The goal of the project was to define a possible future world and to create artefacts that could be present in this world according to the Speculative Design approach. We went through several steps to transform abstract ideas into tangible concepts. At the end of the course we had an exhibition where we could discuss our future scenario and artefacts with the visitors.
Tools: Figma, miro, ProtoPie
Time: March 2022 - July 2022
Semester: 6
Speculative Design is an experimental design approach that dates back to the two British designers Dunne and Raby and focuses on imagining future scenarios. It is not about predicting the future, but exploring different possibilities of what the future might look like. The goal of Speculative Design is not to create concrete solutions for a possible future, but rather to stimulate discourse and provoke with ideas.
“Let's call it critical design, that questions the cultural, social and
ethical
implications of emerging technologies. A form of design that can help us to define the
most desirable futures, and avoid the least desirable.”
- Anthony Dunne & Fiona Raby
To elaborate our future world and invent our artefacts, we went through some process steps. These were based on the Future Scouting methods of Damien Lutz. The individual steps are shown below.
Align with values
As a team, we agreed on the following core values that are important to us:
Empathy, Independence, Justice, Honesty,
Flexibility
Assumptions
Assumptions are made for the near future on a wide variety of topics, such as politics, economy
or technology. This helps to identify initial personal interests.
Signal Tracing
Each team member decides on a megatrend and researches potentials for the future. After this
step, we each settled on a research field. We chose the following:
Verena: New Work | Work-Life Blending,
Lucia: Silver Society | Pro Aging,
My topic: Health | Mindfulness
PESTEL Analysis
The PESTEL analysis evaluates all relevant information from the environments and shows
potentials as well as risks. We carried out this analysis for our three subject areas.
Hunt Invention
The values from step 1 are used and linked to the identified trend development to generate
initial product ideas after several brainstorming iterations.
Invention Blueprint
The previously developed idea is described in more detail. In addition, a common future universe
is defined in which coexistence of the products is possible.
Personas & Business
For a more detailed future, it is useful to create personas and companies that make use of the
products.
Future Location
At the end, the future is described with all other aspects that are important for it, such as
infrastructure, economy or politics.
👍 The way of designing our future world as well as our objects from this fictional future felt completely new to us. It's very research-heavy at the beginning. We were surprised at the end how well it worked out.
The year is 2122, and in an age torn apart by wars and environmental catastrophes, only half
of the Earth is still inhabitable. Several splinter states have been founded, which are done
with a globalized world. Instead, the focus is on a completely self-sufficient,
state-controlled production of goods that ensures a supply for all citizens. This is only
possible through the systematic provision and distribution of rations that meet
any basic human needs. There is no waste or hyperconsumption. Thus, the earth as a habitat
can still just be kept in tact.
Nevertheless, planetary extinction is progressing
unstoppably and can only be delayed. Rural regions are almost non-existent. People live in
high-tech urban metropolises, which are extremely controlled and monitored by the state.
Medical progress has increased the average life expectancy of people to a maximum of 185
years. A society trimmed for maximum efficiency and effectiveness demands absolute
productivity from every citizen from the age of 18. The excellent health care system, which
is designed to maintain working capacity, prevents loss of working capacity. People work
every day. There are no Sundays or holidays.
The Federal Ministry of Productive Labor and Social Order is the most important state organ.
Due to the Offlife program launched by the institution, which promises a paradise-like
retirement after serving a fixed working life of 1.24392×10⁶h (=142 years), the employment
rate is invariably 100%. Driven by the hope of liberation from the system, people in this
state are downright addicted to work. The only thing that counts is to bring the Offlife
Countdown to 0.
💡 The future world we created is a dystopia that has parallels to George Orwell's 1984. We mixed our three sub-trends of work-life blending, pro aging and mindfulness and went a whole 100 years into the future. It wasn't until the next century that we thought the very large increase in human life expectancy was plausible.
For the complete and ubiquitous control of people, the Federal Ministry of Productive Labor and Social Order has released a device that will be given to all citizens over the age of 18: The Offlife Pro 6. It resembles our current smartphones, but anyone expecting communication capabilities or apps will be sadly disappointed. In a world trimmed for maximum efficiency and performance, complete focus on work is necessary and distractions are not desired.
📱 The Offlife Pro 6 should resemble our smartphones in terms of shape, but be a lot more powerful, slimmer and futuristic. The device is completely transparent and it feels like it comes straight out of a science fiction setting.
The main functions of the device are to display the necessary working time until retirement - through the so-called Offlife Countdown - and to inform citizens about their next activities, such as starting work, eating or sleeping times. However, the Offlife Countdown can be reduced not only by performing work, but also by denouncing fellow citizens who are caught loafing or spreading negative thoughts toward the state, through the reward program launched by the Ministry. This can be reported directly through the Offlife Pro 6 and is rewarded with a reduction in the time account.
The reported person, on the other hand, has to face a penalty: the stop of the Offlife
Countdown, the increase of the time account by the amount specified in the catalog of
penalties, and the performance of repetitive, pointless work with ancient technology (from
the 2000s) in the "Bundeseinrichtung für Arbeitsbeschaffungsmaßnahmen gegen Müßiggang"
(BArMü for
short), which Verena designed.
The following video shows the features of the Offlife Pro 6 in action. The prototype was
created with ProtoPie.
In addition to our elaborated idea, we each created an instruction manual for our artefacts. This is shown below for the Offlife Pro 6.
Very few people have been able to reach retirement - also called Offlife Care - because a stop or an increase in the Offlife Countdown can happen at any time. As the only way out of the system, a new solution has been established in the underground: "Beiß ins Gras" or BiG for short promises their customers death through their products. This is, of course, highly illegal, which is why acquiring a suicide kit is only possible on the black market. BiG was developed and designed by Lucia.
At the end of the project, we were given the opportunity to present our future world as well as our artefacts to the visitors at a small exhibition. There were many interesting conversations and especially discussions - exactly what Speculative Design is supposed to stimulate.
🤔 It was really exciting to see how our ideas affected people: many were shocked, others immediately started discussing or adding more ideas to our dystopia. It was definitely a very interesting experience.
Through Speculative Design, we were taught
to think critically about future trends and use design methods to create possible future
scenarios. Personally, I found it very exciting to use our knowledge and skills not to
create an interactive system as usual, but to think about social issues and trends as
designers. I really enjoyed the project and working with the team.
At the beginning I
couldn't really imagine what
the final result will look like, but I was very surprised how through research, a lot of
creativity and the application of some methods a dystopia was created that is so
detailed.
