Three Pillars of SID Guide Book

THREE PILLARS OF

GUIDE BOOK Macarena Ă lamos Marcela Gonzalez

By Macarena Alamos and Marcela Gonzรกlez Under the supervision of Prof. Mark Kwami Anhalt University of Applied Sciences Dessau Dessau, Germany July 2015

THREE PILLARS OF

GUIDE BOOK

CONTENT

WHAT IS SOCIAL IMPACT DESIGN? SOCIAL IMPACT DESIGNS KEY WORDS THREE PILLARS OF SID SOCIAL TRIANGLE MODEL NEED DRIVEN NEED DRIVEN PARAMETERS FEASIBLE FEASIBLE PARAMETERS VIABLE VIABLE PARAMETERS HOW WORKS THE SOCIAL TRIANGLE MODEL PLANNING TOOL EVALUATION TOLL REFERENCES

The main objective of our project was to look at ways one can measure the potential impact of a social design project. The Social Design Triangle seeks to help to visualize how close or far from social design equilibrium a project is.

WHAT IS SOCIAL IMPACT DESIGN? Here a few quotes on Social design that we find powerful and thought provoking: “Design innovation is a powerful process for non-profits to incubate and implement meaningful projects to serve communities. Social consciousness is an effective and competitive position for all types of business.”

Impact Design for Social Change “Design, if it is to be ecologically responsible and socially responsible and socially responsive, must be revolutionary and radical.”

Victor Papanek “Within the world social design is something defined as a design process that contributes to improving human well-being and livelihood. The idea is that designers and creative professionals have a responsibility and are able to cause real change in the world through good design.”

Madeln4Heavens

SOCIAL IMPACT DESIGNS KEY WORDS PEOPLE CAN MAKE CHANGE DEVELOPING SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS AND SOLVE THE SOCIETY NEEDS PROBLEMS

BY INNOVATING AND PROMOTING RESPONSIBLE IDEAS FOR THE COMMUNITY

• Change • Sustainable • Solutions • Society • Needs • • Problems • Innovating • Responsible • Ideas•

THREE PILLARS OF SID

Social Design, or design that aims to have a social impact, needs to consider three important aspects: NEED DRIVEN Human FEASIBLE Capacity VIABLE Profit

The objective of each project, is to ensure that it is positioned in the center where all 3 pillars overlap.

Although this simple diagram can help you continuously map the position of your project and illustrate if you project is achieving a balance of all 3 pillars, we felt it was not accurate enough to guide in the process of helping you actually achieve this equilibrium. .

NEED DRIVEN

VIABLE

FEASIBLE

SOCIAL TRIANGLE MODEL Social Design proposes a solution for a real problem, taking account of a community’s real needs, or better said it should be “Need Driven”.

It also needs to be “Feasible” and considers the capacity of implementing a project successfully and the development of the project.

The “Viable” pillar meant to ensure a project can be run sustainably in economic, social and environmental terms In our project, we have represented the 3 pillars of social design as a triangle. Successfully planning, implementing and running a social design project is a balancing act. One needs to balance all 3 pillars. Our triangle model allows you to see if your project has the necessary equilibrium between the 3 pillars.

To achieve this, we first identified 7 key parameters under each of the 3 pillars of Social Design. The objective of every Social design Project is to take into consideration as many of these aspects as possible.

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NEED DRIVEN

Social Design needs to be Need Driven and Human centered. It should strive to find solutions to real problems, which if solved, will have a positive impact on the target group.

This demands cultural sensitivity and the need to get a deep understanding of the problem. It also needs to ensure inclusion and participation of the target group, both in formulating the problem as well as in contributing toward possible solutions. This will allow the target group to develop a sense of ownership to the solution and avoid imposing a solution. Care also has to be taken, to avoid the creation of new problems whilst trying to resolve one problem.

NEED DRIVEN PARAMETERS

Human Centered Moved by humanistic values and devotion to human welfare.

It’s Empathetic, collaborative, optimistic and experimental. It is putting human needs at the center of each project.

Problem Solving - Needs oriented The developing of a project centered in fulfills effectively the identified needs, after the problem has been completely understood within its context. Applying a design approach that identifies a real need and then seeks to develop a solution. It is crucial to take into account that the solution must cover a necessity instead of creating it.

Socially responsible Is the ethical obligation to act for the benefit of the society in which the project is focus. Ensuring that a project benefits the society and also takes into cultural, legal and ethical aspects.

Open source Open source brings the project’s essential information to the general public, making new knowledge for the community. It is free of charge, and opens the possibility to receive modifications or improvements from others.

Preserve local culture To preserve the local culture means to have a good heritage conservation strategy that looks at both tangible (monuments, way of construction, etc.) and intangible (customs, way of life, etc.) heritage resources in an integrated manner. It is essential for this to first learn about the traditions, the languages, the local skills, even the food, as well as spend time with the people of the community.

Inclusive - Involve the community It is to incorporate the target community in the project from the investigation process, trying to understand their needs as close as you can. Including them in the design process to promote a better approach of the real way that the community is going to interact with the final product.

