Design for the other 90%:
A review of the Cooper-Hewitt exhibition
By Natalia Allen

 

Is the role of a museum to reflect public thinking or to inspire new thought?

The awareness of design for social change has certainly gained momentum over the past few years, and it is timely for the national design museum to survey some leading initiatives. But while taking in the Cooper-Hewitt's new show, Design for the Other 90%, I wondered if I was viewing an array of raw-edged artifacts, or true design solutions. The entire exhibition is laid out in the museum's back yard—apt for the season—but as an exhibition of design for the poorest global communities, the clever inventions had a tough time communicating clearly while poised on the lawn. To truly appreciate their value, I needed to read the exhibition book, which details the origins of the designs and the specific issues the designers aimed to ameliorate. So by all means come to the garden, but be prepared to do some summer reading afterwards.

There were many headliners: The brilliant Q Drum to transport water, the Pot-in-Pot Cooler refrigeration system, the almost too-good-to-be-true LifeStraw to filter unpotable water, and the Permanet insecticide-treated mosquito netting. But many of the other designs on display raised some difficult questions.

Apart from the artifacts, the statistics displayed throughout the exhibition were compelling. But perhaps the most sobering—for the designer's side of the table anyway—was the following from Paul Polack, founder of IDE: "The majority of the world's designers focus all their efforts on developing products and services for the richest 10% of the world's customers."

 

Function versus Beauty
Poor communities make up approximately 90% of the world's 6.5 billion people, and they receive the least design attention. Design aims to balance beauty, function and cost, but it seems that in order to build low-cost design, there is generally a compromise of aesthetics for function. This was evident in a majority of the objects on display. For example, Domed Pit Latrine Slab Kit by designer Martin Fisher (and based on a concept of a latrine slab by Bjorn Brandberg at the National Institute of Physical Planning in Mozambique) was retooled to be built by unskilled local laborers in developing nations. (Nearly 2 billion people live without access to basic sanitation.) Undeniably useful—and an improvement on existing options or the lack thereof—the concrete slab lacked, well, design.

Clever solutions such as the Drip Irrigation System by International Development Enterprises India create a low-cost method for farmers to increase crop yields by distributing water 50% more efficiently. But was there not a way to keep cost low, problem solve, and provide a more beautiful finished product? Can the question even legitimately be asked in the context of such an exhibition? Or to sharpen it to a point: Is it that beauty should not be considered when designing for poorer communities? I don't think so.

In The Sense of Beauty, an influential discourse on aesthetics, Harvard philosopher George Santayana argues that there is an inherent value to beauty; that while the many forms of beauty are subjective, its perception is fundamentally enriching to one's life. It should therefore be the aim of all societies to experience the beautiful. For Santayana, the best design is functional and beautiful.

 

Simplicity and Efficacy
Not all of the new design solutions introduced in the exhibition were convincing in terms of offering clear improvements on existing platforms. Consider the Solar Dish Kitchen, designed by the Basic Initiative Mexico Program of the University of Texas and the University of Washington for Mexican squatter communities. A large steel stove resembling a satellite dish, the device is built from recycled bike parts. The bowl shape collects rays from the sun, redirecting the energy to a central point on the dish that is attached to a metal prong. The sun's energy works its magic, providing cooking fuel for hours. The stove costs approximately 400 USD, and is intended for use in global disaster communities. It's an ingenious design—clean and sustainable too—but one couldn't help but wonder if it would be more sensible (and just as effective) to provide 400 dollars worth of fuel, such as coal. The Solar Dish Kitchen is expensive by poor community standards, has a limited life span, and will only work in sunlit conditions. Consider also the larger context of the device: the stoves are built in industrialized nations; the production of the stoves does not support local economies.

Similar questions arose while viewing the Seventh Ward Shade Pavilion, built by the University of Kansas School of Architecture and Urban Design for the Porch Community Center. The pavilion was designed to provide a temporary socializing and gathering place while a permanent place is being built. The tent-like structure is secure and balanced to be sure, but perhaps not all-too-inviting. The garden setting of the exhibition offered a brilliant opportunity to see how attendees occupied the space, but here they tended to gather around the periphery of Seventh Ward Shade Pavilion, rarely under it. (I observed that the shade from the trees was more pleasant.) Maybe not a fair fight on this point, but you couldn't help but notice.

