Friends,

A few weeks back, the exchange between several list members led some of us to adopt a new style of communication. I’ve taken up Don Norman’s four rules to make room for new voices and approaches. Others among us are deliberately posting more carefully. 

In the meantime, Luke Feast and others have proposed the issue of a code of conduct. The List Owner, David Durling, has invited comments, on list and off, and he has stated that he gives high priority to these issues.

At the same time, several people have opened interesting new threads. Mitch Sipus launched a thread on the kinds of ideas that experienced design professionals might offer to younger designers graduating in today’s hard times.

Two points occur to me — one from the history of this list, one from another list. 

In the past, we’ve had these kinds of debates when a few people take offence over a poorly formed post or an apparently sexist statement. Sometimes the problem has been a post from someone who uses English as a second or third language — not a sexist, but someone with a poor command of the subtleties of our language. On other occasions, the post has involved genuine stupidity or sexism from an older white male. The ensuing debate has been sharp and pointed, and many people have spoken up. Rightly so.

There have also been calls for a new list culture, for new voices to be heard, for a new, less critical style of list interaction.

Once the immediate flurry of anger and occasional remorse have passed, the list settles back in to what it was.

This time, things seem to be different. What is NOT different is the silence from those new voices — along with silence from those who complained.

The second point comes from another list. The founder of another list recently wrote me to congratulate himself on a list that has what he describes as no trolls and no long debates but only useful information. I subscribed to the list and still do. I find it flat and uninformative. There are occasional calls for papers, job announcements, research study announcements, and notices of publication. In other words, it’s a bulletin board — something like Fil Salustri’s monthly compilation or David Durling’s Design Research News. The information is useful, but it doesn’t compare with a forum of conversation and debate.

My modest proposal is this:

If you have something to add to the conversation on this list, please take the time to contribute. It’s not gracious or responsible to demand that a platform undergo transformation if you go silent when the old folks change their behaviour, stepping aside to make room for new voices.

If you didn’t like the PhD-Design list the way it was, you have a chance to remake it as you want it to be.  

Please do.

Ken

Ken Friedman, Ph.D., D.Sc. (hc), FDRS | Editor-in-Chief | 设计 She Ji. The Journal of Design, Economics, and Innovation | Published by Tongji University in Cooperation with Elsevier | URL: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/she-ji-the-journal-of-design-economics-and-innovation/

Chair Professor of Design Innovation Studies | College of Design and Innovation | Tongji University | Shanghai, China ||| Eminent Scholar | College of Design, Art, Architecture, and Planning | University of Cincinnati ||| Email  [log in to unmask] | Academia https://tongji.academia.edu/KenFriedman | D&I http://tjdi.tongji.edu.cn 












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