Designing Futures for Afrika and Beyond

In a modern world consumed by unique and novel product production, the quest for greater access, connectivity, and convenience through technology, the role of an industrial designer can easily be vilified. Positioning Afrikan designers in the rapidly changing world due to the impact of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies is essential. Afrikan designers do not work in isolation but in a global world that blends the physical and digital environment. Industrial designers must be aware of their changing role as they transition from making product-centric to experience-centric products and services that will meet stakeholders’ future needs. Designers have started operating in hyper-connected environments, e.g., smart homes, cities, manufacturing, materials, etc. These environments are interconnected through the 4IR technologies as products and appliances shift from isolated, function-driven objects to an extended mesh of interconnected nodes. Afrikan designers must contribute to shaping this metaverse and forge a new path to the world’s environmental, social, economic, cultural, and developmental equilibrium. Designers must promote indigenous Afrikan knowledge and develop culturally responsive design practices and processes. They must look within their cultures to identify approaches to solving problems that can be leveraged through design. The philosophy of Ubuntu, for example, embodies the need for empathy, inclusion, and connectedness. Designers can thus find more relevant ways to approach and address complex personal and societal challenges. This ability will position designers as critical role-players in resolving or at least productively managing the challenges people and the planet are experiencing through design innovation. Humanising technology that people use will have to play a significant role for society to thrive. This chapter introduces critical industrial design considerations, developments, and opportunities for future design in Afrika and beyond.