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Anthropogenic Narratives. Imagination and Anti-Disciplinarity for the Communication of Non-Human Perspectives

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The paper, presenting some of the projects developed in a Communication Design Studio at Politecnico di Milano under the title of Anthropogenic Narratives, aims to discuss how teaching visual identity and experience design in communication design undergraduate education may be developed within an anti-disciplinary approach, adopting a speculative design framework. Anthropogenic Narratives, starting from the assumption of proposing non-human perspectives (e.g., rocks, moon, ice), aims to provoke and activate reflections on the relationship between humans and nature, unfolding futuristic scenarios while involving the human/user in interactive experiences essential to understanding the narratives. The results come from an experimental educational path based on the risk of trying new solutions and techniques and verifying them on a real scale. Design speculations that are not meant to give answers and certainties, aiming to imagine new questions and reflect on contemporary and future times.
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ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN
4th International Conference on Environmental Design
9-11 May 2024
2
ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN
Conference proceedings of the
4th International Conference on Environmental Design
2
Environmental Design: IVth International Conference on Environmental Design
Edited by Mario Bisson, Associate Professor at Politecnico di Milano, Department of DESIGN
Proceedings (reviewed papers) of the IVth International Conference on Environmental Design,
Mediterranean Design Association | www.mda.center | info@mda.center
9-11 May 2024, Ginosa, Italy
Graphic design and layout: Federico De Luca and Giulia Alvarez
Cover image: Federico De Luca
ISBN 978-88-5509-634-8
Copyright 2024 by MDA - Mediterranean Design Association
Palermo University Press | Printed in the month of June 2024
Scientific Committee
Prof. Lina Ahmad - College of Arts and Creative enterprises Zayed University, Abu Dhabi - UAE
Prof. Tiziano Aglieri Rinella - IUAV Venezia, Italy
Prof. Giuseppe Amoruso - Politecnico di Milano,Italy
Prof. Venanzio Arquilla - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Antonino Benincasa - Libera Università di Bolzano, Italy
Prof. Alessandro Biamonti - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Mario Bisson - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof.sa Cristina Boeri - Politecnico di Mlano, Italy
Prof.sa Monica Bordegoni - Politecico di Milano,Italy
Prof.sa Daniela Calabi - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof.sa Rossana Carullo - Politecnico di Bari, Italy
Prof. Mauro Ceconello - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Giovanni Maria Conti - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Arch. Riccardo Culotta, Italy
Prof. Clice De Toledo Sanjar Mazzilli - Faculdade de Arquitetura e Urbanismo da USP, Brasil
Ing. Giorgio De Ponti - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Barbara Del Curto - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Dincyrek Ozgur - Eastern Mediterranean University , Cyprus
Prof. Elisabetta Distefano - Università degli Studi di Palermo, Italy
Prof. Luca Donner - American University in the Emirates, United Arab Emirates
Prof. Michele Fiorentino - Politecnico di Bari, Italy
Dr. Luca Fois - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Claudio Gambardella - Università della Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Italy
Prof. Franca Garzotto - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Luca Guerrini - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Sandra Hipatia Nuñez Torres - Universidad Técnica de Ambato, Ecuador
Dr. Lisa Hockemeyer - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Alessandro Ianniello - Delft University, Netherlands
Prof. Lorenzo Imbesi - Università la Sapienza - Roma, Italy
Prof. Matteo Ingaramo - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Tomasz Jelenski - Cracow University of Technology Poland
Prof. Andres López Vaca - Universidad Internacional SEK, Ecuador
Prof. Giuseppe Lotti - Università degli Studi di Firenze, Italy
Prof. Carlo Martino - Università la Sapienza Roma, Italy
Prof. Diana Navas - PUC - San Paulo, Brasil
Prof. Valentina Nisi - University of Madeira, Portugal
Prof. Nuno Jardim Nunes - University of Lisbon, Portugal
Prof. Stefania Palmieri - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Frida Pashako - Epoka University - Tirana, Albania
Prof. Pier Paolo Peruccio - Politecnico di Torino, Italy
Prof. Silvia Piardi - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Savita Raje - Maulana Azad National Institute of technology Bopal, India
Prof. Pinto Reaes - Università LUSIADA lisbona portogallo, Pourtugal
Prof. Francesca Rizzo - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
Prof. Garcia Rubio Ruben - Tulane university- New Orleans, USA
Prof. Dario Russo - Università degli Studi di Palermo, Italy
Prof. Francesca Scalisi - Università degli Studi di Palermo, Italy
Prof. Antonio Scontrino - Bowling Green State University, USA
Prof. Marco Sosa - Zayed University, United Arab Emirates
Prof. Cesare Sposito - Università degli Studi di Palermo, Italy
Prof. Paolo Tamborrini - Università di Parma, Italy
Prof. Toufic Haidamous - American University in the Emirates, United Arab Emirates
Dr. Diego Vainesman - New York, Usa
Prof. Sonsoles Velais - Tulane University- New Orleans, USA
Prof. Min Wang - China Central Academy of Fine Arts, China
Prof. Cui Wei - Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, China
Prof. Francesco Zurlo - Politecnico di Milano, Italy
President
Federico Picone
Scientific
Director
Prof. Mario Bisson
Industry
Relations
Manager
Dr. Giorgio De Ponti
Organization
Giulia Alvarez
Andrea Cavaliere
Federico De Luca