Avoid negative consequences It is taken into account all the negative consequences that the production and selling process of your product can produce. This involves your potential workers, target group, community involved and the environment before you start to produce it. Evaluating which is the better way to avoid perils in the whole process.

FEASIBLE

Feasibility refers to the capacity of implementing a project successfully in the given context.

It requires taking into account technological, social, cultural, environmental and economic realities.

Where possible, social design projects should strive to utilize locally available resources (knowledge, skills, technologies, materials and economies) to ensure the resulting product or service can be efficiently produced and maintained. Favorably, the project should also look at the possibility of building local capacity and/ or creating employment opportunities.

FEASIBLE PARAMETERS

Sustainable raw materials Using natural and renewable raw materials. Could also involve using recycled or upcycled materials in the execution of a project.

Social manufacturing This means trying to involve local communities in the execution/production of a social design project. This would lead to job creation and income earning opportunities and help make project more sustainable.

Adhere to Fair trade principles Fair trade seeks to fight against poverty and the inequalities in trade procedures. It seeks to create a dialogue with transparency and respect. It also contributes to sustainable development by offering better trading conditions, and securing the rights of marginalized procedures and workers.

Consider legal aspects It is to take into account all the existent norms that are related to the production, distribution and use of your product.

Ensuring the incorporation of the project into the market without legal impediments.

Utilize local materials It is to introduce into the project materials or products that have been extracted, harvested, or recovered, as well as manufactured, in the targeted community or nearby it.

Utilize local technologies and skills It is to prioritize and to adapt the technology and skills already existing in the target community or nearby, for the execution of your project.

Efficient Manufacturing Ensuring that the product or service can be manufactured efficiently, by optimizing production systems and addressing aspects like using raw materials effectively and avoiding waste; saving energy and water in production; quality assurance to avoid rejects.

VIABLE

A social design project needs to be viable in economic, social and environmental terms.

The project also needs to be viable in terms of production, distribution and marketing as well as possible maintenance. It needs to be affordable for the target group and in an ideal scenario should create sustainable business models along the value chain.

In regards to profitability, the focus should not only be on financial profits. Social, economic and environmental benefits amongst others, need to be given equal weight in determining the overall viability of a project and to ensure that it can be self-sustaining.

VIABLE PARAMETERS

Usability Usability means developing products and systems easier to use. These products have to correspond closely to user needs and requirements. It should be effective, efficient and satisfactory.

Affordable for user group An affordable product is one that is economically viable for the target group you are designing. Making it affordable means that it will have a real selling-buying life in the market.

Create business models (along the value chain) A successful business model represents a better way than the existing alternatives. It may offer more value to a discrete group of customers. Or it may completely replace the old way of doing things and become the standard for the next generation of entrepreneurs to beat.

Open to future improvements It is to design your project thinking that it will solve a specific need in a specific date/time. It is also thinking that the needs will evolve. Your product eventually could be asked for some future changes to become a better product according to the new context.

Profitable (financial, social, environmental) It is taking care of your financial, social and/or environmental investment that your design project could bring benefits after its production and delivering. Making a previous profit and loss projection forecast to show how much you will bring in by selling your product and how much profit will make from these sales.

Self-sustaining A self sustaining project is a project that is consider the real use that will bring to the target group as well as the quality, durability and coherence with the need it should solve. Then the product will be able to have a place one´s target market and will have be able to maintain itself in it.

Environmentally responsible Is the efficient managing of the activities related to environmental impact. It covers issues such as impact monitoring, energy and water efficiency, waste reduction, recycling or treatment, taking advantage of by-products and verification of suppliers’ responsibility.

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FEASIBLE

CREATE BUSINESS MODELS

HUMAN CENTERED

SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS

ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE

PROBLEM SOLVING

SOCIAL MANUFACTURING

SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE

ADHERE TO FAIR TRADE

SELF SUSTAINING

PRESERVE LOCAL CULTURE

CONSIDER LEGAL ASPECTS

AFFORDABLE

INCLUSIVE

OPEN TO IMPROVEMENTS

AVOID NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES

UTILIZE LOCAL MATERIALS

USABILITY

PROFITABLE

OPEN SOURCE

SOCIAL DESIGN, or design that aims to have a social impact, needs to implement three important pillars. It proposes a solution for a real problem, taking account of a community's real needs, or better said it should be “NEED DRIVEN”.

It also needs to be “FEASIBLE” and considers the capacity of implementing a project successfully and the development of the project. The “VIABLE” part of the project takes into account the profit that the project could generate.

LOCAL TECHNOLOGIES AND SKILLS BUILD LOCAL CAPACITY

This triangle is the model that will help you to evaluate your project. Each one of its corners represent one of the three pillars of social design. Each interior layer of the triangle corresponds to one checked point of each check list.

The more checked points your project has, the closer it will be to reach a strong social impact design project.

HOW WORKS THE SOCIAL TRIANGLE MODEL This triangle is a matrix model that allows you to measure and evaluate your project.

Each corner of the triangle, represents one of the three pillars of Social Design: Needs Driven, Feasible & Viable.

