Oftentimes, conversations around climate change and climate action are hindered because a lot of discourse surrounding climate is opaque and paralysing. Each year, temperatures rise exponentially, our resources deplete further, populations increase, cities expand, natural ecosystems dwindle and natural disasters accelerate; we are living through a crucial moment in history where action is tantamount. And while these issues are global, it is undeniable that climate breakdown disproportionately affects the Global South, owing to the deleterious and ongoing impact of the Industrial Revolution. The need to have conversations that are not only interdisciplinary but focus on localised action is more crucial than ever, also highlighted in the theme of the upcoming Venice Architecture Biennale, curated by Carlo Ratti. The pertinent question of what design can do to facilitate networks that connect policymakers, scientists, academics and larger communities forms the guiding ethos of the Amsterdam-based international organisation, What Design Can Do.

With a mission to "empower the global creative community to make a valuable contribution to solving the major problems of our time," the institution offers an integrated programme of activities for creative practitioners, including initiatives such as the Redesign Everything Challenge and the multidisciplinary Live events that allow for a cross-pollination of ideas to take place. This year marks the South Asian debut of WDCD Live after enlightening editions in Amsterdam, São Paulo and Mexico City. Taking place in New Delhi at India Habitat Centre on March 8, 2025, the design event will serve as a platform for the congregation of people from various fields—designers, innovators and changemakers—who will address the most urgent challenges of our time: climate action and social change.

"Of course, we want to bring the international perspective of What Design Can Do [to New Delhi]. On the one hand, the design fraternity is very international—which is how we can inspire and learn from each other—on the other hand, it is also important to bring issues to the table that are relevant for people from India at large and Delhi in specific. One can see that reflected in the speakers, workshops and labs that we will host,” Richard Van der Laken, co-founder of What Design Can Do, shares with STIR, speaking about the upcoming programme of events. He continues, “The response I hope to get is the energy and the will to start working, not tomorrow but today! Design and creativity can bring so much optimism and joy. People feel that, and designers know that. If we can spark that energy, I am a happy man.”

The one-day festival, in partnership with Unbox Cultural Futures, Quicksand, The Design Village and media partners STIR, will feature a dynamic programme of talks and breakout sessions, including hands-on workshops, panel discussions and cultural performances. Each session will be centred on three themes that discursively address the need for action—Circular Planet: Design for a Regenerative Future; The Power of Community: Design Through Radical Collaboration and Rethinking Technology: Bridging Innovation and Tradition. Through these, WDCD aims to inspire bold strategies that foster more resilient, circular and collective ways of living while instigating further thought among audiences. While on the one hand, the insistence on circularity and regenerative design asks visitors to rethink our practices of production and consumption, taking inspiration from traditional ways of being, on the other, the focus on technology asks how innovation can help in envisioning a sustainable future and how designers can enable more responsive, adaptive and resilient solutions. These questions foreground the most vital theme of community and collaborative action. The event will explore how design can help reconnect people, amplify underrepresented voices and create opportunities for healing and learning.

The best design is not that which disintegrates, but that which remains; this is the ethos of traditional clothing…Fashion should not be ephemeral, neither is our planet. – Carla Fernández, on the role of traditional design in contending overconsumption

Most vernacular designs around the world were embedded in the context, the ecosystems they inhabited. We have been fortunate in Hunnarshala to have worked with [such practices and communities]. WDCD [provides an important platform] for reflection for modern societies, particularly the young to consider how they will forge new ground to build a brave new world that is responsible and caring. – Sandeep Virmani, co-founder, Hunnarshala.

