Healing the World: A Challenge for Designers is the title of Victor Margolin lecture delivered in October 22, 2003 at the Archeworks school in Chicago to help launch The Archeworks Papers and celebrate Archeworks’ 10th anniversary. Archeworks, an alternative design school, have been demonstrating how Architects, Designers and Artists can address the social needs of the world.
Margolin argues, in his lecture, that there are precedents for Archeworks in the 19th century Arts and Crafts workshops such as Morris & Co., the Century Guild, or the Guild and School of Handicraft. He cites “isolated voices”: William Morris social concerns, Buckminster Fuller Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth first published in 1968, and Victor Papanek Design for the Real World published in 1972, and many recent initiatives, projects, books and people addressing social needs and quality of life issues. Margolin calls for a “social model” of design practice and addresses the questions of a new social agenda for designers, and re-orienting the project towards social needs.
Here on Sustainable Ideas, we will focus on CITIES starting from production and consumption systems. We will develop international design and research projects and events to contribute to the development of sustainable cities and communities, production and consumption systems and crafts. We will also share best practices and innovative ideas of sustainability in cities, architecture, design and crafts.