Design Labels: The Words that Divide & Unite Us

"This paper explores the limitations and functions of design labels, such as social design, codesign, and sustainable design. It argues for a clearer and more nuanced approach to describing design practices. The authors collected over seventy of such labels and categorized them into five clusters. Four of these clusters derive their name from a necessary element of a design project, namely resources, outcomes, criteria, and methods. The labels in the fifth cluster pertain to specific application domains. The discussion explores the relations between these labels and the elements they represent, highlighting that each element can evolve during a design project. The authors conclude that the elements can assist students, professionals, and academics to planning and describing the execution of a design practice. It’s important to notice that although design labels do not define the practices, they do serve to identify specialist communities, and indicate new directions in the field. "