On March 8, speakers from around the world, representing a diversity of creative sectors from fashion design to graphic design to architecture, will talk about the work they’re carrying out to highlight real-world examples and approaches to building towards a fair and regenerative future. These will centre the issue of localised action, looking at the problems of the Indian city, rapid urbanisation, pollution and lack of resources, and how we can tackle them collectively. Speakers for the lively talks programme that will unfold over the day include Somnath Ray, CEO of CLIP, a Brooklyn-based clean mobility startup; Indian architects and co-leaders of Architecture for Dialogue, Abhimanyu Singhal and Depanshu Gola; multidisciplinary designer working at the intersection of biology, art and design, Namita Bhatnagar; Kailash Nadh, founder of Rainmatter Foundation, which provides funding and support to organisations working on climate issues; Deepali Khanna, head of The Rockefeller Foundation’s Asia Regional Office; Monish Siripurapu, founder of Indian architecture practice, Ant Studio and designer behind CoolAnt, an energy-efficient solution for air conditioning; Dutch architect, entrepreneur and innovator Thomas Rau of RAU Architects; Shashank Mani, Member of Parliament from Deoria, Uttar Pradesh; Mexican artist Pedro Reyes; Mexican fashion designer Carla Fernández; Sandeep Virmani, co-founder, Hunnarshala Foundation; visual artist and designer María Conejo; and Rotterdam-based biodesigner and researcher Emma van der Leest.

It is fascinating how we can now take inspiration from the intelligence of cells to design new computer systems, light up our homes with electricity generated by microbial fuel cells, or dye textiles using microbial inks made from waste streams. Biodesign, I believe, is about rethinking entire systems—how we produce, distribute, use and dispose of resources across food, transport and construction. – Emma van der Leest on the relevance of biodesign for conversations on sustainability

From biodesign to policy to grassroots action and the intersections at which these can operate, each speaker and workshop offers unique insight into ways in which we can engage with our environments and contribute meaningfully to sustainable lifestyles. Apart from the talks, the programme for the day includes six interactive breakout sessions ranging from hands-on workshops, panel discussions and performances. These sessions will delve into enabling audiences to develop skills and knowledge to address and work towards climate action. For instance, an interactive session, Circular Design Jam, will involve participants in co-creating innovative solutions to local issues through the lens of circular design. Similarly, a panel organised by Het Nieuwe Instituut, Cultivating Regenerative Practices, will foreground the idea of regeneration with voices from India and the Netherlands sharing stories and a plurality of perspectives on working towards a circular future. The panel will be moderated by Aric Chen, General and Artistic Director of Het Nieuwe Instituut and include Emma van der Leest, Namita Bhatnagar, Rianne Makkink, designer & co-founder of Makkink & Bey, and Radha Goenka, director of the RPG Foundation.

“The highly mediated nature of so much design discourse encourages a churn of quick, snappy proclamations and seemingly clearcut solutions to all our problems. This is useful for instilling hope and inspiration. But we all know that reality is more complicated than that. And we hope that—in some small way—we can create a discussion around regenerative practices that bring in the multiplicities of ideas, approaches and even cultural perspectives and ways of thinking and doing—in our case, from India and the Netherlands—that we need to respond to our current challenges,” shares Chen about the collaboration with What Design Can Do and the workshop organised by the Nieuwe Instituut.

An interactive workshop, Waste Textiles: Stitching Stories, will be led by textile artist Femke van Gemert. She will facilitate a session where participants will transform cloth scraps into unique artworks through fun and practical techniques. Three sessions are organised by partner programme Super Pollutants with Global Methane Hub and centre educational strategies around the climate.

Design and creativity can bring so much optimism and joy. If WDCD can spark that energy, I am a happy man. – Richard van der Laken, co-founder, What Design Can Do

The first session, Inclusive Climate Conversations: Empowering Voices for Change, advocates for the voices that are often unconsidered when dealing with climate strategies. Gola of Architecture for Dialogue will explore how underrepresented groups— such as women, informal workers and farming communities—can move from being disproportionately affected to becoming active co-creators of climate solutions through real-world examples of sustainable design. For instance, the studio's project BreatheEasy looks at alleviating intense indoor air pollution caused by the use of traditional cookstoves (chulhas). In the second workshop, Data Visualisation: Shaping Climate Stories, participants will use data from climate analyses and turn these into eye-catching visuals, making complex issues easy to understand and inspiring action. Lastly, Systems Thinking: Designing the Bigger Picture by Gurman Bhatia, founder and director of India’s first information design agency, will equip audiences with tackling sustainability through real-world examples—such as managing urban waste and improving transportation networks—offering practical tools to drive innovation.

Whether it is the quotidian conversations we participate in, the clothes we wear, the cars we drive or the food we consume, What Design Can Do trains its eyes on the designed world that orders us all and asks how it and we can better respond to climate action.