The Triangle is made up of 7 concentric triangles.

Each interior layer of the triangle corresponds to one of the 7 key parameters identified under each pillar of Social Design.

The more parameters your project is able to consider and integrate, the more you progress toward the smallest triangle in the center.

This means, the closer you get to the center under one of the 3 pillars, the stronger the potential impact under that pillar.

This tool can be applied at different stages of your project. After mapping the number of parameters considered under each pillar and connecting the 3 dots, a triangle emerges.

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If the triangle is balanced, it shows that 6 6 you are balancing all 3 pillars in your project. The smaller the triangle, the more parame5 ters that have been considered.

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Any distortion of the triangle immediately visualizes an imbal3 ance in your project.

This helps you understand where you may need to invest and focus more to achieve a better balance or equilibrium.

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In the end, the ultimate goal would be to consider all 7 aspects un6 der each pillar and achieve a perfect triangle in the center of the Social Design Triangle Matrix 5 This will mean that you have achieved the maximum level of social design equilibrium in your project.

It is clear that it is not always going to be possible to achieve this in every project. Some projects will always be stronger under one pillar and weaker under another. However, we feel that aspiring to achieve the highest level of equilibrium, can be motivating.

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PLANNING TOOL The Social Design Triangle can be used as a tool that is used in the planning, design and execution phase of a project. It can help to map the process of trying to achieve equilibrium in the different phases of a project.

We identify four stages in the designing process: The first one corresponds to the very first moment when you already had identified the problem and you start to think how you can solve it. This is the idea stage. After you throw in your ideas and you decided how to solve it you start to developing it, we identify it as the production stage. When your product is already produced you will need to apply it into a specific market. This is the delivering stage. Finally, the last part of the process is when the product is in the hands of your customers. This is the use stage.

This toolkit is designed to be used between all the stages to help visualize how close or far from the social design equilibrium your project is. It is going to be more effective if it is used just after you start to think the solution, because the triangle evaluates the whole design process.

EVALUATION TOOL The tool can however also be used to evaluate existing projects to identify areas with the potential for improvement.

An evaluation of a project can be done following the social impact design parameters. By knowing the points that the project fulfills, you can identify where is the project standing in the triangle.

Example 1 SARI CLOTH FILTRATION Developed for use in Bangladesh, the cloth filter is a simple and cost-effective appropriate technology method for reducing the contamination of drinking water. Water collected in this way has a greatly reduced pathogen count - though it will not necessarily be perfectly safe, it is an improvement for poor people with limited options. The method used in Bangladesh is as follows: an old sari is folded to make four or eight layers. The folded cloth is placed over a widemouthed container used to collect surface water. It is usually sufficient to rinse the cloth and dry it in the sun for a couple of hours.

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Evaluation Example 1

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EVALUATION TOOL

Example 2 ELIODOMESTICO The open-source design of the Eliodomestico is remarkably simple. It consists of two ceramic pieces that sit one atop the other. Inside the top piece is a black container into which salt water is poured. The sun heats the container, turning the water to steam.

As pressure builds, the steam is forced down a tube into a container in the lower piece. There it condenses against the lid and collects in the basin of the container.

The Eliodomestico collects about five liters (1.09 gal) of fresh water per day and costs about US$50 to build with no operating costs. The bottom container’s basin is designed to be transported on the head, which is a common practice in developing countries.

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ADHERE TO F AIR TRADE

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PRESERVE LOCAL CU LTUR E

CONSIDER LEGAL ASPECTS

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UTILIZE LOCAL MATERIALS

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OPEN SOURC E

Evaluation Example 2

LOCAL TECHNOLOGIES AND SKILLS BUILD LOCAL CAP

ACITY

REFERENCES Dan Lockton , David Harrison & Neville A. Stanton Design with Intent toolkit; http://designwithintent.co.uk/ DIY TOOLKIT; http://diytoolkit.org/ Frog; Collective action toolkit; http://www.frogdesign.com/work/frog-collective-action-toolkit. html Ideo; Design for social impact guide; http://www.ideo.com/images/uploads/news/pdfs/IDEO_RF_Guide.pdf Ideo; “The Field Guide to Human-Centered Design” Design Kit; http://www.designkit.org/resources/1/ Magretta, Joan.2002. “Why Business Models Matter.” Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2002/05/why-business-models-matter Nesta, Prototyping framework; http://www.nesta.org.uk/publications/prototyping-framework Nesta, Creative Enterprise Toolkit; http://www.nesta.org.uk/publications/creative-enterprise-toolkit The Social Innovation Lab Kent (SILK); http://socialinnovation. typepad.com/silk/about-silk-1.html

University of Pretoria ETD, “Environmental responsibility; Chapter 3.“ http://repository.up.ac.za/bitstream/handle/2263/27648/04chapter3.pdf?sequence=4

Vives, Antonio; “ Social and Environmental Responsibility in Small and Medium Enterprises in Latin America”; Inter-American Development Bank. Washington, D.C. http://www.cumpetere.com/documents/csr%20smes.pdf