What Design Can Do Live

Details

Amsterdam will host the 12th edition of WDCD Live on 5 July 2024, bringing together hundreds of creatives, activists, policymakers, and start-ups for a day of talks and workshops on design and climate justice. Scheduled to take place at the stunning Muziekgebouw, the festival promises a dynamic programme led by rebellious thinkers, makers, and doers from around the world.

This year's lineup features renowned figures such as fashion designer Bobby Kolade (Founder, BUZIGAHILL), architect Afaina de Jong (Founder, AFARAI), graphic designer Clive Russell, photographer Dirk-Jan Visser (Co-founder, New Horizon Initiative), industrial designer René van Geer (Co-founder, Secrid), graphic designer Samar Maakaroun (Partner, Pentagram), the winners of the global Redesign Everything Challenge and more. Together, they will delve into the intersection of creativity, activism, and disruption, offering insights and inspiration for attendees eager to make a difference.

This year’s festival will dive into some of the most challenging environmental and social issues, as well as the threads that connect them:
Designing for Climate Justice
Though climate change is a global problem, its burdens are not shared evenly across society. Those who pollute the least often suffer the most, and marginalised communities are also more vulnerable to compound challenges like food insecurity and mass displacement. To build a different future, we need a better understanding of how climate issues — and solutions — impact people differently across intersections like class, gender and race.

From Ancient Knowledge to Artificial Intelligence
In search of solutions, designers increasingly turn to ancestral and local ways of making, building and living. Often, this means revaluing or reviving traditional knowledge of materials, products and services that have been preserved within circular communities for centuries. At the same time, we are living in an era marked by artificial intelligence, and a fascination for all things virtual, augmented and data-driven.

Designing for the Circular Transition
Getting to the root of the climate crisis means changing how the economy works (and how it doesn’t).

A day for big ideas, deep-dives and urgent conversations
Besides plenary talks and dialogues, the day-long programme also includes musical performances, networking sessions and interactive breakout sessions.
In a nutshell, here are the main components of this year’s festival:
A main stage programme featuring talks by 10+ leading figures in the creative industry; plus a string of musical performances to bring the crowd to their feet.
A breakout programme for visitors to dive deeper; featuring smaller workshops and panel discussions on themes like cultural heritage, community-building and the role of new technologies.
A circular showcase by the 11 winners of the global Redesign Everything Challenge

What Design Can Do (WDCD) is an international platform that advocates for design as a tool for social change. Since 2011, we have undertaken numerous activities to promote the role of designers in addressing the world’s most pressing societal and environmental issues. WDCD has hosted 15 successful conferences in Amsterdam, São Paulo, and México City. In 2016 WDCD launched an ambitious design challenge programme that engages the creative community with urgent societal issues such as the well-being of refugees and climate change.