Originally published on Netimperative. Now that we have a Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition Government, tough economic times are ahead not least because of their deficit reduction plans. £6 billion cuts in public services will no doubt add further hardship to many technology and service companies who already suffer from decreased investment from their services. […]
Continue ReadingIs there any value in blue-skies thinking?
So is there any value in “blue-skies thinking”, which can open up new possibilities by ignoring limits and self-imposed constraints, especially in an era of austerity like now? Or is blue-skies thinking just a management cliché and an irresponsible indulgence? Certainly Secretary of State Vince Cable appears to have no time for it. To him, […]
Continue ReadingBritain’s uncreative approach to design
Originally published on spiked. The ‘Made by Britain’ initiative, launched by UK business secretary Vince Cable, intends to highlight British manufacturing and design ingenuity. The plan is to create an equivalent to the Great Exhibition of 1851, only this time it will be in the form of an online interactive map plotting where everything we’re […]
Continue ReadingThe revolution will not be tweeted
Originally published on spiked The latest protests in Syria, like those seen previously in Tunisia, Egypt and elsewhere in the Arab world, have provided ammunition for those who believe that the internet is a spark for major political events. Many commentators, most notably in the West, continue to claim that these protests are a product of […]
Continue ReadingCo-author Big Potatoes: The London Manifesto for Innovation
Amazon Kindle edition. Contributing author and co-founder. When it was first published in January 2010, the Big Potatoes manifesto quickly created an international circle of enthusiasts – people who believed, and still believe, that the pace of technological innovation in the West is too slow. Now, a little later, what the Economist (12 January […]
Continue ReadingCoercing people into a brave new digital world
Originally published on spiked. The Race Online 2012 campaign has just launched its Manifesto for a Networked Nation, which aims to get the entire adult UK population hooked up to the internet before the 2012 London Olympics. The campaign is spearheaded by Martha Lane Fox, a veteran of the online world, having co-founded the successful LastMinute.com […]
Continue ReadingCan design change the world (and should it try)?
Venue BA Hons Graphic Design students, Bristol Faculty of Creative Arts, University of the West of England. Designers are influencing change everywhere. We are told that ‘creative industries’ are a major boost to the economy; that ‘design-thinking’ is reforming the NHS; that better design can reduce consumption and protect the environment; that design research techniques […]
Continue ReadingWe have ways of making you healthy
Originally published on spiked. Norway and the UK are among world leaders in spending on healthcare, but both countries are faced with a looming crisis. In Norway, the prospect of economic slowdown has led some to question whether the country’s famously generous welfare model is sustainable. In the UK, the prolonged recession has meant that […]
Continue ReadingSpeech: Can design change the world (and should it try)?
Venue Designers Society talk, in association with Plymouth University Faculty of Art Plymouth. Designers are influencing change everywhere. We are told that ‘creative industries’ are a major boost to the economy; that ‘design-thinking’ is reforming the NHS; that better design can reduce consumption and protect the environment; that design research techniques can help the third […]
Continue ReadingWhy designers should take more risks
Originally published on spiked. Michael Wolff, the designer who irritated Thatcher and helped rebrand Labour, talks about being creative during a recession. ‘Many designers will probably take more risks in how they drive than in how they design.’ So says Michael Wolff, once partner of world-famous brand agency Wolff Olins and now of Michael Wolff […]
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