Design in Africa

Edan Weis is working on  his PhD research project; Design for Social Wellbeing: A Case Study of Normative Design Thinking, see the work in progress here.

"This research is a comparative study of the design process accross several organizations designing for/with the poor, specifically the early concept/ideation stages of product development. I'm interested in the way designer's "frame" their problems according to their individual perspectives, and how this affects their design process. In "social design", perspectives are often as contested as the development theories they are associated with. The aim of study is to devise methods and practical approaches for design focused on alleviating poverty by examining the design process itself, rather than through external discourses of development economics, sociology of technology, or innovation studies. The research assumes that such discourses—while still important in understanding social design practices—exert a greater influence at the practical level of designing than has been previously recognized."

"This study investigates industrial design practice which aims to contribute to poverty alleviation and economic development in poor nations. The practice of “Design for Social Wellbeing” (DSW) generally operates in four capacities: 1) product/service design consulting for/with local businesses and individuals; 2) commercial product/service development for low-income markets; 3) education for formal/informal manufacturing or crafts sectors; 4) implementing national industrial and economic policy. "

Edan is currently looking for BOP product developers / inventors / design firms interested in participating in a case study for his PhD research project.

Via BOP Source, @bopsource. Image from Edan's Research Proposal (PDF).

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Click here to download:

Nokia_and_education_part_one.zip (482 KB)

Met some really interesting students who are designing and exploring education delivery on handheld devices.

'Project Nokia.Expand aims to create a learning platform for children in developing countries in the form of a mobile device. The device will be durable, low-cost, light-weight, easy to use and contains components that enable the children to interact with their immediate environment. The example applications are based on extensive user studies across multiple countries and continents. They will support learning, communication, and playful interaction within and outside a school. We believe that learning happens through interacting with the world. Technology supports that.' Design Factory.

More to come after the opening of the Product Design Gala.

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I am writing for Readymade's Illustrated Weekly World of Design, topics include the design process, innovation, design news from South Africa and all the other stuff in between.

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Having fun, dealing with Africa time, good times.

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Nokia announced Mail on Ovi late last year, it was picked up well, and seen as a milestone to delivering email to most of the planet.

"At Nokia we believe email should be available for everybody. We also launched Mail on Ovi, a free email service primarily aimed at the billions of first time email users, 75% of world's population." Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo - President and CEO, Nokia stated recently.

Mail on Ovi is free and preloaded on all Nokia Series 40 devices launching in 2009, and a wide range of devices currently out there. Its easy to use, because you don't have to install anything, you don't need a computer at all, it 'works out the box'.

Now here is the interesting part, if you want to install the gmail app on a S40 Nokia, you can't, you cannot download it; it will tell you that the file size is too big. I stand to be corrected, but I tried 2 different s40 devices, same result. And that is after figuring out how to find the app on the internet. But you can set up gmail in the mail setting pretty easily though, but that would imply you already have a gmail account.

What does that mean? Is it because there are hardware limitations to keep costs low, or is the s40 software is not sophisticated enough to deal with 3rd party applications? Could it be a clever business move to eliminate competition? Or could it just be that Nokia saw an opportunity to make email as simple as possible without too many hurdles. And who do you think is more recognized to 75% of the world's population?

Now all that needs to happen is for service providers to lower data costs, a ubiquitous internet that can be viewed on all devices and we could be seeing the next internet really take off.

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Its been a crazy couple of months with lots happening, but I have promised myself to start blogging again.

Busy with a research project here in South Africa, getting to see interesting people and places.

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Good article from Robert Fabricant at Frog Design about Jan Chipchase and his work, which highlights the importance of design research and how it fits into business strategy.

'He is now finding that his most meaningful collaborations are with strategy groups within Nokia. He has been invited into much larger conversations about new markets and product strategies'

And 'The passion that comes from direct contact, true connection to specific social needs, has become an essential force in managing strategic decisions.'

Research and design play a pivotal role in Nokias strategy, building a solid design strategy. Future research directions have been developed to form Agenda 2015  which focuses on the following areas:

• User and context modeling
• Physically Personal Devices
• Human Interface
• Mixed Reality
• Creativity
• Scalable Service Platforms
• Dynamic Wireless
• Internet of Things

Nokia says this is the foundation for research over the coming years to discover the breakthroughs that will open up new business for the company. Nokia's strategy relies on growing, transforming, and building the Nokia business to ensure its future success.

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Keep updated on A Better World by Design through Niti Bhan and Erik Hersman who is covering it on Afrigadget with photos here.

Todays (Saturday) schedule should be interesting; Paul Polak, Erik Hersman, Ken Banks and Niti Bhan talking early in the morning.

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Ushahidi is being deployed in the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) as a working prototype.

'We need to get the message to the people on the ground in the Eastern Congo that this tool is now available for them to report incidents in on. If you have contacts there, or can help spread the word through some other means, it would be a great help if you did so - even if it's just point them to the website or telling them about the SMS number.'

The number is +243992592111 website is http://drc.ushahidi.com/

Spread the word.

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Latest from Nokia; 'Inform, Involve, Empower – Nokia's service mantra for emerging markets with Nokia Life Tools '

"Filling in the information gaps in agriculture and education with Nokia Life Tools, we strive to contribute towards empowering people with the right tools to help them make informed decisions in their daily lives," said Jawahar Kanjilal, Global Head of Emerging Market Services, Nokia. "Nokia Life Tools was developed to help bridge the digital divide in the emerging markets."

What stands out for me is the commitment Nokia is showing towards education; 'The Education service of Nokia Life Tools aims to give students a decisive advantage by boosting their English language and local, national and international general knowledge. Language lessons, quizzes on English words and phrases, and the general knowledge information were designed - together with EnableM for the pilot - to give students an edge. In future, the Education service will also come with information on higher education and career guidance and tips, exam preparation, quizzes and access to exam results.'

Nokia also launched their cheapest phone today, the 1202 , which should come in at €25. Features include flashlight, 9 hour talk time and has multiple phone books and time and pre-paid tracker.

Nokia shows how its done once again.

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