Alessandro Ianniello
Benedetta Meretti
Stefania Palmieri
Dario Russo
3
4
MDA | 4th International Conference on Environmental Design | 9-11 May 2024 5
Special Thanks to
With the patronage of:
6
INTRODUCTION
11 Environmental Design
Mario Bisson
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
15 RAISE ecosystem: urban design for accessible and inclusive Smart Cities
Francesco Burlando1, Federica Maria Lorusso2, Claudia Porrione1
1University of Genoa, Italy
2University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Italy
27 Culture, meaning, value and sustainability: A terminological analysis
Piera Losciale
Politecnico di Bari, Italy
37 Bio-inspired design: A systemic and interdisciplinary design approach
to increase the sustainability of processes and products
Lucia Pietroni1, Mariangela Francesca Balsamo1, Giuliana Flavia Cangelosi2
1University of Camerino, Italy
2Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Italy
49 Eco-sea design. Transdisciplinary products and services for sustainability in seaside contexts
Ivo Caruso1, Vincenzo Cristallo2
1Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy
2Politecnico di Bari, Italy
Fashioning a Sustainable Future: Navigating Zero-Waste Practices in Textile Chain
Maria Antonia Salomè
Università degli Studi di Firenze, Italy
75 The black hole of the fashion system:
The contribution of design to the sustainable transition of the fashion system
Elena Pucci
Università degli Studi di Firenze, Italy
87 Digital art direction and sustainable communication for fashion in Italy: A literature review
Filippo Maria Disperati1, Elisabetta Cianfanelli2
1Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Italy
2Università degli Studi di Firenze, Italy
97 Fast Fashion. Sustainability and the negative psychological and social impacts for consumers
Giovanni Maria Conti
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
105 Mixed reality for addressing boredom at work: grounds and perspectives for PhD
Francesco Musolino, Dario Gentile, Michele Fiorentino
Politecnico di Bari, Italy
113 Design as a Catalyst for Sustainability Bridging Disciplines in the Anthropocene
Dario Russo
Università degli Studi di Palermo, Italy
125 Evolving practices in sustainable communication design: An integrated approach
Francesca Scalisi, Dario Russo
Università degli Studi di Palermo, Italy
MDA | 4th International Conference on Environmental Design | 9-11 May 2024 7
SOCIAL INNOVATION
141 Urban lifestyle in twenty years.
Forecasts from a Young Generation of Interior Designers
Luca Guerrini
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
159 Design as a catalyst for rural regeneration:
Insights from a Research through Design study
Alessandro Ianniello1, Riccardo Palomba2
1TU Delft, The Netherlands
2IUAV, Italy
175 The role of the communication design for the Mediterranean enhancement and
development. The representative case studies map
Chiara Tuttolani
Politecnico di Bari, Italy
179 From concepts to open products:
The experience of a design hackathon for inclusive open-souse products
Federica Caruso, Venanzio Arquilla
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
191 ReMade Community Lab, Design explorations in a Proximity System
Susanna Parlato
Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy
203 Utensilia© to design. On the “process by which people go about producing things”
Rossana Carullo
Politecnico di Bari, Italy
215 Color loci placemaking: Color and processes of place appropriation
Cristina Boeri
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
225 Editorial Design and the Influence of Racism on Black Representation
in Brazilian Magazines and Newspapers: The Panorama Before and
after George Floyd and João Alberto Silveira Freitas
Gustavo Orlando Fudaba Curcio, João Vitor Pereira Moura
Universidade de São Paulo, Brasil
241 Playing as a cultural dissemination strategy. Eco-bab:
Designing collaborative, playful and educational experiences
Nicolò Ceccarelli, Nađa Beretić
University of Sassari, Italy
253 Functionality and significance in the design of tourist and community
interaction structures in Laguna de Colta
Sandra Núñez1, Claudia Balseca1 and Eliska Fuentes2
1Universidad Indoamérica, Ecuador
2Universidad Técnica de Ambato, Ecuador
261 A journey into social innovation through the tombolo of Mirabella Imbaccari,
from history to project perspective and the first workshop of the community
Fondation of Messina via the Tombolo Academy
Luca Fois, Camilla Guerci
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
273 Urban interiors. The domestic space and the city/the street as a living room
Tiziano Agieri Rinella
IUAV, Italy
8
TECHNOLOGY APPLICATIONS
293 The ‘New Morphologies’:
When Technology Becomes Gender-Neutral
Matteo O. Ingaramo, Martina Labarta
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
305 UX Design in The Context of Navigation Aid Equipment Maintenance.
A new approach to Monitoring and Control System Design
Elie Barakat1, Venanzio Arquilla2, Maximilian James Arpaio1
1Thales Italia Spa, Italy
2Politecnico di Milano, Italy
317 Enhancing User Experience in Autonomous Driving Levels 4 and Above:
A Novel Seat Concept for Motion Sickness Mitigation.
Venanzio Arquilla, Shangyi Bai
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
333 Digital Manufacturing of Tactile Maps to Improve Accessibility at Archaeological Sites
Alfonso Morone, Edoardo Amoroso
Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy
347 TREELOGY: Preserving Urban Forests through IoT Monitoring Data of Greenery
Alfonso Morone, Mariarita Gagliardi, Silvana Donatiello
Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy
361 Research into the exterior walls of residential buildings in the context of
sustainable construction based on bio-based materials and waste
Alberto Reaes Pinto, Marlene Canudo Urbano, Carlos Oliveira Augusto
CITAD / Universidade Lusíada, Portugal
377 Design, cultural heritage and technologies:
New forms of dialogue between the user and museum spaces.
