The North, East, West and South (NEWS) Project Traditional knowledge parallels and the development of new business models for the

Creative Economy

Prof. Tim Antoniuk Associate Professor

Department of Art & Design, Industrial Design 3-98 Fine Arts Building, University of Alberta, Canada

Tim.Antoniuk@ualberta.ca

1. INTRODUCTION

In today’s fast-paced digital age, where new technologies and advances in materials/manufacturing are opening-up new markets, design educators/research are being forced to readdress the scope and scale of their in and out-of-class projects. Challenged by fiscal cut-backs, social and environmental complexities and a massive down-turn in the global economy, it is becoming increasingly evident that we are entering a new era where design and business models need to evolve more rapidly. This thesis, which is supported by the fact that the creative industries now contribute as much as 8% of all global employment (UNCTAD, 54), also suggests that designers need to reconsider what ‘innovation’ means; how ‘innovation’ fits into new consumer value chains; and how goods and services can (inadvertently) alter peoples’ concepts of wealth, prosperity and well-being. Peter Drucker, one of the most respected and prolific authors on the Knowledge Economy, has claimed that, “the basic economic resources - ‘the means of production’ ... is no longer capital, nor natural resources ... nor ‘labor.’ It is and will be knowledge.” (8) This perspective, which is not new to designers or economists, has an interesting dimension for design professionals and educators, especially if one considers how changing information-flows and product/service offerings are altering knowledge transfer mediums and how these new mediums are altering peoples’ needs, wants, expectations and desires. Most commonly seen through the use of new digital devices and ‘streaming’ information over the internet, designers and an increasing number of creative community members are, quite literally, participating in the alteration of the global economic, environmental and socio-cultural landscapes. This responsibility, which shifts designers from being the designers/creators of material goods towards being a shaper social values and expectations, places new pressures on design educators, on the evolution of new pedagogical models and on the development of new curricula for design and business schools. This somewhat contentious topic, which arguably moves more designers towards the Boardroom and heightens the importance of ‘small producers’, requires practicing designers and educators to seek increasing levels of input, awareness and direction from other practices, groups and studies – As argued in this paper and throughout The Luxury of the North and NEWS Projects, it is proposed that significant and diverse socio-cultural, economic and environmental advantages can be gained through gaining input, direction and inspiration from remote/traditional communities that have relevant ‘knowledge parallels’ to share. Echoed in a visionary paper included in The 2008 Creative Economy as a Development Strategy, Pernille Askerud shows how, “[a] shift in trade and economy towards knowledge-based production is not only a shift from one kind of product to other goods and services … it is a fundamental shift in the way production and businesses are organized, as well as in the way we live our lives and understand ourselves. (31) Accelerated by the rapid introduction of new technologies and the complex restructuring information platforms and mediums, three of the most important aspects of the changes that we are looking at in The NEWS Project is: Firstly, how the creative communities are lead innovators and significant influencers of societal norms; secondly, how SMEs and designers are rapidly expanding (in numbers, economic power and influence); and thirdly, how traditional knowledge parallel and ancient cultural practices could enhance ‘innovative outputs’ and new types of global economic growth. This expansion of the creative sectors, in how, where and from who innovation is adopted (and in how it is understood), was brought to light in the series of reports issued by the UNCTAD in 2005 and later in 2008 and 2010. Called the Creative Economy Report(s), these major documents described and statistically outlined how the global economy is being altered by the creative communities and how Developing and Developed Nations could

