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LEARN ABOUT THE PEOPLE AND PRACTICES WHO USE DESIGN AS A TOOL FOR SOCIAL CHANGE

Three images of a poster with a red background and a black bull charging forward, with Adbusters written on top and Occupy 2.0 written at the bottom Adbusters Does Design Create Politics or Vice Versa? Adbusters Media Foundation has launched numerous international campaigns, including Buy Nothing Day, TV Turnoff Week, and Occupy Wall Street, and is known for their "subvertisements" that spoof popular advertisements. Additionally, it publishes the reader-supported, advertising-free Adbusters, an activist magazine devoted to challenging consumerism. Does Design Create Politics or Vice Versa? Combating the water crisis by reviving existing water bodies is essential for community health. Goonj How can donated clothing be translated into community renewal? Goonj is a non-­governmental organization based in Delhi since 1998 which undertakes poverty alleviation work, using the city's discard as material to fuel widespread development work across village India. How can donated clothing be translated into community renewal? This mural is another sign of life returning to Braddock. John Fetterman How can a town decimated by globalization be revitalized? John Fetterman is an American politician who, as Mayor of Braddock, Pennsylvania, led the urban rejuvenation of a post-industrial city. How can a town decimated by globalization be revitalized? For playground Wikado discarded rotor blades are used to create a mazelike space with a panna court in the center, placed on the existing concrete circle. Image Credit: Denis Guzzo Superuse Studios Can a “blue” economy be created where one business' waste is raw materials for another? Rotterdam based Superuse Studios is at the leading edge of ecological thought. Their work pioneers ideas around an economy where the waste of one business becomes raw materials for another. Can a “blue” economy be created where one business' waste is raw materials for another? Hughes courtyard. Image Credit: Adrian Vasile Jonathan Kirschenfeld Can excellent design be for everyone? Jonathan Kirschenfeld is a New York architect recognized for design excellence over a wide range of environmentally and socially sustainable projects including supportive housing, childcare centers, recreation, and performance facilities. Can excellent design be for everyone?
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Podcasts

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

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Videos

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

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Initiatives

Supporting inspiring work around the world

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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.

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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.