Giusi Castaldo, Mario Buono, Elena Laudante
Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Italy
389 Environmental Impact of Wood, Steel, and Concrete in Residential Buildings
Sonsoles Vela, Ruben Garcia Rubio
Tulane University, USA
409 A sustainable territorial development
Luca Bullaro
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Colombia
HEALTHCARE AND WELLNESS
419 Textures design for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)
for people with deaf- blindness and multi-sensory impairment
Denise Dantas1, Lia Sossini1, Barbara Del Curto2
1Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil
2Politecnico di Milano, Italy
431 Design against cancer. Topics and projects for a new culture of prevention.
Erminia Attaianese, Ivo Caruso, Carla Langella
Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy
443 Thriving children’s perceptual learning through educational environments
color and material design
Elisa Longoni1, Michele Zini2, Barbara Camocini1
1Politecnico di Milano, Italy
2ZPZ Partners, Italy
MDA | 4th International Conference on Environmental Design | 9-11 May 2024 9
455 Enhancing Healthcare Systems: Redefining Strategies and Stakeholder Engagement
for Community Care Service Evolution
Federico De Luca, Daniela Sangiorgi
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
POLICY AND GOVERNANCE
467 The Project of ethical visions for new enterprises in the South
Rosa Pagliarulo
Politecnico di Bari, Italy
475 REMANUFACTURING ITALY. The role of design in the manufacturing chains of
the southern contexts, for the development of territorial cultural heritage,
between local archetypes and global connections.
Domenico Colabella
Politecnico di Bari, Italy
479 Re-Made in … Locally. The empowerment of regional practice
Lisa Hockemeyer1,2, Anna Santi2
1Kingston University, UK
2Politecnico di Milano, Italy
493 Green design for resilient urban pathways
Davide Bruno1, Felice D’Alessandro2
1Politecnico di Milano, Italy
2Università degli Studi di Milano, Italy
ALTERNATIVE FUTURES
507 Design and Literature for Education: Academic and Pedagogical Transdisciplinary
Integrated Lab as Innovative Project for Graduate Programmes
Michaella Pivetti1, Diana Navas2
1Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Brasil
2Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo (PUC-SP), Brasil
521 What if interactive artifacts would disrupt human relations?
Andrea Di Salvo
Politecnico di Torino, Italy
533 The (Un)Sustainable Future - Design and Resignification of Materials and Processes
Maria João Barbosa, Benedita Camacho, Diogo Frias Riobom, Bernardino Gomes
CITAD / Universidade Lusíada, Portugal
549 Shaping the future of automotive design: The automotive experience design lab
Venanzio Arquilla, Giorgia Ballabio
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
561 Defining garment quality for user experience design in metaverse:
The outerwear case study
Dario Gentile, Francesco Musolino, Annalisa Di Roma, Alessandra Scarcelli, Michele Fiorentino
Politecnico di Bari, Italy
571 Research through Design in Multisensory Narrative Dimensions
Clice de Toledo Sanjar Mazzilli
University of São Paulo, Brazil
585 Anthropogenic Narratives. Imagination and Anti-Disciplinarity
for the Communication of Non-Human Perspectives
Francesco E. Guida, Martina Esposito, Enrico Isidori
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
10
MADE IN...
601 Design storytelling e microstorie del Made in Italy:
Nuovi modelli di sostenibilità e innovazione nel distretto produttivo murgiano
Vincenzo Paolo Bagnato, Antonio Labalestra
Politecnico di Bari, Italy
611 Values, Identity, Stereotypes
Daniela Anna Calabi, Francesco Ricciardi
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
624 From territories to communities. A new perspective for Made in Italy.
Iole Sarno
Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy
629 MADE IN AItaly.
The Identities of Fashion Design in the Era of Artificial Intelligence.
Andrea Quartu
Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Italy
635 Food, Design, and Territory:
The Valorization of Manna in the Madonie area.
Benedetto Inzerillo, Samuele Morvillo
Università degli studi di Palermo, Italy
643 Made in Italy. Values, Identity, and Relationships
Mario Bisson, Daniela Anna Calabi, Stefania Palmieri
Politecnico di Milano, Italy
ALTERNATIVE
FUTURES
MDA | 4th International Conference on Environmental Design | 9-11 May 2024 585585
Francesco E. Guida1, Martina Esposito2, Enrico Isidori2
francesco.guida@polimi.it, martiiiesposito@gmail.com, enrico.isidori@gmail.com
1Politecnico di Milano, Department of Design, Italy
2Politecnico di Milano, School of Design, Italy
Anthropogenic Narratives.
Imagination and Anti-Disciplinarity for the
Communication of Non-Human Perspectives
Keywords:
Speculative Design
Communication Design
Climate Change
Prototyping
Anti-Disciplinary
Abstract
The paper, presenting some of the projects developed in a Communica-
tion Design Studio at Politecnico di Milano under the title of Anthropogenic
Narratives, aims to discuss how teaching visual identity and experience de-
sign in communication design undergraduate education may be developed
within an anti-disciplinary approach, adopting a speculative design frame-
work. Anthropogenic Narratives, starting from the assumption of proposing
non-human perspectives (e.g., rocks, moon, ice), aims to provoke and acti-
vate reflections on the relationship between humans and nature, unfolding
futuristic scenarios while involving the human/user in interactive experi-
ences essential to understanding the narratives. The results come from an
experimental educational path based on the risk of trying new solutions and
techniques and verifying them on a real scale. Design speculations that are
not meant to give answers and certainties, aiming to imagine new questions
and reflect on contemporary and future times.
1. Context
The climate change we are currently experiencing is the most complex
challenge humanity has ever experienced. If our Earth has passed through
extreme events, such as the Ice Ages, the crisis the world has been facing in
recent years, although equally severe and urgent, is very different, advanc-
ing at a pace without precedent. Climate change is getting worse year after
year, and though there is awareness and discussion on the topic, nothing
seems enough to provoke action.