react and participate in this evolving economy. Demonstrating how ‘Design’ and the Creative Economy have become one of the most powerful, durable and influential economic sectors in the world (see Figures 1 – 3), there is, however, a cautionary note that is surfacing for remote communities, impoverished nations and for individuals that are not technologically or structurally prepared to compete in this economy; it is: How should or can these groups cope with the rapid changes that are occurring in digital domains? Will they be unwittingly sacrificed if they do not have the same knowledge of or ability to use tomorrow’s best communication, production and distribution platforms? And, do they have something to contribute (and gain from) as the global economy expands? Despite the promise of The Creative Economy Reports, the massive expansion that the Creative Industries have enjoyed over the last decade, and many peoples’ good intentions to help disadvantaged communities, cultures and the environment, the global financial crisis has added a new level of complexity to the economic and emotional contractions that are occurring around the world today. Even more challenging than many other times in history, businesses, nations, cultures, communities are struggling to find new ways to create economic, social and environmental prosperity. Caused in large part by a (largely) broken financial system which was built around the Industrial Revolution, the mining/trading of natural resources, and the expansion and over-leveraging of credit, an increasing number of designers and creatives are consciously trying to create new paradigms for creating new types of prosperity and well-being – This is precisely why The NEWS Project was created

1 – To show how highly

skilled, cross and multidisciplinary international creative research teams can test and develop new methods and models for building creative capacities; for identifying and enhancing un-tapped economies (locally, regionally, nationally and internationally); for enhancing the creative communities’ ability to become leaders in the production and distribution of innovative products, services and experiences (PSEs); for building intellectual and economic bridges between remote/traditional communities and contemporary producers; and for providing new inspirations for the future of ‘Design’. This broad (and lofty) set of objectives, which creates both opportunity and heightened levels of responsibility for participating members involved in The NEWS Project is why we aim to produce more than papers and rhetoric – The goal of this project is to co-create regionally and culturally appropriate design, research, production, communication and distribution platforms with the people and communities that we visit - Approaches, techniques, theory and physical artifacts that will not only convey the creative, conceptual and inspirational origins of the objects, ideas and aesthetics that the team will reference, but outputs that will support the development of future tangible and intangible value-networks for these communities. These efforts and approaches, it is believed, are now necessary for leveraging the Developed and Developing worlds’ ability to compete within the Creative Economy for two main reasons. Firstly, because contemporary consumers have been distanced from the production, supply and reclamation processes in such a way that price and convenience has distorted the process of meaning-making. Put differently, most consumers do not fully appreciate the hidden and intangible ‘expenses’ that go into supporting their consumptive habits. And secondly, from a competitive perspective, most industries in the world have reached technology, production and distribution-ceilings – There is little room to compete on production ‘efficiencies’. Today, and increasingly in the future, it is proposed that competition will be driven by the creative and appropriate development, application and modification of new technologies, systems, ideas and cultural influences (not on servicing the world with a continual flow of redundant products and services that are void in content, value and meaning). As such, it is proposed that seeking-out and being inspired by ancient knowledge parallels (ideas, approaches and outputs that are different, but are in parallel with ours) is one approach to enhancing equity and innovation.

2. THE CREATIVE ECONOMY

2.1 STRENGTH, DURABILITY AND CULTURAL INFLUENCE

Since the publication of J. Howkins book, The Creative Economy in 2001, an increasing number of researchers/ authors have been attempting to define the boundaries of the Creative Economy and to quantify how rapid advances in technology and connectivity have transformed worldwide consumption patterns (Reis, 55). In his book, The Creative Class (2002), Richard Florida made a significant contribution to this emerging body of

1 The 4 ½ year project is an expansion of The Luxury of the North Project. This project was co-developed by Professor Antoniuk and the renowned Dutch

design group Droog (2009-10).

research through broadly defining who the Creative Class is and what their economic contributions to the global economy are. Though Florida has been understandably criticized for his overly-broad definition of this community (claiming that the Creative Class account for a 1/3 of the workforce in the USA and generate 1/2 of all wages), his writings have had a positive influence on governmental policies around the world, on the development of new “creativity” funding programs, and in encouraging other authors and organizations to further investigate how the creative industries and communities are positively impacting the global economy. In the mid to late 2000s, for example, the UNCTAD leveraged many peoples’ intuitions about the strength of this economy through providing hard data on the far-reaching social, economic and environmental impacts of this economy. Highlighted in Figure 1, The Creative Economy Report showed that between 2002-08 global exports of creative goods and services nearly doubled. Equally telling about the durability of this economy is how, despite a 12% decline in global trade during the recession of 2007/8, world trade of creative goods and services continued to grow. This stunning growth pattern not only reaffirmed that the creative industries/economy as one of the most dynamic sectors in the world economy today, it demonstrated its influence on sectors outside of the ‘arts’.

