A conversation on TED.com: Design is the foundation for producing creative, innovative and practical objects and services. Why is design not recognized for its value?

Ron Burnett
VANCOUVER B.C
Canada

President and Vice-Chancellor, Emily Carr University of Art and Design

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Design is the foundation for producing creative, innovative and practical objects and services. Why is design not recognized for its value?

The iPad came out last year and since then I have counted over 3000 articles, commentaries and newspaper reports on both Apple as a company and as a cultural phenomenon with the iPad as the focus. I am sure that I have missed many hundreds more.

Most of the articles talk about Apple having a “magic touch” or “they seem to be magically aware of what consumers want.” Financial writers and researchers talk about a company whose valuations have gone into the stratosphere. The stock which just a few years ago was thirty dollars is now worth over 350 dollars.

So, what is all this magic about? I would like to suggest that there is only a little bit of magic and a great deal of wisdom. The wisdom is drawn from Apple’s intense connection to Design processes best exemplified by the central role played by Jonathan Ive, a graduate of the Royal College of Art and Senior Vice-President of Industrial Design at Apple. Ive is responsible for many of Apple’s innovations, including the iPad.

Design thinking should be built into learning and corporate activities and not seen as some kind of creative add on.

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Ron Burnett 100+
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TED Attendee

May 9 2011: Interesting and important series of comments about Design to day can be found at
http://www.theatlantic.com/life/archive/2011/05/design-thinking-and-the-art-of-execution/238484/
Herbert Ng
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May 7 2011: i think the value of design is greatly recognized nowadays. from fashion to cars to consumer items, manufacturers and brands definitely set design as one of their top priorities. But design don't comes cheaply, so maybe sometimes its ignored by small / growing companies. They do value it, but they just can't afford it.
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- Collin Sine
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  May 8 2011: well worded, I questioned that myself, define=no value. I gave my answer to his question, now can you reach the roots of my words? Just a thought!
- Ron Burnett 100+
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  TED Attendee
  
  May 9 2011: Birdia
  When I say that Design is not recognized, it is precisely in the sense that you explain its omnipresence. We have become comfortable with not seeing the world as designed and therefore, artifice and everything within the built environment seems to become naturalized. My definition of design is quite broad. Design is basically intent built into process and object. Sometimes that intent is visible and often it is not. Part of the challenge here is that we need to recognize the processes that make design work, but often those activities are not visible enough to reveal themselves.
Collin Sine
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May 7 2011: I Think Ron Burnett is a main creator of TED! or his profile is faulty and goes to homepage.
Collin Sine
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May 7 2011: We don't recognize ourselves to be the "designers," and sometimes get "Lost In Translation," about things we don't quite yet comprehend or picture.