Data related to possible risks is clear: the changes in people’s daily lives
and the small actions everyone can do are still insufficient. According to
Funk & Kennedy (2016), although most Americans declare themselves as
environmentally conscious, only a much smaller percentage confess to try-
ing to live in a way that promotes sustainability. Three-quarters declare
themselves as particularly concerned with helping the environment in their
daily lives. However, only 20% describe themselves as people who strive to
live “sustainably always”. It is possible to call this kind of behaviour cog-
nitive dissonance: a psychological phenomenon that occurs when a person
holds contradictory values or attitudes or their actions conflict with their be-
liefs (Funk & Kennedy, 2016). It often leads to rationalizing one’s behaviour
by minimizing the importance of actions or blaming others for the problem
586586
The idea that design thinking as a method could be used for resolving
problems in business or everyday life has conquered the neo-liberal world.
Through concepts and business models oering methods and tools for
‘designing one’s own life’ [...], this business philosophy tends to transform
into a worldview.
Indeed, our world is the result of a design process in continuous action.
However, this faith in the capacity of technology and organizations to take
over these systems has led to inefficiency. Mitrović calls this feeling “West-
ern melancholy,” the ultimate consequence of our community’s acceptance
of the incapacity to stop the devastation of the environment and climate
change.
Mitrović’s insights highlight the complex interplay between design,
technology, and environmental sustainability, underscoring the need for a
more holistic and conscientious approach to design practices in the face of
contemporary challenges. Central to many of these problems is anthropo-
centrism, the conviction that a particular species, Homo Sapiens, has some
kind of privileged relationship with the world’s objects (Caffo, 2017). It is a
metaphysical system that considers all other beings as tools to serve one’s
interests (Rao, 2021).
Figure 1. Ideologies synthesis on
anthropocentrism, biocentrism,
and ecocentrism (Rülke et al.,
2020).
These premises served as the foundation for the 2022/2023 edition of
the Final Synthesis Communication Design Studio (Section C1), third year,
Bachelor in Communication Design at Politecnico di Milano. The students
were challenged to adopt a new perspective and reassess their role as hu-
Anthropogenic Narratives.
Imagination and Anti-Disciplinarity for the Communication of Non-Human Perspectives
(Jonas et al., 2014).
Mitrović (2018) underscores the pivotal role of design in shaping the An-
thropocene era, characterized by the profound impact of human activities
on the Earth’s ecological systems, generating unprecedented possibilities
for catastrophic scenarios. Historically intended as a driver of innovation,
design has predominantly focused on developing novel tools and products,
often overlooking the environmental consequences of mass production. Mi-
trović (2018) further discusses
MDA | 4th International Conference on Environmental Design | 9-11 May 2024 587587
mans. The belief is that sustainability-related changes and our connection
with the planet require profound critical reflections and a significant shift in
perspective, moving away from a purely human-centred view. By departing
from an anthropocentric viewpoint, students were encouraged to adopt the
perspectives of beings that, despite their participation in our ecosystems, are
often perceived as silent observers. The perspective taken within the project,
then named Anthropogenic Narratives, is ecocentric, a view that places a
moral obligation on all beings, not just humans (Rülke et al., 2020) (Figure
1). In particular, the projects considered the point of view of different natural
elements, both living and nonliving, biotic and abiotic.
Speculative design revealed itself as the perfect framework to give a voice
to these quiet participants of the planet’s ecosystem. It offers the opportunity
for an anti-disciplinary approach, using traditional and established design
tools and methods to face “wicked problems” (Dunne & Raby, 2013, p. 2).
Through imagination and a radical approach, speculative practice inspires
thinking, raises awareness, examines, provokes actions, opens discussions,
and provides alternatives in today’s world (Mitrović, 2019).
Through critical thinking, speculative design endeavours to anticipate
the future by designing objects that tell a story or, more precisely, to make
designers more aware of the narratives embodied within each artefact and
their impact on society. Appadurai (2013, pp. 355–364) states that objects are
not mere things placed in space; they are creators of contexts.
Even if only viewed as a fictional exercise, the Studio allowed students
to gain greater awareness of the impact of their role in shaping society and
the relationships between people and the world they inhabit. The projects
gave the possibility for a real dialogue toward unheard dimensions. If nat-
ural elements could speak, they probably would not use human language,
but they would still be capable of conveying a message. By embodying their
perspective, each group demonstrated how different natural elements trans-
mit signals and messages worth understanding. These messages enrich our
vision and awareness and can guide us toward restorative action.
Leitão (2023) states that our planet is home to many ‘worlds’. Her arti-
cle refers to pluriversality, a concept coined by Arturo Escobar (2018), that
indicates the human capacity to build different worlds based on different
assumptions and beliefs. Although this term refers to human societies only,
extending its meaning to all beings, living and nonliving, is possible. By de-
constructing the anthropocentric narrative, it is possible to reconsider other
possibilities of world-building that are already real and available.
Another goal of the Studio was to make the students question their ethi-
cal role as designers of the future. It aimed to connect the urgent needs of a
world in crisis, requiring action, awareness, and responsibility. Schools and
universities are the perfect contexts to overturn the scope of traditional de-
sign tools to address, evaluate, and discuss contemporary issues.