Figure 1. Source: UNCTAD Secretariat (official data from UN COMTRADE database). P. 126

Although the importance of reports like the Creative Economy Report cannot be understated, it has become increasingly evident that a significant gap in literature and research continues to exist in how people, communities and cultures could adapt and/or modify what they will be doing in the future to be competitive in the changing Creative Economy. Deeply aware of the limitations of studying what is occurring (today) to project what will (or should) occur in the near future, Antoniuk and team members in The Luxury of the North and NEWS Projects have been investigating new ‘Creative Economy scenarios’ through engaging with remote communities. Aiming to explore how forgotten and/or unseen knowledge parallels and cultural rituals inspire new products, services, architectural ideas, and the development of sustainable communities in 2010 the Team travelled to one of the most remote and Northern towns in the Canadian Arctic, Pond Inlet, to work with Elders and a variety of community members. During this extended stay it became apparent that the people of Pond Inlet not only have a great to teach the contemporary world about living sustainably, they have an abundance of cultural rituals, lessons and knowledge platforms that could inspire designers to develop new generations of technological and non-technological products and services. Unanticipated during the planning and development of this project, one of the most important findings that resulted from this remote ‘field research’ was not only that the Inuit’s

knowledge transfer systems have been dominated by storytelling (they had no written language until the late 1800s), it required something that is largely void in our contemporary society - Presence and focused attention. Though seemingly trivial on the surface, it is quite profound because it highlights the difference between information transfer (which dominates the internet) versus knowledge transfer (which occurs when a person learns from the experiences and lessons of Elders that have thousands of year of experience with conveying tacit knowledge. Unlike most products and services in contemporary society, where a lack of content, meaning and relevance exists, every aspect of the Inuit’s natural and man-made world is dominated by content and meaning. This relatively simple insight, though seemingly philosophical on the surface, highlighted the importance o engaging directly with remote communities, in seeking-out ancient knowledge parallels, in finding new ideas and inspirations for contemporary culture, and in exploring new approaches for designing and conveying meaning and content in goods. Knowing that global exports of creative goods nearly doubled between 2002-08, that we live in a world which is driven by rapid changes, increasing information/knowledge-flows, heightened levels of connectivity, and by an economy that that is seeking-out more meaningful technologies, products and services, Professor Antoniuk has reached-out to some of the most respected researchers and academic institutions in the North, East, West and South to help him identify who the primary social shapers of these regions were and who they are today. Working with groups such as The Asian Lifestyle Design Research Lab at the Hong Kong Polytechnic (East Project, 2013+), The NEWS Project aims to learn from and inspire new ideas, behaviors and actions through diffusing outcomes in diversity of ways. 2.3 FUTURE EFFECTS ON DESIGN PEDAGOGY

Is it reasonable to propose that educators (broadly speaking) need to alter elements of their curricula to deal with the emergence of Creative Economy and a changing global economic landscape? As highlighted in Figures 2 and 3, it is evident that the creative communities in ‘Design’ have had (and will continue to have) an ever increasing impact on the direction and growth of the global economy. The latest figures from the 2010 Creative Economy Report show that ‘Design’ makes-up nearly 60% of all global creative good exports. This statistic, though highly promising for many creative communities, however, also has a down-side which is affecting the educational community’s ability to propose and institute significant and timely changes to curricula. Considering the lack of integration and influence of ‘Design’ on government planning, on government’s willingness to fund the development of new creative-based design/business schools (especially in bad economic times), and how the thoughtful generation of new pedagogical models for ‘Design’ can stagnate because of this; the cumulative effects are (ironically) highly problematic for emerging from the global financial crisis in a quick and efficient manner.

