We have become masters in human-centered design. However, our hyperfocus on creating value for humans also has its downturns.
User journeys, user personas, user research – our methodologies are blindfolded and optimize only one element of what is indeed a system. If we continue to focus on humans alone, we will lead this system to collapse. Hence, let’s overcome our egoism and start crafting in ecosystems. Planet-centric design offers an overdue recalibration of our designerly ways of working. However, when we no longer design solely for humans but the planet, complexity increases manifold.
Therefore, this talk explores how prototyping offers a powerful way to engage with human and non-human stakeholders beyond the design discipline. Eventually, design is no longer a mere tool, but a universal language like math and music that allows diverse groups to find answers to wicked problems collectively
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Samuel Huber
Samuel Huber is on a mission to push Planet Centric Design to organizations of all kinds in his role as Strategy Director at Goodpatch, a global design firm that operates between Tokyo and Berlin. He has just completed a Ph.D. on the topic of strategizing as prototyping at the University of St. Gallen’s RISE Management Innovation Lab and continues to explore the interface of research and practice.
Huber’s fascination for wicked problems and curiosity for uncertain situations have provided him with a variety of experiences: He has been a founding member of UBS Y, the future think tank of the world’s biggest wealth manager, worked long nights in a New York art gallery and focused on development economics with Biovision. Now, Huber enjoys his work in interdisciplinary teams to conceptualize and develop anything from compression stockings to circular building technology platforms.
Previously, his studies in sociology, economy, management, and design led him to the Universities of Zurich, St. Gallen, and all the way to Stanford and Keio in Tokyo.
