Design, in its most fundamental sense, is the study of the relationship between a user and the man-made environment while considering its social, political, functional, aesthetic, and cultural implications.
Design is all around us. From the chair we sit on, the car we drive, to the road we travel through and the art we perceive. Everything that helps the world go round is designed, and well thought out.
Art imitates life, they say. No two designs are ever the same, and they shouldn’t be either. For creative and functional purposes. People are the same as well. A diverse group of people is essential for the world to go around. Designs then need to make sure that they cater to this diversity. That everyone in this world has access to the products and inventions designed, irrespective of the group they come from.
It is imperative then that design education fosters diversity and inclusivity, for its students and users, likewise.
Need for diversity and Inclusivity
Class divisions and hegemonic hierarchies based on race, caste, gender, religion, and sexuality have been the apparatus that oppressive systems have been using to create a divide between the oppressed for centuries. The systems reap maximum benefits from this other-ing while white-washing, literally, and erasing the cultural identity of the oppressed.
This, while being wholly wrong and immoral on all fronts possible, also makes the world and the systems that help run it exclusive to people with power. On the design front, while losing the incredible cultural makeup of the land and the rich history it comes with, it becomes monotonous. People with power, who sit on the decision-making tables, come from the same class and cultural background depriving the world, on purpose, of incredible innovations and a world that has space for all.
I must study politics and war, so that our sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. Our sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history and naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry and porcelain.” – John Adams
John Adams wrote this in 1780, hoping that future generations would have the right to study design disciplines. Yet here we are, in the 21st century, where design education is a choice for the privileged.
The casualty of this reality is far greater than we would like to comprehend. It berefts the world of diverse voices, decisions and choices. Choices that represent a greater population, that aid a major chunk of people, that make the world far more accessible to everyone.
Diversity and Inclusivity might now just be another marketing gimmick for the privileged, but for the marginalised, oppressed, discriminated and othered, this means a world that might finally have space for them, space that was rightly theirs in the first place.
Importance of diversity and inclusivity in design education
Education not only sets the foundation for a learner’s future but also for the industry. How the industry will look like, its outputs, the people working in it, how it contributes to the world, and its functioning are all directly proportional to the education it imparts and trains the next generations.
Design disciplines, in particular, tend to educate more outside the books. A hands-on approach and the skill to recognise current problems and figure out solutions are encouraged right from the learning stage. Learners then obviously turn to existing systems and industries that cater to design disciplines to have a practical perspective of things.
And while design is famously known to be subjective, it does not free it from the curse of monotonicity. Learners see existing designs, bereft of diversity and inclusivity, and carry it forward. When they become part of the industry they create what they’ve learned.
It’s a vicious, never-ending cycle. Therefore it becomes imperative that design education strengthens and cultivates diversity.
Factors that determine/influence design education
Curriculum
While it is true that design education tends to have a more outside-the-box approach, the curriculum must have voices that represent the marginalized. Not as a part of a gimmick or as an elective, but as something essential to the coursework. Be it through reading material, bringing in experts that represent them and working in the industry.
Faculty/Professors
Teachers are an integral part of how learners acquire education and become competent in the skillset they are studying. Teachers need to keep up with current times and relearn any biases they might have to impart impartial education free of prejudices to learners.
Introduction of Humanities subject at a high school level
While sciences teach us about the hows and the whys of the world, humanities teach us about how to interact with the world. It gives students a, no pun intended, human perspective on the world.
History, philosophy, art, and languages teach students the incredible diversity the world possesses, it teaches them how the world came to be because of this diversity. It introduces them to a world beyond the four walls and the city they are used to.
This also makes sure that students are given an introduction to design education and have knowledge about it. More students taking up design education ensures a natural increase in diversity and overall participation in the field, which in turn increases positions and pay.
Emphasis on research
Encouraging learners to research gives them a reference to work on. It also helps them acquaint themselves with material that might be difficult to come across through their regular coursework. Diverse material that speaks and represents groups not in the mainstream.
Research also allows learners to experiment with design solutions that they might come up with in answer to problems that the world currently faces. Interacting with different groups of people during the research also gives learners a perspective outside of the circle they live in and acquiesces them with problems that various groups face.
Training to eliminate biases
We learn what we grow up with. But as we interact more with the world, we realise that not everything we grew up with was right. Prejudices and stereotypes are what keep the hegemony alive and thriving, years after they have been proved to be wrong.
Relearning biases and prejudices helps designers design better. It helps them design for all, inclusive to all groups. It helps them build a world where accessible design isn’t a privilege but a right.
Uplifting the marginalised and discriminated voices
While we are now in a world where there are laws in place against most types of discrimination, that wasn’t the case even a century ago. Still isn’t in parts of the world. This discrimination went beyond social exclusion and presented in terms of horrific oppression, and economic disparity that spans across generations.
It then seems logical that there be places reserved for the oppressed and marginalized, places that they should’ve had a long time ago but were stolen away.
All talks about diversity and inclusivity will be futile unless and until the discriminated voices are put in decision-making positions and are heard.
Usa disability act!!
Diversity doesn’t look like anyone. It looks like everyone.” — Karen Draper
Art sustains life. And design is a product of this sustenance. Every new invention is designed to make life easier. So shouldn’t this ease extend to everyone, irrespective of the power and position they hold in social and class hierarchies?
Designers have a huge responsibility to design a world that holds space for all and is accessible to all. The diversity that our world holds is not a liability, but an asset.
Making sure that diversity and inclusivity are fostered in design education just makes sure that changes start happening at a grassroots level.
References:
Almas Sadique (2024). Danah Abdulla on the procedures of decolonising design and design education. [online] Stirworld.com. Available at: https://www.stirworld.com/inspire-people-danah-abdulla-on-the-procedures-of-decolonising-design-and-design-education [Accessed 22 Oct. 2024].
er.educause.edu. (n.d.). Inclusive Design and Design Justice: Strategies to Shape Our Classes and Communities. [online] Available at: https://er.educause.edu/articles/2020/10/inclusive-design-and-design-justice-strategies-to-shape-our-classes-and-communities.
International council of Design (2024). What is design? [online] www.theicod.org. Available at: https://www.theicod.org/en/professional-design/what-is-design/what-is-design.
The Interaction Design Foundation. (n.d.). What is Inclusive Design? — updated 2023. [online] Available at: https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/inclusive-design.
Crook, L. (2020). Barcelona to convert a third of central streets into car-free green spaces. [online] Dezeen. Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2020/11/19/barcelona-eixample-masterplan-streets-green-space/.