Figure 2. Source: UNCTAD Secretariat (data from UN COMTRADE database). P. 128

As the international business and educational communities continue to struggle with this complex socio-economic and environmental issue, the result is that new pressures are being placed on design educators to train students to deal with these challenges. Despite weakened funding and heightened expectations, schools and curricula are expected to (rapidly) evolve in a manner that will begin to produce a new generation of designers the will create highly innovative and highly valued products, services, systems and experiences – Items that will not only help the ‘best’ companies in the global economy achieve even more, but also assist disadvantaged communities and cultures around the world with enhancing their economies. Though daunting to say the least, one of the most important strategies that design educators and organizations can use for enhancing higher levels of innovation

and competitiveness is to impart the importance of continually developing and critiquing the design and business models that students and employees use. Through contextually broadening the ‘ecology’ of the design issue being considered (i.e. that designers need to find new methods for creating high-value products and service for the Creative Economy), a natural expansion of ideas, concepts and scenarios occurs; a redefining of what ‘innovative’ is results; and a new openness to unexpected outcomes occurs. This process, which shifts designers from being aesthetic mirrors of society to being sounding-boards and shapers of equitable human-values is truly possible if we become more inclusive of knowledge parallels that exist around the world. Learning from and expanding on the approaches that were used during The Luxury of the North Project, beginning in 2013, The NEWS Project will (continue) to seek-out traditional knowledge parallels from (4) different areas/regions of the world – Rituals, lessons and approaches which were formed by thousands of years of testing and refinement. Recognizing that the ‘Design’ communities’ have the ability and fitness to influence theoretical, conceptual and real-world outcomes on a global scale (Figure 2 and 3), this approach, to working inclusively with remote communities and in attempting to exposing unanticipated knowledge parallels, also has the opportunity leverage individuals and groups that are attempting to enhance the social, cultural, environmental and economic innovations. Highlighting the similarities and dissimilarities between four culturally diverse knowledge parallels, a major outcome for The NEWS Project will be to provide the educational and professional design/business communities (in and outside of these regions) with a usable ‘innovation tool’ that that the international creative communities, could use and adapt – A innovation plan or ‘map’ which could help expose new opportunities, highlight false assumptions and open-up new markets, technologies and economic potentials.

Figure 3. Source: UNCTAD Secretariat (data from UN COMTRADE database). P. 129

2.4 RESEARCH APPROACH AND DISSEMINATION OF FINDINGS:

Building onto the creative/reflective and exploratory approaches that Prof Antoniuk, Renny Ramakers (Droog), Winy Maas (TU Delft/The Why Factory) and other team members tested and refined throughout The Luxury of the North Project, the international collaborators in The NEWS Project will add a new scholarly dimension to this project. Aiming to quantify the importance, legitimacy and innovative nature of the various theoretical, conceptual and physical outcomes of each regional project, new quantitative and qualitative measures, such as surveys and interviews, will be added throughout each project. Intended to leverage the team’s ability to refine their approaches and outcomes with each ensuing project, this information (which goes beyond passively displaying artifacts in exhibitions and responding to questions in academic lectures and symposiums), will also allow team members to quantify the logic, appropriateness and relevance of the outcomes and design/business models that are being developed. As occurred in The Luxury of the North pilot-project, Antoniuk will rely upon his ‘local experts’ (academic team members from that country) to initiate collaborative relationships with members of the remote communities that the team will visit. Eventually travelling to four different countries/regions around the world, visiting members will work collaboratively with a broad cross-section of Elders, town/village leaders, healers, craftsmen and any ‘small producer’ to better understand their community’s history, traditions, knowledge platforms, their aesthetic landscape, cultural rituals and how they have lived sustainably for millennia. Through a variety of workshops and face-to-face meetings, where storytelling and the dissemination of tacit knowledge is likely to dominate, creative

