EXPLORE OUR DIGITAL SOCIAL DESIGN DIRECTORY
LEARN ABOUT THE PEOPLE AND PRACTICES WHO USE DESIGN AS A TOOL FOR SOCIAL CHANGE

Taitung County, Taiwan. Typhoon Morakot Reconstruction Hsieh Ying-Chun How can a community contribute to a post-disaster rebuilding process? Hsieh Ying-Chun is a Taiwanese architect who works throughout Asia training villagers to build locally-appropriate dwellings in response to earthquake devastation. How can a community contribute to a post-disaster rebuilding process? Santiago, Chile Elemental Can public housing be designed to encourage resident ownership? ELEMENTAL engages in projects ranging from housing to public space to objects to buildings, covering a wide spectrum of interests. One of the firm´s hallmarks is participatory design, in which the architects work closely with the client and users. Can public housing be designed to encourage resident ownership? Atelier d'Architecture Autogérée Atelier d'Architecture Autogérée Can a new urban future grow out of a vacant lot? Atelier d’Architecture Autogérée is a collective of architects that transforms urban spaces. It is recognized as an engine for engaging citizens in shaping their own cities through experimentation and renewal. Can a new urban future grow out of a vacant lot? Children playing at the Bomnong L'or Community Centre in Cambodia. The Centre sits on a dense urban site and is contructed out of fabric-formed post and beam concrete, engaging local female tailors, and is raised up similar to traditional wooden Khmer houses to create a large playground underneath. Image Credit: Lindsay Perth BuildX Studio (formerly Orkidstudio) How do we design with scarcity? BuildX Studio (formerly Orkidstudio) is a Nairobi-based architectural, engineering, and construction company creating real estate projects for positive social and environmental impact. How do we design with scarcity? Coloco Coloco Can a city work as an ecosystem? Coloco is a collective of landscapers, artists, urban planners, and botanists working in a variety of mediums including mapping, physical gardening, and advocacy. Can a city work as an ecosystem?
VIEW ALL PRACTICES

Prize Winners

Learn about our Prize Winners, Grantees, and Design Circle.

Learn More

Podcasts

Social Design Insights podcast. Conversations with the leading voices of the social design movement.

Listen Here

Videos

Short, inspiring films about social design pioneers around the globe.

Watch Here

Initiatives

Supporting inspiring work around the world

Read More

CSF’s Mission is to empower the practice of community-driven social design

The Curry Stone Design Foundation supports groups and individuals using design to build healthier, more vital communities. Over time, this support has taken the form of an annual prize, a podcast, grants, and an honorary circle.

LEARN MORE ABOUT CSF

Social Design Insights is a weekly podcast of conversations with leading designers who discuss innovative projects and practices that use design to address pressing social justice issues.

Hosted by Eric Cesal, Produced by Baruch Zeichner.

Listen to the latest episode of Social Design Insights here.

IN MEMORIAM

Jockin Arputham dedicated his life to working with slum dwellers to build representative organizations into powerful partnerships with governments and international agencies for the betterment of urban living.

Mr. Jockin Arputham

We are saddened to learn of the passing of our dear friend, colleague and incredible humanitarian Mr. Jockin Arputham.

Jockin dedicated his life to working with slum dwellers to build representative organizations into powerful partnerships with governments and international agencies for the betterment of urban living. Arputham was the president of the National Slum Dwellers Federation which he founded in the 70s and of Slum Dwellers International which is now a network of slum and shack dweller organizations and federations from over twenty countries across the world.

The National Slum Dwellers Federation works closely with Mahila Milan, a collective of savings groups formed by homeless women and women living in slums across India, and with SPARC, a Mumbai-based NGO that was awarded the Curry Stone Design Prize for their instrumental work in supporting tens of thousands of the urban poor access housing and sanitation throughout India.