equipment, steam engine, and early models of industrial manufacturing. The second phase, 1851 – 1918, commenced the world’s first trade fair. The Great Exhibition at Crystal Palace represented an industry servicing the production and consumption boom of the European powers as they exploited their colonies for raw materials and labour. The third phase of industrial design, 1918 0 1990, witnessed various design movements and groups juggle for supremacy throughout the 20th century. Among the notable individuals who had a profound impact was William Morris who extolled virtues of new ideas of crafts as a means to promote social cohesion. Morris was one of the founders of the British Arts and Crafts Movement whose intent was to contribute positive social change through improved designs of artefacts, textiles, wallpapers, and buildings. The Art Nouveau commenced in the first decade of the 20th century as a means to communicate the powers of design as a vehicle for improving people’s lives. In short, the author states that design activism today may have to mult- task by focusing on saving society, the environment, and the future of design.

**Ch. 3 – Global-Local Tensions: Key Issues for Design in an Unsustainable World**
Chapter three highlights the key issues that designers need to engage with in our changing world. The profound changes to our global environment, human condition and the man-made and natural world have come abruptly. Based on current trends, the consequence of these changes will be a reduction in biodiversity and a deterioration of the essential life-giving support received from the global ecosystems. The actions of humans have caused the destruction of tens of thousands of the estimated 5-10 million species that coexist with humans. Furthermore, we now have a difficult task to balance the earth’s ability to provide biological sustenance with the ever increasing human population. The issue of global warming only exacerbates the ongoing issues.

**Ch. 5 - Designing Together: The Power of ‘We Think’. ‘We Design’, ‘We Make’**
Globalization has changed the perceptions and behaviours of the population. This is especially evident in the 1.4 billion internet users. Since post 1970’s, the distribution of industrial, post-industrial and industrialized societies have had profound changes. China has become a key player in the world once dominated by Europe and North America. This is due in part to the cheap labour that China is known for and the ability for rapid flows of people, money, raw materials, finished products, and information ideas. The author states that the speed of transition is remarkable and does not permit time to catch breath. Society has become desensitized to change as one manifestation of globalization is superseded by another. Hence change has been normalized and consequently the fast paced temp of daily life. The author defines Sustainability as a ‘wicked problem’, coined by Horst Rittel in the 60’s, it is a class of social problems which are ill-formed, where information confusing, where clients and decisions makers have conflicting values, and where the consequences of the whole system have become confusing. If sustainability presents itself as the most challenging wicked problem of the present day, then the author calls for participation in design as a means to transformative, socio-political change.

**Chapter 7: adaptive Capacity: Design as a Societal Strategy for Designing ‘Now’ and ‘Co-futuring’**
The closing chapter of Design Activism provides a synopsis of what the author wanted to convey – the role of design has been about giving forms to the ‘concurrent’ industrial, consumer and information economies, interconnected within a greater globalized economy. Hence design makes the material forms of these economies culturally acceptable. Moving forward, as we look at man-made artifacts, we are ‘gazing’ on an aesthetic that represents collectively endorsed visions of ‘beauty’ verified as economically viable. However, the author stresses, that the reality of this ‘beauty’ such as the car or the iPod, from modern housing development to the supermarket, is that it does not reflect ‘true economics for it only reflects a market price, economic growth in the form of GDP. These economic metrics do not reveal the true ecological and social costs. The author illustrates the super market as the epitome of capitalistic success – the packaging entices the buyer, celebrates the brand, and assures the consumer of satisfaction. However, the effects of the supply chain, the working conditions of laborers and factory workers. The destruction of habitat or ecological capacity; the water footprint and energy required to manufacture. The carbon footprint including ‘food miles’, the chemical additives that deceptively enhance the food; and the potential illnesses that consumers are exposed to as the result of unhealthy foods needs contesting. In short, Faud Luke, is telling us that this beauty will not sustain us in the future.