Design, poverty and sustainable development

Thomas, A

Abstract

Design in a poor context, or for the alleviation of poverty, has received little or no attention. An informal discourse analysis shows that design and poverty have not been linked, the two being seen as mutually exclusive. This paper aims to examine the relationships between design and designers, poverty and the poor, and sustainable
development, which aims to alleviate poverty. On the face of it, there would appear to be little that links them; however, this paper aims to identify specific design initiatives that relate to poor people in the southern hemisphere as producers and consumers of designed goods.1 It briefly outlines definitions of poverty and sustainable development, then describes selected design interventions.
It analyzes the contribution that these initiatives make to the reduction of poverty, and to the different aspects of sustainable development.

Citation

Thomas, A. (2006). Design, poverty and sustainable development. Design Issues, 22(4), 54-65. https://doi.org/10.1162/desi.2006.22.4.54

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Oct 1, 2006
• Deposit Date: Jan 30, 2009
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 30, 2009
• Journal: Design Issues
• Print ISSN: 0747-9360
• Publisher: Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press (MIT Press)
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 22
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 54-65
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1162/desi.2006.22.4.54
• Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1162/desi.2006.22.4.54