Design for
Future Reality
Manifesto
Future Reality
Manifesto
In 2013 we began our journey in FRD by making a manifesto as a guiding direction and critique of the current world practice out there.
Designers have always been known for their critical view of the world. We are trained to read signals and patterns to identify problems and then create solutions from them.
However, in the last decades, we have used our critical and creative skills to contribute to the destruction of the world by driving overconsumption, exploiting natural resources, and prioritising profit over impact.
Fuller argues that despite humanity's extraordinary intellectual capabilities, we have consistently failed to treat Earth as the integrated life-support system it truly is (Fuller, 1969, p. 16).
We need to change our practice. We must use our critical and creative thinking for good. Today’s ever-changing world, with the climate crisis and societal issues are complex challenges that cannot be solved by one discipline alone, and design itself is not enough.
In response, we have developed a design manifesto, which we call Design for Future Reality. This manifesto guides us on our journey to make an impact at a planetary and societal scale, and to create a hopeful and responsible future reality — because our future reality is neither utopia nor dystopia.
Looking further back, Robin Clarke's 'Some Utopian Characteristics of Soft Technology' (Clarke, 1974) offers a remarkably relevant set of contrasts that resonates with our vision — and one we felt was important to bring into our manifesto.
Some Utopian Characteristics of Soft Technology, Robin Clarke, 1974
Much like Clarke's contrast between 'Hard' and 'Soft' technology societies, we were inspired by A/B Manifesto (Dunne and Raby, 2009), where ‘A’ characterised how most people thought of design at that time, and ‘B’ suggested a set of contrasting values. We came up with a similar idea, but rather we called it ‘Now’ and ‘Future Reality’.
Dunne and Raby's A/B Manifesto in their book Speculative Everything has been proven to be a thought-provoking manifesto that changes the way today's designers think and practice (Dunne and Raby, 2013). Speculative design has become an integral part of the way designer see their works more critically.
A/B Manifesto, Dunne and Raby, 2009
Yet while it has opened up new ways of thinking, we believe it is time to go further. the purpose of speculative design is not to make an action to change our reality, but rather to imagine possible realities which useful to inspire and provoke change. But often times we fall in love with the imagination rather than making a real impact.
The idea of “Design for Future Reality” manifesto is to expand beyond conceptual and speculative works, offering alternative directions grounded in practicality, a shift towards making a more hopeful and responsible future reality.
The manifesto outlines what needs to shift in our practice, by listing characteristics that ground our work in creating a responsible reality for our generation and the next.
Footnotes:
Fuller, R.B. (1969) Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, p. 16.
Dunne & Raby. (2013). Speculative Everything, Design, Fiction, and Social Dreaming: The MIT Press, p.vii.
However, in the last decades, we have used our critical and creative skills to contribute to the destruction of the world by driving overconsumption, exploiting natural resources, and prioritising profit over impact.
Fuller argues that despite humanity's extraordinary intellectual capabilities, we have consistently failed to treat Earth as the integrated life-support system it truly is (Fuller, 1969, p. 16).
We need to change our practice. We must use our critical and creative thinking for good. Today’s ever-changing world, with the climate crisis and societal issues are complex challenges that cannot be solved by one discipline alone, and design itself is not enough.
In response, we have developed a design manifesto, which we call Design for Future Reality. This manifesto guides us on our journey to make an impact at a planetary and societal scale, and to create a hopeful and responsible future reality — because our future reality is neither utopia nor dystopia.
Looking further back, Robin Clarke's 'Some Utopian Characteristics of Soft Technology' (Clarke, 1974) offers a remarkably relevant set of contrasts that resonates with our vision — and one we felt was important to bring into our manifesto.
Much like Clarke's contrast between 'Hard' and 'Soft' technology societies, we were inspired by A/B Manifesto (Dunne and Raby, 2009), where ‘A’ characterised how most people thought of design at that time, and ‘B’ suggested a set of contrasting values. We came up with a similar idea, but rather we called it ‘Now’ and ‘Future Reality’.
Dunne and Raby's A/B Manifesto in their book Speculative Everything has been proven to be a thought-provoking manifesto that changes the way today's designers think and practice (Dunne and Raby, 2013). Speculative design has become an integral part of the way designer see their works more critically.
Yet while it has opened up new ways of thinking, we believe it is time to go further. the purpose of speculative design is not to make an action to change our reality, but rather to imagine possible realities which useful to inspire and provoke change. But often times we fall in love with the imagination rather than making a real impact.
The idea of “Design for Future Reality” manifesto is to expand beyond conceptual and speculative works, offering alternative directions grounded in practicality, a shift towards making a more hopeful and responsible future reality.
The manifesto outlines what needs to shift in our practice, by listing characteristics that ground our work in creating a responsible reality for our generation and the next.
Footnotes:
Fuller, R.B. (1969) Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, p. 16.
Dunne & Raby. (2013). Speculative Everything, Design, Fiction, and Social Dreaming: The MIT Press, p.vii.