OUGD505 - Ethics and Sustainability in Graphic Design

OUGD505

Ethics and Sustainability in Graphic Design

Ethics 
Moral principles that govern a person's behaviour or the conducting of an activity.
The branch of knowledge that deals with moral principles.

Roberts 2007 
ethics is concerned with moral principles. it is the pursuit of truth. questioning wether there is such a thing as 'goodness' and testing the resultant ideas against various models.

Roberts 2006 
Elecotronic communication has almost destroyed distance and time. we have little excuses for not being aware of the worlds ills. 


Discuss the previous definitions of ethics:
Q: Do you think ethics is important in graphic design? Why?
When targeting large audiences
In political campaigns
When informing decision making because it has an influence on decision making. 
Decisions made about who we work with. Do their morals match up with yours? If they don't, do you really want to work for them?

Q: What defines 'good' graphic design?
Responding to a clients needs in an appropriate way. Consider what the client is asking for. Not every client will consider the environmental impact of what they are asking to do. 

Q: What does ethical practice entail in graphic design - What principles?
Evaluate ethical and moral compass, relevent to each project.


Steven Heller (2003) Citizen Designer
On being citizens
Good design is food citizenship (Milton Glaser)
A designer must be proffessionally, culturally, and socialy responsible for the impact his or her design has on citizenry.
An elegant logo can legitimise the illigitement

Katherine McCoy
remove our freedom of speedh and graphic designers might never notice. we have trained a proffession that feels political or social concerns are either extraneous to our work, or inappropriate.

A.C. Grayling
Lucian Roberts, eye magazine
On who to work for.
even if you don't agree with your clients message, of the message is a legitimate one, do you take a stand on your own personal morality or do you act as a professional and continue to provide a service. Professional interests and obligations are perfectly legitimate , and the value of free speech and the value of alternative points of view are so great that it must surly be up to individuals to decide what moral stance they take. It is a matter of personal conscience and degree. But all that said it remains the case that if something were really such a serious matter for you ethically, then, even if it ment financial loss or other problems, the answer is very, very simple. If it really is a moral make-or-break issue for you, you don't do things that you don't agree with.

Jacqueline Roach
On having an influence
When to comes to graphic design, isnt it better not to walk away from jobs on ethical grounds, but ask if there is some way you can have influence, something you can bring? 
Your job is about influence and persuasion?
Graphic designers can influence changes.

On self and aesthetics
If you want live a good life, and to do good in the world, you have to do good to yourself. you have a responsibility to be a good steward of your own gifts, and you've got to take care of yourself in order to be a more flourishing, effective person. If one sought to be altruistic at the expense of ones own interest all the time, the risk is that it would eventually undermine ones ability to be good to others. Ethics is an inclusive notion. Its about the whole quality of life. The aesthetic becomes really vital to that because to live in a social and political setting which is pleasing, enticing and attractive, and which is full of interest, detail, colour and movement increases the quality of life. Every aspect of our lives is touched by considerations of the quality of our experience. So there is a deep connection between the aesthetic and the ethical.

Richard Holloway
Creative Value
The difference between an instrumental and an intrinsic good. An instrumental good is something that is good for something else. An iIntrinsic good is something that is good within itself. The argument around fine art is that its value lies in its being produced for its own sake not for social regeneration or social renewal - but in fact it has always been both, it has never been just one. Good art is also good for other things. So good design will please your client, it will maybe help a product sell better, but it also improves life for everyone because it can become something that is lovely in its own right.

Themes:
Being a good citizen
Who to work for
Influences and persuasion
Aesthetics and ethics
Value and purpose


The designers responsibility to Audience Members and Users (AIGA)
Designers must recognise the need to include audience members and users whenever possible in the process of developing effective communications and to act as an advocate for their concerns to the client.

The designers main concern must be to create communications that are helpful to audience and users and that meet their needs with dignity and respect. Any communication created b designer that intentially misleads or confuses must be viewed as a negative reflection on the profession as a whole.

Sustainability
Social equality, economic prosperity and environmental stewardship
Social sustainability - people and societies
Economic sustainability - capital and growth
Environmental sustainability - the planet

Eric Benson 
Best practice to design sustainability:
Things to consider:
- Is this the best way to communicate the message
- What is the impact of making the piece
- how do we lessen the impact by making the piece

Initial decsussion
- respect and car for the community 
- improve quality of life
- conserve earths vitality and diversity
- Minimise the depletion of nonrenewable resources
- change personal attitudes and practices to keep with the planets carrying capacity.

conscious design decision 
- design for re-use/longevity
- design for cyclically, not linearly
- choose recycled/non toxic materials
- minimise waste
- minimise ink coverage
- chose vendor that use renewable energy and employ socially aduitable an environmentally friendly bussiness practices
- Educate consumers about the lifecycle issues through messaging/marketing
- encourage others to design sustainable.

Notable organisations
- Creative Concern (Manchester)
- Footprint
- Cast Iron Design (design for good not evil)
- Re-Nourish (tool box for designers)

Work:
Creative Concern - You can foster
Occupy London (Jonathan Barnbrook) - questions the distribution of wealth
Stonewall campaign - Ethics of Design - Some people are gay, get over it,
Ernst Bettler - series of adverts - Boycotting a pharma company
AdBusters

Sustainable issue mapping