Create a better world through creativity and design
On a blue illuminated stage, three women walked out wearing white inflated swimming pools. While dancing to electronic music, one of the swimming pools started rapping repeatedly: “Africa is the heart of the planet. Be you. Speak your truth. Tell your vision.”
This was one of the important messages communicated at the 25th annual Design Indaba Conference in Cape Town, which was simulcast live to the North-West University (NWU) Potchefstroom campus’ conservatorium from 26 to 28 February.
The goal of Design Indaba every year is to improve the world through creativity and the conference achieves this by hosting various award-winning international speakers.
Marina Herbst, the graphic design subject head and a lecturer at the NWU, said that students need to come and see what is shared here every year.
“Design Indaba is like a mishmash of inspiration. General students would love to see the ideas shared here, as they are like sponges and are curious to know new things. The conference provides something for everyone,” she said.
Herbst further explained that Design Indaba teaches people if they have a good idea, passion and motivation to create something, they can do it.
Debbie Millman, American founder and host of Design Matters, one of the world’s first and longest running podcasts and a speaker on the first day of the conference, explained that more development happened in the last 10 years than in the last 10 000 years.
“We are all the same in every way possible. Social media connects like-minded people to inspire and evoke change,” she said.
Sunu Gonera, award-winning Zimbabwean born filmmaker and a speaker on the second day of the conference, explained how Africa does not need money, but rather more creative ideas. “Diversity is our strength and our differences are our superpowers. We need to use it to elevate our work and ideas through the power of collaboration,” he said.
Leo Rheeder, final-year graphic design student at the NWU, loves being inspired by the conference every year.
“Design Indaba creates the idea that we can improve the world through creativity. The conference is not only for designers, because other people can also use creative ideas to improve their lives,” he said.
Mazbahul Islam, an impact-driven entrepreneur from Bangladesh and a speaker on the third day of the conference, already improved his world through creativity by designing tuk-tuk ambulances to save lives in the local villages of Bangladesh.
“Find what’s missing by finding the gaps in life,” he said. “If every person can minimise one gap a day, that is seven billion people minimising seven billion gaps a day.”
According to Herbst, Design Indaba provides a great opportunity for the community of Potchefstroom.
“I think it is awesome that Design Indaba is simulcast live in Potchefstroom, because some of these people can’t travel to Cape Town. It is a very big honour for us to host something like this and I would love it if more people come and see what is going on here.”
