Founded | June 29, 1957 |
---|---|
Type | Non-profit |
Location | |
Website | www |
World Design Organization (WDO) was founded in 1957 from a group of international organizations focused on industrial design. Formerly known as the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design, WDO is a globally recognized non-governmental organization that aims to promote and advance the discipline of industrial design and its power to enhance economic, social, cultural and environmental quality of life. Today, WDO supports a network of over 210 member organizations across more than 40 nations,[1] representing an estimated 400,000 designers.
Together, with member organizations from around the world, WDO embraces the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a framework for action that has the potential to simultaneously offer positive social and environmental impact as well as financial return and brand value. The organization engages the design community community through its international programming, designed to enable collaborations among the global industrial design community, to identify challenges and opportunities and to address some of the world’s most significant economic, social and environmental challenges, from a design perspective.
History
Jacques Viénot first presented the idea to form a society to represent the industrial designers internationally at the Institut d’Esthetique Industrielle's international congress in 1953. The International Council of Societies of Industrial Designers was formally founded at a meeting in London on June 29, 1957.[2] The name of Icsid demonstrates the spirit which is to protect the interests of practicing designers and to ensure global standards of design. The individuals first elected officials to the Executive Board therefore did not act upon personal conviction, but represented the voice of society members and the international design community.
The organization then officially registered in Paris and set up their headquarters there. Icsid's early goals were to help public awareness of industrial designers, to raise the standard of design by setting standards for training and education, and to encourage cooperation between industrial designers worldwide. To do this, in 1959 Icsid held the first Congress and General Assembly in Stockholm, Sweden. At this first Congress the Icsid Constitution was officially adopted, along with the first definition of industrial design which may be found on their website (please see external references). During this Congress, Icsid's official name was changed from the International Council of Societies of Industrial Designers to the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design to reflect that the organization would involve itself beyond matters of professional practice.
In 1963, Icsid was granted special status with UNESCO, with whom Icsid continues to work on many projects, using design for the betterment of the human condition. As their humanitarian interests grew, Icsid decided to create a new type of conference that would join industrial designers in a host country to study a problem of both regional and international significance. This new conference held in Minsk in 1971, became the first Icsid Interdesign seminar. These seminars provided opportunities for professional development of mid-career practicing designers, and to allow them to focus their abilities on resolving issues of international significance. This first Interdesign conference and the ones that followed, consolidated Icsid's position as a driving force of international collaboration.
In 1971, the 7th Congress of the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID), organised by the Agrupació de Disseny Industrial del Foment de les Arts Decoratives (ADI/FAD) in Eivissa (Ibiza), turned out to be an event without precedent in Spain: a process of socialisation and an example of how the energy of collaborative work, vitality, intellectual reflection and leisure can be placed at the service of dialogue-based projects with the capacity to generate imaginative approaches and structure new behavioural patterns.[3]
In 1974, the Icsid Secretariat moved from Paris (France), to Brussels (Belgium), moving onto Helsinki (Finland), and in 2005, it settled to Montreal (Canada), where it currently resides.
In the 1980s, collaboration became even more important so a joint Icsid/Icograda/IFI Congress was held in Helsinki. The impetus for this joint conference was a direct recommendation made by Icsid members to explore closer ties with other world design organizations. At their General Assemblies, all participants unanimously approved a directive to investigate options for a closer working relationship in the future. These organizations then joined with UNESCO to bring together doctors, industrial and graphic designers, and assistants to develop basic furniture for rural health centers, packaging, transport, refrigeration, and injection of vaccines and the design of data collecting devices for field use.
In 2003, Icsid and Icograda ratified an agreement between both organizations during their respective General Assemblies to form the International Design Alliance, a multidisciplinary partnership that supports design. In 2008, the IDA partners welcomed a third member, IFI (International Federation of Interior Architects/Designers).[4] Together in 2011, all three partners held a historical joint Congress in Taipei, Taiwan called the IDA Congress. The alliance was terminated in November 2013.
In January 2017, Icsid officially became World Design Organization (WDO).
Board of Directors
The WDO Board of Directors is the governing body that directs and supports the WDO's mission and vision. It is composed of international industrial design professionals selected by WDO members during the General Assembly. A total of 11 members make up the Executive Board: President, President-elect, and 9 Board members. Each board member serves a two-year term and may be re-elected for a second term, but cannot run for a third term, unless running for President-Elect.
President-elect
The President-elect is designated as the future President of WDO in the following term.
Treasurer
A treasurer is appointed by the President for each new term. The Treasurer's role is to keep record of Icsid's finances throughout the two-year term.
Senate
The Senate is composed of past Presidents of the WDO Executive Board, acting as an advisory board. The most current past President serves as the Convenor of the Senate until the next General Assembly.
Regional Advisors and Community Liaisons
Regional Advisors are former WDO Board Members who are appointed to represent WDO through regional events and strengthen the organization's global presence. They are key in leveraging the strength of our international membership, ensuring the organization remains visible, and aligning the design agendas of their region to the aspirations of design for a better world.
Community Liaisons may be nominated by board members for term-long appointments to provide an informed voice from a city, country or region. Working closely with the board member responsible for their region, they identify key individuals and resources to empower local design communities and connect them with the organization and its work.
Secretariat
The Secretariat team facilitates the exchange of ideas within the design community by implementing a range of projects and initiatives, and raises awareness of the power of industrial design to effect positive change in the world. The Secretariat office has been previously located in Paris, Brussels, and Helsinki. Since 2005, the office is located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Members
WDO Members are professional associations, promotional societies, educational institutions, government bodies, corporations, institutions and design studios, which aim to contribute to the development of the profession of industrial design. These societies collaborate to establish an international platform through which design institutions worldwide can stay in touch, share common interests and new experiences, and be heard as a powerful voice.