2. Education and Speculative Design
As practice fields, the design disciplines have “the potential to detect,
mediate, and generate new relations and to encourage radical
imagination” (Mitrović, 2023, p. 35). In that sense, the practices related to
Speculative Design reveal this potential and how successful it is as “an
experimental environment to test different hypotheses about our lives in
the future” (Mitrović, 2023, p. 35). In education, adopting such approaches
broadens students’ perspectives and fosters critical thinking (Helgason,
2020). It challenges the
Francesco E. Guida, Martina Esposito, Enrico Isidori
588588
traditional problem-solving approach and encourages reflective practice
(Schön, 1983) on the practice itself. These approaches prioritize subjective
interpretation and practical experience over abstract theory (Mazè & Red-
ström, 2007). Butoliya (2020) affirms that “As design educators we cannot
afford to exclude Speculative Design from […] education of our students,
especially after the current crisis that the whole world is experiencing.”
We are convinced that design, particularly communication design, is
more than problem-solving; it is a tool for exploration and questioning in
uncertain times. This perspective laid the groundwork for the learning pro-
gram mentioned above, which aimed to imagine and design possible futures
critically. The students developed communication design ecosystems within
a speculative design framework, creating visual identities, experiences, and
prototyped devices (named Communicative Machines) that resulted in an
open event-exhibition.
The brief encouraged students to explore non-human perspectives, pro-
voking reflections on the relationship between humans and nature (Rao,
2021). Each subject was treated as a fictional organization, communicating
through a fictional brand and related touchpoints, unfolding futuristic sce-
narios, and involving users in interactive experiences essential for under-
standing the narratives. Through dystopic narratives and alternative reali-
ties, the project aimed to influence the present (Inayatullah, 2020).
3. An Anti-Disciplinary Design Studio
Communication design is used to validate speculation in this educational
path: the speculative process is correct when design artefacts can effectively
convey it, and vice versa. Design should not be considered a mere self-re-
flective practice but a powerful communication tool to promote speculation
and critical, if not political, positions (Mehl & Höfler, pp. 13–14). Students
were organized into small teams and taught to traverse disciplinary bound-
aries and embrace a critical stance towards an apparently fixed discipline.
Experimentation is central to the iterative learning process. It is a path-
way to finding solutions, even in domains where students may lack com-
plete mastery. During the prototyping phase (from initial development to
final stages), students adopt a ‘learning by doing’ approach, embodying
something akin to the concept of “thinkering” (Antonelli, 2011), whereby a
conclusive outcome is achieved through successive collective refinements.
Experimentation and prototyping entail iterations of “trial and error”, a piv-
otal aspect across various stages of response development, from design con-
ception to ultimate implementation (Berglund & Grimheden, 2011, p. 737).
The prototyping phase is crucial, and students are introduced to using
Arduino and some coding environments to promote technological fluency
(Lukens & DiSalvo, 2012). In this educational setting, the goal is not to spe-
cialize but to become literate, as Reas (Cangiano, 2016) affirmed. This means
understanding which tools best bring concepts to life. Students are encour-
aged to explore different technologies to find the best fit for their project,
whether print, three-dimensional space, or code.
The educational design process is grounded in an anti-disciplinary and
evolutionary concept, rejecting a rigidly fixed design methodology. Char-
acterizing the teaching approach as anti-disciplinary implies transcending
mere multidisciplinarity and entails drawing from diverse sources (Chil-
dress, 2016; Brin, 2016), avoiding narrow specialization. This pedagogical
strategy, underscored by a critical perspective, prioritizes unconventional
problem-solving paradigms, encompassing problem-seeking initiatives and
Anthropogenic Narratives.
Imagination and Anti-Disciplinarity for the Communication of Non-Human Perspectives
MDA | 4th International Conference on Environmental Design | 9-11 May 2024 589589
problem-posing inquiries (Blauvelt & Davis, 1997, p. 80).
In the third year, the Final Synthesis Communication Design Studio
serves as the apex of undergraduate students’ academic journey, providing
a platform for synthesizing the knowledge and skills gained in preceding
semesters. Coding and prototyping augment the competencies associated
with communication design and visual systems. Rather than being confined
to a specific domain, the final project encourages students to engage with a
hybrid, transversal dimension of communication design.
As Bernstein (2011) observed, fluency with technology often necessitates
traversing traditional disciplinary boundaries. Students become confident
with different media and tools that transcend conventional design meth-
odologies by adopting a speculative design approach. This enables them to
explore diverse approaches, techniques, and instruments while drawing
insights from many practices and disciplines, as articulated by Mitrović
(2019). Lukens and DiSalvo (2012) emphasize that speculative design and
technological fluency embody cross-disciplinary and integrative principles.
In summary, Speculative Design offers a versatile approach that
transcends disciplinary confines, nurturing creativity, critical thinking, and
technological fluency, all of which are indispensable for effectively
addressing future challenges.
4. The Pedagogical Model:
Designing Narratives, Prototypes and Experiences
The learning iterative process can be summarised in five main parts, two
overlapping phases crossing three design areas, as it is in the Speculative
Overlapping Double Diamond model (Fig. 2):
Exploration: the phase of research on the assigned subject.
Speculation: scenario building, what if, concept definition, narrative.
Communication: from concept to visual identity, defining a commu-
nication strategy into and out of the narrative.
Interaction: definition of the prototype’s main functions and the ex-
perience’s user journey, considering all the touchpoints consistently
to the communication strategy.
Making: the phase of building and verifying the prototype through
progressive refinements.
Figure 2. Speculative
Overlapping Double Diamond
Model (Isidori, 2023).
Francesco E. Guida, Martina Esposito, Enrico Isidori
590590
The overlap of the various phases and areas, defined as Synthesis, is
indeed the moment of transformation into key intermediate project outputs.
