Speaking & appearances

Consider the new committee charged with making parliament more accessible to the masses. A specially designed website, chaired by once-radical MP Peter Hain, asks three questions: 'How could the Palace of Westminster be made more visitor-friendly? How could proceedings in parliament be made easier to follow? Does parliament adequately reflect the concerns of ordinary people?' […]

While it is good that designers have ambition and want to change the world, are any of these ideas big enough? Or is the influence of design rather a coincidental symptom of society's acceptance of limits, where few leaders (or anyone else for that matter) openly argue for innovation, risk-taking and progress? Instead the prevailing […]

  We can all benefit from such innovations; who wouldn’t want better bike locks or services like ‘Immobilise’ which allows people to register their valuables and have them returned if stolen? But critics object that many of these initiatives involve manipulating the public to change their behaviour whether they like it or not. When crime-busting […]

Encouraged by a new breed of policy makers, designers believe they are better able than politicians and clinicians to nudge people into making healthier choices, by transforming the physical environment, improving food labelling, creating incentives to lose weight or give up smoking, and even re-thinking how a receptionist answers the phone. It is hoped that […]

Listen to the podcast here (my introduction starts 2.30 seconds in)

Speakers were: Martin Bontoft: design strategist and researcher on user needs in design. Has previously worked for, ideo (Head of Human Factors), Design Council, National Health Service (NHS) and has long experience of service design. Alastair Donald: Urban planner, researcher and writer with experience in public and private sectors, including as an advisor to Commission […]