explorations will occur as to how these indigenous people would re-design the contemporary world; what challenges they face today; and how their various ‘strengths’ could better guide the contemporary world. These cultural guides will expose team members to new lessons and philosophies about the interrelationships between the man-made and natural worlds; to new approaches about the ‘ecology’ of design; and about the scalability of hidden inspirations and ancient cultural traditions. During the final phase of each (one year) regional project, the focus will shift to disseminating outcomes to local, regional, national and international audiences. This stage of each project, which serves a dual purpose as an iterative design/research tool and an epistemological point-of-learning for the academic community, business, governmental and design leaders, is also intended to highlight the contributions that traditional and tacit knowledge can make in contemporary design. Emphasizing the importance of learning from the process of doing and through creative/experimental investigations, The NEWS Project is attempting to identify a major pedagogical design issue that affect how designers are creating relationships (or a lack of them) between consumers and the products and services which support their lives. As is well documented in tacit knowledge research, people are typically unaware that they possess it and often do not have a clear understanding of how it is seen or valued by others (consider how an Inuit person can live off of a barren landscape). This seemingly innocent issue has tremendous consequence for contemporary culture because a great deal of traditional knowledge is not being disseminated to newer generations because information and knowledge transfer mediums no longer share common ground. Equally, and of tremendous importance to ‘Design’ and to knowledge transfer in the Creative Economy, it is critical to note that the effective transfer of tacit knowledge requires extensive personal contact, the gaining of trust, hands-on training, and a deep understanding and appreciation for how ‘it’ was created. In today’s fast paced digital economy this is currently an area that is underutilized and is highly misunderstood – From an economic gains perspective and from the perspective of how it can build social and environmental equality. It is these fundamental ontological differences (regarding the phenomenon which is being investigated), that distinguishes these design projects from many others. As was seen in the eight outcomes from The Luxury of the North Project (disseminated in an exhibition in Toronto and a major Symposium in Edmonton, Canada), the emphasis of this project is to seek-out, interpret and to be inspired by the ‘qualities’, experiences and traditional/tacit knowledge in remote regions. In the ‘Big Food - Big Sharing’ scenario (Figure 4 and 5), Cynthia Hathaway was inspired by the Inuit’s hunting traditions - Where food is evenly distributed to all community members to help promote sharing – In this culture, the Inuit believe that nothing can be ‘owned’ and that food sharing promotes sustainable consumption and community-building. Contrasting this system with contemporary ‘big food’ supply systems that exist around the world, Cynthia’s concept shows how a sustainable community (and economy) could be built around a more direct approach to disseminating knowledge through growing of food; through exposing ‘sharing’ and through making a production system ‘transparent’. Prof. Winy Maas envisioned five architectural/ urban planning concepts for future cities. One of the concepts, (Figures 6) was inspired by the silence and serenity of the Arctic environment. Called “The No Noise City”, a new more futuristic yet ‘livable’ vision for future cities was created where high-tech materials could safely and environmentally ‘insulate’ the noise of major urban centers. Playful and highly conceptual, the emphasis of the project was not on material innovation or on creating strange or exciting environments; it was to create more serene and livable cities that have the peaceful qualities of the North.

Figure 4. Scenario of future city/community; built around ‘big food’ and sharing.

Figure 5. Inspirational image of current ‘big food’ supply systems (internally used).

Figure 6. Scenario of ‘No Noise City”.

3. CONCLUSION

Recognizing that The NEWS Project is being driven, in part, by a grouping of theoretical ideas and approaches, Professor Antoniuk has gather together some of the most esteemed academic and professional colleagues from around the world to contribute, critique and refine the project’s direction over the next 5 years. In addition to the critical and creative/reflective insights that these people and groups will offer, great attention and effort has been given to developing enabling strategies which will allow the media, government officials and the public-at-large to conveniently access, interact and to openly respond to the public exhibits, lectures and papers that will be written about each regional project. Intended to be a highly collaborative and iterative process (in how findings can quickly inform and shape each project’s outcome and direction), it is nonetheless recognized that the project and all participating team members have significant limitations – Most specifically, in being able to produce and disseminate innovative ideas, concepts and physical artifacts that could change behavior (even a bit) on a global scale. Recognizing this limitation, the team is attempting to use every appropriate technology, social, digital and non/material medium to do so – From blogs to the use of open and crowd-sourced design/critiques.