In the central area, where the exploration gradually stops (converging)
and the making begins (diverging), the project’s genesis occurs. The field
represents the transition from definition to development. The central
phases merge into the Define-Develop phase (Fig. 3). As represented in the
Overlapping Double Cones Model (Fig. 4), the design process shows a series
of nodes representing the various decision points in the project’s progression.
The model, which has the temporal dimension on the vertical axis and the
various domains on the horizontal plane, retains all the characteristics of
reticular or complex models.
The vertical position of the nodes is defined by time, while the reference
area of the nodes determines the position on the horizontal planes. The
reticular representation has convergent and divergent dynamics, as already
synthesized in the Overlapping Double Diamond Model (Fig. 3). The model
aims to show all paths: the design space explored over the time of the
process, as well as the unexplored space, the generative nodes as well as the
blind nodes.
Throughout each phase of their progress towards the final project,
students engage in various stages of the design process. However, this
process is not merely “reduced to a mechanistic set of steps” as “method
without imagination contributes very little to the design profession and the
solution of complex design projects” (Frascara & Winkler, 2008, p. 7).
Figure 3. Overlapping Double
Diamond Model (Isidori, 2023).
Figure 4. Overlapping Double
Cones Model (Isidori, 2023).
Anthropogenic Narratives.
Imagination and Anti-Disciplinarity for the Communication of Non-Human Perspectives
MDA | 4th International Conference on Environmental Design | 9-11 May 2024 591591
Students collaborated in groups of 4 up to 6. Each team member
assumes a specific role within the group based on interests and skills.
Received the general theme (e.g., climate change), each group delineates
a specific perspective on the assigned subject (e.g., rocks, moon, or ice)
and a corresponding scenario to address. Thus, they identify and dissect a
problem through analysis and research. Leveraging human superstructures
and organizations as valuable subjects, they employ fictional branding to
“represent” their narrative, using competencies and skills acquired during
the initial two years of the Course. Subsequently, they define a concept
and communication strategy and its multidimensional and multichannel
execution (touchpoints and selected media).
Additionally, the students delineate the main functions, meanings, and
contents of the Communicative Machine. Aligned with their concept and
strategy, they develop a visual identity to ensure consistent communication
across two- and three-dimensional outputs. They gain confidence in
designing complex systems.
The main outputs, called Communicative Machines, are objects, installations, or
interactive devices realized as prototypes for testing and verification. These objects
are at the centre of narratives and intended to be like deus ex-machina, allowing
the users outside the narrative to interpret the provocation and jump into the
narrative. Serving as primary entry points, the Communicative Machines allow the
audience to enter the fictional world of the narrative. These are hybrid elements
that belong to the real world and the imaginative reality crafted through the
project. Mitrović (2016, p. 11) argues that these diegetic objects materialize the
narrative, facilitating the suspension of belief. By personally experiencing the
fictional scenario, the devices enable users to fully engage with the proposed
narrative, enhancing its credibility. The prototypes can also be intended as
“provotypes” (from “provocation” and “prototype”) (Casnati et al., 2024).
Provotypes are tangible or intangible design artefacts “whose main goal is to foster,
encourage, and provoke discussions and reflections among different users and
stakeholders” (Casnati et al., 2024; Boer & Donovan, 2012).
In addition to the Communicative Machines, other artefacts support
the narrative: a system of touchpoints designed to offer users a
comprehensive understanding of the proposed (fictional) world. These
communication ecosystems form the narrative systems, comprising
touchpoints, artefacts, and interactive devices.
However, it is essential to note that these works of fiction are not
purely products of imagination. They draw inspiration from real data
and the actual risks humanity faces or will face due to climate change.
The fictional frame creates a more engaging context through which to
learn about these data, exaggerating real-life situations to provoke a
response regarding their gravity. Through a reflection for absurdity, the
user is invited to reflect on problems that, if left unaddressed, could truly
degenerate.
5. Students’ projects
The following paragraphs provide brief descriptions of three case studies
from the eleven projects that resulted from the 2022/2023 Communication
Design Studio. Each description examines natural elements (moon, ice,
rocks) and their perspectives on climate change, which could be either victim,
cause, or completely left out of the phenomenon. Links to full descriptions,
images, and videos are included in each case study for comprehensive
understanding.
Francesco E. Guida, Martina Esposito, Enrico Isidori
592592
5.1 Moondo
The moon is an outsider participant in the crisis of climate change. However,
it contributes to the damages provoked by its effects. Its perspective is
detached, neither worried nor angry; instead, it cynically capitalizes on the
situation to increase its influence and power. The narration is set in 2030. The
rise of sea levels, triggered by global warming and moon activity, caused the
flooding of several coasts and the abandonment of many cities. Moondo is
a travel agency that takes advantage of the new environmental conditions
and turns submerged cities into perfect tourist destinations (Figure 5).
The company offers numerous activities in each city, such as kayaking,
paddle surfing, snorkelling on the surface, and scuba diving in the deep.
Moondo transforms what would have been abandoned cities into the most
fascinating tourist destinations. At the Moondo stands, it is possible to have
a complete forecast of the floods that will occur within the next 120 years.
Users input specific parameters, such as desired coastlines, moon phases,
and years of interest, using an interactive device shaped like a computer.
Once the user confirms these inputs, the parameters are used to identify
the perfect holiday destinations and experiences tailored by the company to
those specific places and conditions.
