How will a new economy, based on ideas of Degrowth, Doughnut Economics, Regenerative Economics and Well-being Economics affect the design discipline? And how can the design discipline help design and transition into this new economy? This is what the next seminar at The ___ School for Designing Critique will explore.

The Theme

At first glance, the relationship design and economics may not appear to be the most obvious focal point. However, when viewed through a longer historical lens — one that traces the rise of capitalism from the dawn of industrialization alongside the later emergence of design as a discipline — it becomes clear that design and the capitalist economy have been highly compatible and intimately connected throughout the twentieth century. One aspect of this relationship is that design has both delivered desirable products to a consumer society and, at the same time, helped to create desire for those very same products through advertising.

Within the discipline of economics, particularly in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, a broad and diverse body of theoretical work has emerged — often gathered under the umbrella term post-growth. This field encompasses a range of perspectives such as Degrowth, regenerative economics, well-being economics, and the doughnut model. While differing in emphasis and methodology, these perspectives propose alternative forms of economies beyond capitalism. A central concern across this post-growth literature is how, in the age of the Anthropocene, we can create economies that both acknowledge planetary boundaries and accommodate the needs and well-being of all humans and non-humans alike. A key critique within these perspectives targets the prevailing belief in perpetual economic growth as measured by GDP — a metric that fails to distinguish between economic profit for the few and broader social and ecological value. This limitation is particularly significant in Global North economies — where this school is situated and where the economies are already operating beyond the planetary boundaries.

The Program

To explore and unfold this topic we have invited an amazing group of speakers and the preliminary program looks like this:

• Welcome and introduction to the framework of the seminar + we say hi to each other
• Talk on post-growth economics by PhD and activist Line Kvartborg Vestergaard
• Talk by PhD and design researcher Åsa Ståhl about her design practice and the research projectDesign after Progress
• A guided tour into the workshop space of I tråd med verden by Head of Design and Development Liv Beier Heckmann
• An online talk by Adrià Garcia i Mateu about his design practice and engagement in the Catalan design studio Holon
• Closing remarks + check out