Keynote presentation at the By Design or Disaster conference at the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, 11 March 2017

1. LET’S MAKE
WORK WORK!
BY DESIGN OR BY DISASTER
11 MARCH 2017, UNIBZ
@BRAVENEWALPS
LEEDS COLLEGE OF ART / UNIBZ

2. COMUNfARE
2015 – ONGOING

3. THE GOOD NEWS
More and more designers want to critically and
transformatively engage with pressing social
and environmental issues.
THE BAD NEWS
Design for progressive eco-social change
generally doesn’t pay much, despite the fact
that lots of it would be needed.

4. HOW CAN WE CREATE ECONOMIC CULTURES
THAT MAKE TRANSFORMATIVE WORK
POSSIBLE?
By collectively activating our skills & resources;
in the short as well as in the long-run;
for as many designers as possible.

5. DESIGNINGECONOMICCULTURES.NET
2011 – 2013
PRECARITYPILOT.NET
2014 – ONGOING

6. IF WE WORK, WHERE WE WORK, WITH
WHOM WE WORK, WHAT WE DO AT
WORK, AND HOW LONG WE WORK ARE
SOCIAL ARRANGEMENTS AND HENCE
PROPERLY POLITICAL DECISIONS.
HOW MIGHT MORE OF THIS TERRITORY BE
RECLAIMED AS VIABLE TERRAINS OF DEBATE
AND STRUGGLE?”
KATHI WEEKS, THE PROBLEM WITH WORK (2011), P.35-36
“

9. PROPOSITIONS
TO DISCUSS, EXPAND ON
AND EXPERIMENT WITH:
DIVERSE ECONOMIES,
SOLIDARITY,
STAYING WITH THE TROUBLE,
CIRCULATING THE COMMONS,
AND DESIGN EDUCATION
MAKE WORK WORK

10. DIVERSE ECONOMIES MAKE WORK WORK
ECONOMIC ICEBERG,
J.K. GIBSON-GRAHAM

11. WORLD-WIDE
EXPLOITATION
OF PEOPLE AND
NATURE
DIVERSE
ECONOMIES
MAKE WORK
WORK
ACADEMIC WORK:
RESEARCH / TEACHING
FREELANCE
DESIGN WORK
PROJECT COMMISSIONS
PUBLIC FUNDING
GIFTS
TECHNICAL SPONSORSHIP
LOW-CONSUMPTION LIFESTYLE
SKIPPING
SELF-PROVISIONING
FORAGING
BARTER
FINDING STUFF
FAMILY & FRIENDS’ SUPPORT
DIY MAKING & MENDING
LENDING-BORROWING
REDISTRIBUTION
WORK FOR WORK
PEER HOSPITALITY & SUPPORT
LIVING IN A HOUSING CO-OP
WELFARE PROVISIONS
WELFARE PROVISIONS
DIY HOUSE RENOVATION

12. DIVERSE ECONOMIES MAKE WORK WORK
BLACK BARK CO-OP

13. DIVERSE ECONOMIES MAKE WORK WORK

14. SOLIDARITY MAKES WORK WORK
FOOTPRINT WORKERS CO-OP
LEEDS
PUBLIC WORKS
LONDON

15. SOLIDARITY MAKES WORK WORK
PLATFORM
BREAD FUNDS

16. STAYING WITH THE TROUBLE MAKES
WORK WORK
IMAGE-SHIFT – BILDWECHSEL

17. HOUSING
CO-OP
HOUSING
CO-OP
WORKERS
CO-OP
ROOTSTOCK
NO-BORDERS
ACTIVISM
RADICAL
PRINT SHOP
FOOD
CO-OP
RADICAL
ROUTES
PLANT
NURSERY
BREAD
CO-OP
SOCIAL
MOVEMENTS
SHARING OF IDEAS
AND PROJECTS
FREE SPACE FOR
ASYLUM SEEKERS
1/3 SALARY
UNWAGED
50£/WEEK
ECO-SOCIAL
CAUSES
CIRCULATION OF THE COMMONS MAKES
WORK WORK

18. HOUSING
CO-OP
HOUSING
CO-OP
WORKERS
CO-OP
ROOTSTOCK
NO-BORDERS
ACTIVISM
RADICAL
PRINT SHOP
FOOD
CO-OP
RADICAL
ROUTES
PLANT
NURSERY
BREAD
CO-OP
SOCIAL
MOVEMENTS
SHARING OF IDEAS
AND PROJECTS
FREE SPACE FOR
ASYLUM SEEKERS
MONTHLY DONATIONS
TO LOCAL CAUSES
1/3 SALARY
UNWAGED
50£/WEEK
ECO-SOCIAL
CAUSES
CIRCULATION OF THE COMMONS MAKES
WORK WORK

19. DESIGN EDUCATION CAN MAKE WORK WORK

20. DESIGN EDUCATION CAN MAKE WORK WORK

21. THANK YOU & HAPPY EXPERIMENTATION
EVERYONE