Well, first I think we have to acknowledge that populism is indeed rising and spreading.
The events in the UK, in the US, in Hungary and Poland but also in France, Italy and Germany
have shown that democracies are vulnerable to populism.
So what's wrong with populism?
Well, populists have a very questionable worldview.
They paint the world in black and white.
They divide mankind into them and us.
And they ignore the complexities of the world and they undermine the values of democracy.
Now the question is, what can we as designers do against populism?
First of all, I think we should not overestimate or underestimate our impact.
We will certainly not change the world with the design of a new logo, but we should not
underestimate our power as image makers, as problem solvers and as communicators.
We have the capacity to influence debates and to make strong contributions to the struggle
against populism.
I believe there are three things we can do.
We can enhance understanding, we can create identities and we can conceive visions of
possible futures.
Number one, understanding.
This is something that communication design has done for a long time.
We use design in order to make complex facts understandable and approachable.
It does not matter if we design apps or magazines, infographics or exhibitions.
To enhance understanding was always a core competence of design, but nowadays we should
be more careful about what we say and how we say it.
Design should not simplify the world, it should make complexities understandable and manageable.
We can use this skill to debunk lies and fake news, we can show facts and demonstrate the
qualities of an open society.
Number two, identities.
When I talk identities, I certainly do not mean corporate identity or corporate design.
I mean shaping identities of individuals, groups and communities.
In the last few months we have heard a lot about rural communities that are feeling
neglected and left behind.
Sometimes the economic facts support this worldview, but often even prosperous communities
feel the same way.
In that case, I believe we are facing an identity problem and this is where design can make
a very relevant contribution.
Stories are storytellers and image makers and it would be an interesting challenge to
address this new kind of identity politics.
How can we find signs and images and stories that encapsulate and identify a community?
And how can we link the individual biography with a European idea?
And it's not about imposing an alien identity, it's more like crafting and shaping the local
qualities and harmonize local qualities with global qualities.
Number three, vision of possible futures.
We live in a strange world, on the one hand side we're surrounded by technology that would
have been considered to be science fiction just 20 years ago and at the same time we
face a future without any kind of imagination.
But the question is, how will the world look like in 100 years?
How will we live with each other and what role will technology play in that?
How will our families and our society change?
How will cities work and how will the European Union look and work like?
What does this have to do with populism?
Well, I believe we really need better narratives than the populists.
We need narratives that show our positive version of the future and we need to convey
a vision that is inclusive and optimistic without being naive.
Design has always been about options and possibilities.
We should think more about the world that we want to live in and find appropriate designs,
stories and images for it.
We should think of design as future making.
So to sum up, I think there is actually a lot we can do as designers and I think we
should do it.
I'm curious to see how the design community will direct to the challenges I've just described.
I'm wondering what kind of designs will emerge out of this challenge and that we will see
in the next few months.
Thank you.