5.2 I.C.E.
From the same issue arises a vastly different perspective: that of ice. This
element is indeed greatly affected by climate change. Humanity, blinded by
its hunger for power, has made it weaker and weaker, dangerously close to
extinction. Despite the melting of ice is one of the oldest and most widely
recognized consequences of global warming, the actions responsible for this
problem have persisted for years, fueling a growing rage and resentment.
I.C.E. (Insurge, Commit, Extinguish) is a terrorist organization whose goal
is to put to an end the harmful being that humiliates and destroys nature:
humans. I.C.E. bombs are everywhere (Figure 6). Their timer lasts a few
minutes and accelerates if anyone tries to get close. The only way to stop
them is to stay still: place a hand on the icy surface of the device and stop
doing anything that would make the crisis worse. However, once contact is
broken, the countdown resumes, culminating in an explosion that unleashes
environmental devastation at a designated location on Earth, spreading
terror and chaos. The project is situated in a non-specific moment, taking
Figure 5. Moondo: advertising
billboard; website landing
page; a screenshot of the
destination’s selection process;
the Communicative Machine.
Authors: Guglielmo Basile,
Matteo Dell’Agostino, Arianna
Marenghi, Marta Piatti,
Chiara Provana, Ilaria Urgesi,
Davide Vitrano, 2023 (https://
anthropogenicnarratives.
labsintesi-c1.info/projects/10_
MOONDO.html).
Anthropogenic Narratives.
Imagination and Anti-Disciplinarity for the Communication of Non-Human Perspectives
MDA | 4th International Conference on Environmental Design | 9-11 May 2024 593593
reference from different periods and contexts to create a surreal world that
could be either in 20 years or tomorrow.
5.3 SPECTA
The project presenting rock’s perspective was also developed in the same
undefined time context. Rocks are not affected by climate change. They have
witnessed countless climatic changes, and this crisis is nothing more than
one of the many that Earth has and will always experience. Human beings,
however, have developed a feeling of anxiety towards this problem. To cure
this disease a company for self-care named Specta has created Litia, a device
that allows the user to see climate change as the geological phenomenon of
rock stratification.
Climate change is not a problem, seeing it is. Thanks to Specta (Figure
7), eco-anxiogenic events are visualized as relaxing layers that expand the
user’s perception into a space of dialogue with the rocks. By lifting and
slowly rotating the device, the user can alter the vision of catastrophic events
into rock stratifications. Humanity does not have to fight climate change, as
it is an inevitable evolution of Earth’s life; it just has to change the way it
looks at it.
Figure 6. I.C.E.: the
Communicative Machine
composed of the bomb and the
television set; scenario building:
urban grati and a newspaper
headline announcing the
possibility to stop the countdown.
Authors: Ginevra Bernasconi,
Giulia Bonalumi, Jacopo
Domenichini, Agostino Sanna,
Andrea Vitali, 2023 (https://
anthropogenicnarratives.
labsintesi-c1.info/projects/01_
ICE.html).
Francesco E. Guida, Martina Esposito, Enrico Isidori
594594
Figure 7. Litia: Specta in use;
the product’s section of Litia’s
website; the user journey of
Specta in use. Authors: Francesco
Bonetti, Federico Gajo, Emiliano
Garibaldi, Enrico Isidori, Cecilia
Pizzagalli, Camilla Tosi, 2023
(http://anthropogenicnarratives.
labsintesi-c1.info/projects/08_
LITIA.html).
6. Conclusions
By embodying non-human perspectives, each Final Synthesis
Communication Design Studio group demonstrated how different natural
elements could communicate and what. In that way, they can enrich our
vision and guide us to restorative action. While it might appear detached
from the chaos of reality, this exercise represents a tangible gesture that
tackles a delicate problem such as climate change, to which we often feel
harmless.
Storytelling emerges as a potent tool for comprehending the future
and motivating action and serves as the means through which we shape
the reality that surrounds us. As Harari (2015) suggests, humans utilize
language to describe and create new, fictional realities. Fiction proves to
be a powerful tool for crafting believable narratives and redefining the
relationships between elements in our world. It reveals that the world as we
perceive it is partly the product of human imagination.
As affirmed by Anagnostou, Karvinen, and Vasko (2020), the concrete
actions useful to create different futures do not need to be “grandiose
intervention, they can also be gentle gestures”. Despite its ironic and
disruptive methods, Speculative Design operates subtly and quietly. It
discreetly touches the hearts of the people who participated in the project
and found themselves indelibly changed by the experience.
Spurling and Kuijer (2016) emphasize that participation plays a
crucial role in scenario development, creating a shared language, and
understanding future issues. Since the construction of a narrative for the
future is a shared practice, the future is the result of a shared vision. When
involving multiple stakeholders, it is important to acknowledge that each
person may be concerned about different issues that could influence their
choice of a preferred future. Therefore, the visioning scenario results from
the contrasting perspectives of the people participating in the experience.
The intention is not that a particular visioning scenario is chosen as ‘the way
forward’ (Meadows & Kouw, 2016). Rather, the set of different perspectives
acts as a vehicle to promote an informed debate.
Anthropogenic Narratives.
Imagination and Anti-Disciplinarity for the Communication of Non-Human Perspectives
MDA | 4th International Conference on Environmental Design | 9-11 May 2024 595595
Over the years, feedback from students and audiences during various
presentation events or dissemination actions, such as exhibitions, websites,
and social media platforms, has consistently validated the efficacy of the
presented learning process and educational experimentation. Students
highly value the anti-disciplinary approach, which enables them to acquire
new knowledge and skills while directly experiencing the hybrid nature
of communication design. Moreover, they cultivate a proactive attitude
towards learning, embracing the dynamic challenges of an ever-evolving
field. Comments from past editions of the Communication Design Studio
characterize the approach as “highly innovative” and “useful to learn by
doing, work more independently, and deal with technologies never used
before.” Additionally, tackling assigned issues through the speculative
approach is seen as “stimulating” and “a challenge,” allowing them to “find
unconventional design solutions.”
