Friday, January 30, 2009

The thing with the main lesson


I have been asked so many times about my main lesson from my BOP/sustainability design experience and I still struggle with the right two-sentences reply for a party, without pictures to show. Too many factors, a too long story, I definitely do not want to bore people. Besides, being a designer as well as a foreigner in the country I live in, I feel more comfortable with visual than verbal communication.

However, a Chinese friend and journalist asked me two months ago for one or two very short general statements in relation to our project that he wanted to implement in an article for a Chinese magazine about the Dutch Design Awards 2008.

"Absolute relevance is essential for success in sustainable development: Make it affordable, push quality AND make sure to understand the user's context. If these aspects are not in balance, it is not sustainable."

It becomes clear for instance that green technologies just represent a small part in sustainability. On the other hand I would have to tell in the same step that understanding the user's context cannot happen from a distance. And why. And how to translate affordability into marketing options that go beyond small unit prices. Und so weiter.

"Designing on the spot for the so-called Base of the Pyramid is an extreme challenge, from a personal as well as from a professional point of view. The biggest challenge is probably get these two important parts combined. Especially in a team"


Those who have worked on similar projects, will know what I mean. And maybe, a party is just not the right spot to tell about our experience.