Over the span of The NEWS Project it is hoped that new research relationships will materialize; that the ideas, services and artifacts that will be produced could inspire new generations of ‘innovation’ from other creatives; that the project’s direction will be critiqued, considered and dealt with by people, industries and organizations outside of ‘Design’; and that a new globally-based creative design methodology could be developed that could enhance global levels of socio-economic innovation. As stated earlier, it is the contention of Professor Antoniuk that tremendous and mutually-beneficial gains could emerge for Developing and Developed Economies around the world if new ‘hybrids’ of traditional knowledge and cultural practices were more rigorously integrated into our design cycles - Ideas that reference and take inspirations from ancient ‘knowledge parallels’. If done properly and disseminated to markets effectively, it is proposed that more sustainable and profitable items could be created through replacing old content (low cost, low value, off-shored goods) with new PSEs (items which are rich in story and content about the creative origins and material life-cycle of the items).

4. PARTICIPATING TEAM MEMBERS

RESEACH TEAM MEMBERS - “The NEWS Project” (2013-2017)

Prof. Tim Antoniuk (Industrial Design, University of Alberta) - ‘NORTH’ PROJECT

Dr. Gavin Renwick (Collaborator - Industrial Design Program, University of Alberta)

Prof. Sue Colberg (Collaborator - Industrial Design Program, University of Alberta)

Dr. Brian Lee (Collaborator – School of Design, Hong Kong PolyU) - ‘EAST’ PROJECT

Dr. Benny Leong, (Consultant – School of Design, Hong Kong PolyU)

The Asian Lifestyle Design Research Lab – (Partner, through the Hong Kong PolyU)

Dr. Xochitl Aria (Collaborator - Manufactura y Deseno, Techologico de Monterrey, Mexico) - ‘WEST’ PROJECT

Dr. Guillermo Alfonso Parra, (Consultant - Techologico de Monterrey, Mexico)

Dr. Richie Moalosi (Collaborator - Industrial Design & Technology, University of Botswana) - ‘SOUTH’ PROJECT

Dr. Shorn Molokwane, (Consultant - Cape Peninsula Univ. of Tech., S. Africa)

Dr. Mugendi K. M’Rithaa, (Consultant - Cape Peninsula Univ. of Tech., S. Africa)

RESEACH TEAM MEMBERS - “The Luxury of the North Project” (2009/10)

Renny Ramakers, director (Droog)

Tim Antoniuk, partner (University of Alberta)

Cynthia Hathaway, leading designer

Winy Maas, leading designer (MVRDV, t?f)

Christien Meindertsma, designer (Flocks)

Pirjo Haikola, designer (The Why Factory)

Stuart Sproule, designer (Red Flag Design)

Ole Bouman, consulting expert (Netherlands Architecture Institute)

Ed van Hinte, consulting expert

Agata Jaworska, content & project manager (Droog)

5. REFERENCES

Drucker, Peter. Managing for the Future. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann, 1992.

Florida, Richard. The Rise of the Creative Class. New York: Basic Books, 2002.

Howkins Johm. The Creative Economy – How people make money from ideas. London: Penguin Books, 2001.

Kaplan, M. (2004). Introduction: Adding a cultural dimension to human factors. In M. Kaplan (Ed.), Cultural ergonomics. Amsterdam: Elsevier.

Askerud, Pernille. “The Creative Industries: Asia-Pacific Perspective”. Creative Economy as a development strategy: A view of developing countries. (p 232-254) See: http://www.garimpodesolucoes.com.br/downloads/ebook_en.pdf

UN – “Creative Economy Report 2010”. NYC: United Nations Publications, 2008. www.unctad.org/creative-economy

Additional information on The Luxury of the North Project can be found at: http://www.droog.com/event/amsterdam/