The fiction generated during the Communication Design Studio has
concretely impacted the lives of different audiences, including students,
professors, and visitors to the exhibition. To conclude the learning journey
undertaken during the Studio, the eleven projects were showcased at a
one-day exhibition at Triennale Milano. The exhibition, emphatically titled
“Anthropogenic Narratives: Communicating and Experiencing Non-
Human Perspectives,” succinctly summarized both the learning process and
the outputs.
The involvement in the exhibition of people outside the university
(Figure 8) allowed the students to confront themselves with the world
they were and will continue to design for. The varied backgrounds of the
participants enriched and fortified the narratives crafted in the projects,
validating Ziegler’s (1991) assertion that shared stories and visions gain
strength through collective engagement.
However, as Neeley (2020) stated,
The provocation about the future is only half the work. [...] Speculative
Design is one of many disciplines that can allow us to touch what is ahead,
and this illumination of possibility is in and of itself a meaningful and
powerful act of creativity, but it is only when we connect this back to new
behaviors in the present that we have actually changed the probabilities of
one future outcome or another and hopefully shifted towards a preferable
one. [...] If we are looking for further impact after the speculation is where
the real work begins.
Even if only viewed as a fictional exercise, the Studio allowed students to
gain greater awareness of the impact of their role in shaping society and the
relationships between people and the world they inhabit.
The future is not a place we are just getting to, sitting there quietly,
waiting for it to happen. The future is what we do any minute, just thinking
about what we are eating for dinner or doing over the weekend. We produce
the future by our choices and actions in the present.
Figure 8: participation of non-
academic audience during the
exhibition “Anthropogenic
Narrative: Communicating
and Experiencing Non-Human
Perspectives”, Triennale Milano,
Salone d’Onore, March 22, 2023.
Francesco E. Guida, Martina Esposito, Enrico Isidori
596596
Acknowledgments
All authors equally contributed, read and approved the final manuscript.
The authors would like to thank the teachers and colleagues who worked
during the last years at the Final Synthesis Communication Design Studio
C1, Bachelor’s in Communication Design, School of Design, Politecnico di
Milano: professors Andrea Braccaloni, Pietro Buffa, Alessandro Masserdotti
and Giacomo Scandolara; assistants Marcello J. Biffi, Alberto Candido,
Pietro Forino, Antonio Garosi, Michele Invernizzi, Adele Mazzali, Andrea
Pronzati, Claudia Tranti, Ernesto Voltaggio. Launching, managing, and
sharing an anti-disciplinary design practice in an educational context has
been possible with them. Consequently, a grateful thought is for all students
who, over the years, accepted the challenge.
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Francesco E. Guida, Martina Esposito, Enrico Isidori
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Central to multi-stakeholder processes of participatory innovation is to generate knowledge about 'users' and to identify business opportunities accordingly. In these processes of collaborative analysis and synthesis, conflicting perceptions within and about a field of interest are likely to surface. Instead of the natural tendency to avoid these tensions, we demonstrate how tensions can be utilized by embodying them in provocative types (provotypes). Provotypes expose and embody tensions that surround a field of interest to support collaborative analysis and collaborative design explorations across stakeholders. In this paper we map how provotyping contributes to four related areas of contemporary Interaction Design practice. Through a case study that brings together stakeholders from the field of indoor climate, we provide characteristics of design provocations and design guidelines for provotypes for participatory innovation.
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In Designs for the Pluriverse Arturo Escobar presents a new vision of design theory and practice aimed at channeling design's world-making capacity toward ways of being and doing that are deeply attuned to justice and the Earth. Noting that most design—from consumer goods and digital technologies to built environments—currently serves capitalist ends, Escobar argues for the development of an “autonomous design” that eschews commercial and modernizing aims in favor of more collaborative and placed-based approaches. Such design attends to questions of environment, experience, and politics while focusing on the production of human experience based on the radical interdependence of all beings. Mapping autonomous design’s principles to the history of decolonial efforts of indigenous and Afro-descended people in Latin America, Escobar shows how refiguring current design practices could lead to the creation of more just and sustainable social orders.
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Today designers often focus on making technology easy to use, sexy, and consumable. In "Speculative Everything," Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby propose a kind of design that is used as a tool to create not only things but ideas. For them, design is a means of speculating about how things could be -- to imagine possible futures. This is not the usual sort of predicting or forecasting, spotting trends and extrapolating; these kinds of predictions have been proven wrong, again and again. Instead, Dunne and Raby pose "what if" questions that are intended to open debate and discussion about the kind of future people want (and do not want). "Speculative Everything" offers a tour through an emerging cultural landscape of design ideas, ideals, and approaches. Dunne and Raby cite examples from their own design and teaching and from other projects from fine art, design, architecture, cinema, and photography. They also draw on futurology, political theory, the philosophy of technology, and literary fiction. They show us, for example, ideas for a solar kitchen restaurant; a flypaper robotic clock; a menstruation machine; a cloud-seeding truck; a phantom-limb sensation recorder; and devices for food foraging that use the tools of synthetic biology. Dunne and Raby contend that if we speculate more -- about everything -- reality will become more malleable. The ideas freed by speculative design increase the odds of achieving desirable futures. © 2013 Massachusetts Institute of Technology. All rights reserved.