The Design of Really Big Things

Dear Designer,

Today I'm tackling a very big question.

Q: How do we solve big problems like climate change?

Whoa, there, Jeff...pretty big Q for a Linkedin article, don't ya think?

Of course, there is no neat answer, but problems like climate change are becoming problems designers are starting to make a dent in.

But personas and "how might we's" aren't the tools you want to tackle climate change.

Traditional design tools feel a bit insignificant when the climate is threatened.

Who is the client when everyone is a user...and all the users are doomed?

At best, traditional design was meant to help you design everyday things.

Designing Everyday Things

It was 1988, and capitalism was trying to be the coolest kid on the bloc.

The Soviet Union was about to collapse, Super Mario Bros. 2 came out on NES, and this is what TV looked like:

[from Remembering 1988 on YouTube]

The world wanted all these shiny, new things, and capitalism was eager to provide them.

That same year, Don Norman published an early version of the Design of Everyday Things.

The absurd red pot on the cover that would burn anyone using it was the perfect analogy for the book.

Don's revolutionary idea: When people can't use things, it's not their fault. It's a faulty design because the thing isn't intuitive.

Don set out some principles that completely changed the design mindset from visuals to functionality.

35 years later, this book is the entry point for designers who want to start a career in UX design.

(If you want a refresher, check out this book summary I made)

For context, this is the kind of unintuitive software Don was dealing with in 1988:

User-centered design proved very useful for designing things better. And designing things better is always good for business.

That's been a very good thing for designers, and the demand for new experiences helps you have a comfortable salary designing lots and lots of things.

How has that been working out for the planet?

[e-waste in Ghana from the documentary E WASTELAND]

5.3 billion mobile phones will be thrown away in 2022. (source).

All that software you're designing has an environmental cost in the hardware that runs it and the data centers that power it.

The design of everyday things like apps is causing very big changes to our climate.

Designing Really Big Things

Luckily, there are sides of design that have been developing methodologies that offer a way into big problem spaces like climate, governance, and healthcare.

This design practice sharpened its tools through organizational challenges, government innovation projects, and business strategy. It's finally starting to emerge as a cohesive practice for large-scale projects.

To design a better climate, you must think bigger than everyday things.

Principle #1: The world can be redesigned.

The first principle of designing big things is that the material world is a product of design and can be redesigned.

You need more than a desire to make a difference. You need to a little bit radical to make a difference.

An inconvenient statistic is that 80% of the environmental impact of a product is set in the design phase.

On your watch, decisions are being made that make climate change worse.

Designers should take ownership of design's power and responsibility before tackling climate issues.

Principle #2: Think in systems.

The second principle of designing big things is zooming out to see the whole ecosystem. The design process of everyday things is often represented linearly, but the design process has always been circular.

Even the Double Diamond is evolving to correct the over-simplification of a linear approach to design. Note the circularity and systems language in the evolved Double Diamond:

Design has a long history in systems before Don Norman coined UX in the 90s. Even the original Double Diamond is based on a systems design model.

Principle #3: Design for longer timelines.

Design is a future-oriented practice, but projects like climate work deal with much farther futures than traditional design. The really big projects deal in multiple timelines and many possible futures.

Rather than thinking in "launches," you have to think in transitions. There won't be a clean release of a systemic solution, and there probably won't be a smooth transition either.

With systems work, don't expect the project to ever be "done." Always be looking ahead to the next transition and take a continuous mindset to manage multiple time horizons.

Principle #4: Measure the consequences.

To create behavioral change that lasts, measure the long-term consequences while staying open to unintended consequences that may become future designs.

The implications of your work may not even be measurable for many years so never stop gathering data.

Principle #5: Be both tactical and strategic.

Design has a tactical layer and strategic layer. You will have to work in both.

The tactics that begin your design career such as making, creating, and sharing are easily seen and understand. The strategy is the "brain-work" that is not so easily seen like analyzing, synthesizing, translating, and understanding.

Projects on a large scale require you to zoom in and out from tactical to strategic work.

Principle #6: Make the intangible tangible.

Designing big things is still designing, and one of the critical skills is turning hard-to-grasp concepts into tangible artifacts.

Artifacts like maps, visuals, and storyboards can communicate and change minds, and you can use these same artifacts when tackling big problems.

Principle #7: Design through others.

The third principle of designing big is to be collaborative. You shouldn't try to do it on your own.

For example, your work might shift from delivering solutions for a client to facilitating solutions from your stakeholders.

When designing big things, your focus is on how stakeholders interact and shape design artifacts.

The 7 Principles of Designing Really Big Things

I hope these 7 principles will help you apply your everyday design skills to bigger things like climate change. These are a helpful guidelines for design work in systems, strategy, and culture.

Principle #1: The world can be redesigned.

Principle #2: Think in systems.

Principle #3: Design for longer timelines.

Principle #4: Measure the consequences

Principle #5: Be both tactical and strategic.

Principle #6: Make the intangible tangible.

Principle #7: Design through others.

Design is a job that can make a real change in this world. The first step is believing that you can make that change.

Learn More

The design of really big things is made up of many fields and practices. You can learn more by searching for terms like #sustainabledesign, #systemsthinking, #strategicdesign, #behavioraldesign #designfutures, #circulardesign, and #servicedesign

Designers doing this work go by titles like service designer, innovation consultant, and strategic designer.

If you want to go beyond the mindset and into the actual methods and processes involved, I'll give a talk on design strategy on November 12th.

It's the perfect way to start designing bigger things.

Until next time!

-Jeff Humble

Designer, educator, and co-founder of the Fountain Institute

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