conference BY DESIGN OR BY DISASTER spring 2018

In spring 2018 the annual conference of the MA Eco-Social Design will take place at the Free University of Bozen–Bolzano.

The focus will be:

In between me, you and everything we do.
What can design do for commons?

23–25 March 2018

What are Commons? They are resources/projects/creations that are managed by groups of people, who are not owners, but rather co-responsible and more or less equal users and/or creators. Communal meadows (used for cow grazing etc.) are the most traditional commons example, with more contemporary examples including Wikipedia as well as other peer-to-peer and open source initiatives. Commons are not only positive shared resources, but can also be shared challenges, such as pollution. The verb commoning emphasizes that commons have to be created, designed, maintained, defended and/or reclaimed. Commoning is gaining traction as an alternative mode of practicing economies and cultures, both within and outside of the field of design.

We welcome speakers from diverse fields such as social sciences, economics, design, art, civil society and social business to discuss how to cultivate the commons by design (and the other way around). In line with our past conferences we are putting together a mix of inspiring projects and practices, challenging discourse and positive visions.

This year we will feature a Pecha Kucha Session, based on an open call. Hand in your projects or papers, and spread this call please!

Watch this space for more information. Suggestions for talks, workshops and other interventions are welcome via email to designdisaster@unibz.it. To get a feel, you can find further information on last year’s edition here.