Cheryl Durst, CEO of IIDA, penned a letter touching on current events and how the design community can effect change.
“Design illuminates disparity and helps close the gaps—from healthcare and education to public space and urban planning. Design in all its manifestations is a force for change.
“Recently at IIDA, we’ve considered, like so many of you, what ‘re-entry’ and a return to life in a post-pandemic world might be. Certainly, not the same world we left behind four months ago. And definitely not a so-called ‘new normal.’ Frankly, the old normal wasn’t exactly working that well for us. For the environment. For people of color. For the LGBTQIA community. For so many.”
Durst calls on the design community to Design for Humanity, including the pillars of Dignity, Equity, and Justice.
“The power of our collective energy is more important than ever, and we should and will consider how we function as a global design community and how we hold strong to those foundational values. The spaces we envision and create, envelop and contain those values and this time requires a broadened vocabulary of collaboration. One where we are open to learning, expanding our societal and world views, and maintaining a through-line of equity and humanity in all the work we do,” she writes.
To read her full letter, click here.
Photo: Courtesy of IIDA
