2-3 September 2015, Midrand Graduate Institute & Vaal University of Technology, South Africa

Design communities in 2015 are called on to respond to the Millennial imperative "to do the right thing, to know the truth of a situation, to have a job that means more than a pay cheque and to live a life that matters" (Chester, cited in Mind the Gap, Codrington and Grant-Marshall 2004:63). We, as stakeholders and leaders in the design community take responsibility to lead with integrity and commit ourselves to the co-creation of a shared design ethos.

Aiming our intentions, efforts and influence toward ‘that which ought to be', DEFSA 2015 seeks to honour and grow an emerging principle-driven, civic minded and human-centred design culture that takes issues of the sustainability, credibility, corporate social responsibility, professional accountability and personal integrity to heart.  The typical worldview rhetoric of what should be done is redirected towards individuated responses and actions that foster meaningful change.

Sub- themes

  • The individual: Ethics and accountability in Design
  • The institution: Ethics and accountability in Design
  • The industry:  Ethics and accountability in Design