Programmes
World Design Assembly
First held in 1959 held in Stockholm (Sweden), the World Design Assembly (formerly Congress) is WDO's most notable biennial international design event. Since 1959, WDO Members have met biennially to attend the General Assembly where WDO Members are empowered with the authority to set the operational direction of the organization, elect its leadership and address a number of key issues affecting the industry.Today, the World Design Assembly™ is a three-day event, which also includes a Research and Education Forum and an international Design Conference. A host city is chosen through a bidding process, followed by a programme in which keynote speakers, panelists and workshops are developed during the three-day event.
The World Design Assembly has its roots in the IDA Congress. In 2011, the International Design Alliance have agreed to replace their individual Congresses to a joint biennale Congress under the multidisciplinary banner of the IDA Congress. A joint model was previously held every six years since 1981 starting in Helsinki (Finland). The joint Congresses were then followed by Amsterdam (Netherlands) in 1987; Glasgow (Scotland) in 1993; Sydney (Australia) in 1999; and Copenhagen (Denmark) in 2005. Taipei, (Taiwan) was selected as the host city for the inaugural 2011 IDA Congress. After the Taipei congress, the International Design Alliance unveiled a new branding identity for its biennial congress where each host city will be able to use and personalize their identity to showcase their unique design culture.
World Design Capital
Designated every two years by WDO, World Design Capital® (WDC)recognizes cities for their effective use of design to drive economic, social, cultural, and environmental development. Through a year-long programme of signature events and activations, the designated city showcases best practices in sustainable design-led urban policy and innovation that improve quality of life. The city of Torino (Italy) was designated as the first World Design Capital in 2008.
Prior to designating a city, WDO launches a global call for submissions. Submissions are then evaluated by a Selection Committee to determine a shortlist of 2 cities. WDO representatives visit each shortlisted city before a final selection is made.
The current World Design Capital network:
- World Design Capital Torino 2008
- World Design Capital Seoul 2010
- World Design Capital Helsinki 2012
- World Design Capital Cape Town 2014[usurped]
- World Design Capital Taipei 2016
- World Design Capital Mexico City 2018
- World Design Capital Lille Metropole 2020
- World Design Capital Valencia 2022
- World Design Capital San Diego Tijuana 2024
- World Design Capital Frankfurt RheinMain 2026
World Design Impact Prize
The World Design Impact Prize™ (WDIP) was established in 2011 by WDO with the goal of honouring and elevating industrial design driven projects that use design and/or design thinking to make a positive impact on our social, economic, cultural and/ or environmental quality of life. Following a public submission and nomination process, a multi-disciplinary panel of experts selects a shortlist for the Prize, which is then voted on by WDO’s member organizations. To date, there have been four cycles of the World Design Impact Prize.
Interdesign
Dating back to 1971, WDO’s Interdesign® programme brings together designers from around the world to address local problems of global significance. Initially conceived as a way for designers to become more involved in broader, community-driven projects, these workshops have spanned the globe. Tackling issues such as climate change, urban transportation, ageing population, green spaces, healthcare access, and water management, Interdesigns are hosted by a different local organization or consortium each time. Over a two-week period, the programme connects established designers, young professionals, students and relevant stakeholders from both the host region and the international design community to research, collaborate and ideate under the banner of a specific theme.
From the first Interdesign in Minsk (1971), which explored the production and distribution of bread, to the most recent in Mumbai (2014), which sought to address some of the social and infrastructure challenges facing the growing city, these unique workshops have produced an array of innovative design solutions with lasting impact.
In 2020, WDO launched a virtual chapter of our Interdesign programme. World Design Challenges are two-week, virtual workshops that bring together international volunteer groups of designers and subject matter experts to tackle a specific issue or topic. Collaborating alongside partners like IBM, Design for America, UN Women Asia and the Pacific, ISS National Laboratory and World Packaging Organisation, WDO has since hosted four World Design Challenges.
World Industrial Design Day
Observed annually on 29 June, World Industrial Design Day (WIDD) celebrates and recognizes the power of design to strengthen economic, social, cultural, and environmental development around the world. Established in 2008, it represents the first international day of observance created uniquely to highlight the merits of the industrial design profession and its impact on quality of life. As an open-source programme, WIDD engages the global design community under the banner of a different theme each year, encouraging the development of design-led events, activities, workshops, competitions and exhibits.
World Design Talks
The WDO World Design Talks were established in 2016 and consist or a series of workshops "that address local challenges with global relevance—such as rapid urbanization, climate change, and migration—from a design perspective."[5] The wisdom that comes out of the World Design Talks helps define who the WDO are and address their relationship to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
References
- ^ "WDO | About". wdo.org. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
- ^ Unknown. "ICSID Archive". University of Brighton Design Archives. University of Brighton. Retrieved 14 March 2012.
- ^ "Exhibit at MACBA Barcelona". Archived from the original on 2016-03-17. Retrieved 2012-06-20.
- ^ The International Design Alliance (IDA) Archived 2011-11-30 at the Wayback Machine. ICSID (2008-09-13). Retrieved on 2013-07-12.
- ^ "WDO | Programmes | World Design Talks". wdo.org. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
Publications
- Gorman, Michael (1968). Design for Tourism: And Icsid Interdesign. Ireland: International Council of Societies of Industrial Design. ISBN 978-0-08-021481-8.
- Borja de Mozota, Brigitte (2003). Design Management: Using Design to Build Brand Value and Corporate Innovation. New York: Allworth Press. ISBN 978-1-58115-283-8.
- Verganti, Roberto (2009). Design Driven Innovation: Changing the Rules of Competition by Radically Innovating What Things Mean. New York: Harvard Business Press. ISBN 978-1-4221-2482-6.