Dis nie jy nie, dis EK!

We are the ones that make ideas happen!

The Design Institute is committed to support new ideas that can possibly create a successful economy. Prosperity has never been more important than right now where we are entering our next 20 years of democracy, people are looking for signs that a better life can be created.

Through targeted design interventions, the Design Institute aims to be a facilitator for economic growth. The aim is to make design and innovation a organiser to profoundly overcome the national challenges of unemployment, poverty and inequality. Also to design a response to current and future technological, economic and social demands. It is of importance to create opportunities that will minimize the youth unemployment figures!

Gavin Mageni head of the Design Institute states that our democracy is still faced with substantial socio-economic, socio-cultural and socio-political problems on a daily bases.

According to Mageni the targeted design interventions that can help make a difference include: the activities taken by our Design and Innovation Entrepreneurship Centre that offers services that develop ideas into prototypes and that provides innovators with the needed skills to commercialise these ideas to create successful businesses. Secondly, to award excellence. Lastly, a difference can only be made if we get recognition as South Africa’s official design promotion body, locally and internationally.

Inorder for us to achieve the above we need to implement a paradigm shift in the direction where we not only define democracy in ourselves but in the way we embrace the ability to democratize the world we see. Mageni states that by applying the basic principles of design; listening, developing, creating and adding value, a value chain will be added. This value chain will change ones paradigm by sharing knowledge and creating co-creation and cohesion.

In the case if chasm, where the money goes into the one door but never comes out on the other end. Local service delivery and sustainable development lack the ability to properly implement, the same as chasm. The government and its policies can’t be expected to be able to enable all these changes that is needed, therefore it is important to rather let citizens get encouraged to be their own designers in their applicable democracy.

Carmen le Roux

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Dear Carmen. First of all let me congratulate you on your blog, you did a very excellent job. Secondly, thank you for the wonderful and enlightening entry. I learned quite a lot from it. I look forward to reading more of your entries.