 

Material genius
Textile innovation is a booming industry for industrialized nations, usually taking form in the shape of expensive nano-technologies. On trend, MIT-D Lab Hati, engineered a replacement for wood charcoal that utilizes the bi-product of sugar cane. The new charcoal burns just as well, and in the larger scheme doesn't add to the rapid deforestation of Haiti. (As a next step, designers are converting corncobs—which require less processing—to charcoal.)

Other material innovations included the use of photovoltaic materials to power objects such as hearing aids, handbags and computers. Sierra Portable Light Prototypes designed a Portable Light Mat and Workshop Lantern, the woven mat capturing the sun's energy to power LEDs around the bag. Fully enclosed and travel-friendly, the mat can be used to provide light for both work and play. The expense of this item may preclude immediate mass distribution, but as the technology becomes pervasive and more robust, the cost will invariably decrease.

 

Fashion foe
Surprisingly, there was no fashion on exhibition. I wondered if this was intentional or an oversight? Perhaps fashion designers are not best known for catering to social causes, but in addition to the RED campaign contributors (as well as relief work support initiatives from Armani, Kenneth Cole and Donna Karan), there are a number of fashion designers, such as Lucy Orta, who recognize the need to design for different states. Orta blurs the boundaries between interior environments and exterior structures through fashion—her clothing becomes a habitat—and many of her designs are very applicable to disaster relief. There is also the Final Home Jacket, designed by Kosuke Tsumura in 1995. Made of nylon, this clever coat is built to serve as an affordable nomadic "home" in the event of a disaster. The ample pockets can be filled with newspapers for warmth, or used for storing personal belongings, food, maps, and other survival gear.

 

I internet
Then there is the question of scale. Are designers preoccupied with the "individual"? Will a patchwork of solutions enable great change, or should design take more of a holistic look at neighborhoods, cities and nations? Thinking on a larger scale is Kolam Partnership Ltd., who engineered the StarSight, a system that combines solar-powered street lighting and Internet access in a wireless configuration, bypassing conventional power and telephone grids. The system can be deployed during disaster relief, or used to bring connectivity and light to developing cities. (StarSight is already being used in Cameroon, Cote d' Ivoire, and in the Republic of Congo, with plans for greater expansion.)

Heralded as the proletariat's oasis, the Internet can be seen is an egalitarian platform for opportunity. And so along with providers of Internet access, designers are building low-cost, user-friendly tools to work online. Yves Behar—along with teams of creatives—designed the One Laptop Per Child, aimed at providing children around the globe with tools for learning and play. Education is most certainly a means for improving the state of developing nations, but my mind could not help but imagine what effect another 5 billion small computers will have on the environment. Is it fair for industrialized nations to continue to pollute, expecting developing nations to sacrifice? What are the mandates and the trade-offs here, and where might a balance be found? This exhibition leaves you on your own with these kinds of questions.

 

Aerial view
Apart from the artifacts, the statistics displayed throughout the exhibition were compelling. But perhaps the most sobering—for the designer's side of the table anyway—was the following from Paul Polack, founder of IDE: "The majority of the world's designers focus all their efforts on developing products and services for the richest 10% of the world's customers."

The good news is that in addition to the progress being made by foreigners serving poor communities with better design, I believe that prevailing changes will occur when we see less disparity in economic means. With circulating wealth comes education and equality. And as a result, developing nations will begin to produce more designers. Unlike designers raised in industrialized nations, however, this new crop will be versed in the indigenous cultures, and sensitive to the traditions and ways of life at home.

This is perhaps the most hopeful scenario. For this summer though, we've got a lawn-full of artifacts, begging for systems, distribution, and political will to help them serve the world's poorest 90%. And for those wanting to bring that number down, the exhibition is an inspiring start.

 

Design for the Other 90% is on view from May 4th through September 23. After its run at the Cooper-Hewitt, the exhibit will travel for the next two years to other museums nationwide. The Lemelson Foundation, in addition to being the lead sponsor, has directly supported several of the organizations that are participating in the exhibit, including KickStart, SELCO, International Development Enterprises (IDE) and WorldBike.

Natalia Allen is a design futurist, advising fashion companies such as Donna Karan, Philips and Quiksilver on innovative design and marketing. She was the recipient of Parsons Designer of the Year award, a title she shares with Marc Jacobs. Currently, she is launching Internet platforms for designers and the fashion community. She can be contacted at nataliaallen.com.