CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Towards Design Sovereignty
Jason De Santolo and Nadeena Dixon
Introduction Over the past few years, Jason De Santolo and Nadeena Dixon have critically posed “Colonisation by Design” as a series of formative lectures in the School of Design at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). The conditions surrounding the 2020 lecture series created a space for deeper ‘yarns’ on shifting notions of sovereignty and self-determination for our people. Our reflections vibrated with concern and care for our lands, waters, Elders, kids and communities. If decolonising design education was to have a genuine long-term effect, then the pathways towards “design sovereignty” would have to Indigenise specific local pedagogies by challenging everyday injustices and the impacts of dispossession and state violence. This chapter is a reflexive first attempt towards articulating the contextualisation, intent and energy of our shared teaching experiences as a key factor in framing the emergence of an Indigenous-centred research hub that works towards design sovereignty on unceded lands. During the semester the authors faced the challenge of providing critical lecture moments to design students, many of whom grew up in Australia but may have never met or talked to an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander person before. We attempted to share critical insights into Aboriginal knowledge systems as continuing practices cultivated over thousands of years. The lectures provided brief storied encounters of the ongoing role of design in the violent colonisation of Indigenous Peoples in Australia and were delivered across various classes and in increasingly complex and uncertain times. On reflection, there was always something missing, a feeling of not quite reaching the audience. The stories/teachings did not seem to make sense to the entire cohort, or inspire action. Towards Design Sovereignt
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