We concluded the conclusion of the previous Erasmus+ Project, SpeculativEdu with a list of guidelines for “good” speculative design, somewhat inspired by Dieter Rams’s Ten Principles for Good Design (1976). This notion, in fact, opened a big can of worms within the SpeculativeEdu community. For some, Rams' list is a bit sacred and to even hint at its limitations would be an act of insurrection against core design values. For others, the list had become a bit limited, focusing largely on the design of the object to the exclusion of the systems that facilitate this process.

Undisputed, however, is the fact that times have changed and words such as “innovation” have become problematic through misuse and overuse. The solution came through not attempting the brash act of rewriting Rams’s principles, but rather building on his words with the reminder that SpeculativEdu was focused on graduate students, early practitioners and educators. We therefore made some subtle additions, combined with a few challenges that aimed to improve the ways in which we teach, perform and evaluate speculative design projects.
• Normative design principles still apply (Rams, 1976).
• Reclaim the future. Or speculate on a plurality of futures beyond the simply techno-heroic. More importantly, reclaim the present – speculate on different versions of today.
• Avoid one-liners or overt provocations – these lead to easy dissemination and the illusion of success but ultimately achieve little.
• Identify a clear purpose for the project – and then aim to create action in the real world.
• Good design should be seen as a combination of means and ends. Speculate on alternative or new means (of production, resources, infrastructures …) and the ends they produce.
• Keep in mind that all designed things have consequences, both known and unknown. Design is never apolitical. Use speculation to explore implications as well as applications.
• These implications impact not only humans, but also nonhumans. Embrace the (systemic) complexity of the design problem.
• Act now (with small actions / movements) rather than waiting for disaster. Think about futures that will flourish from these small actions.
• Learn from design at the margins / periphery (geographic, economic, political or disciplinary). By necessity it is more agile, adaptive, frugal.
• Acknowledge your epistemic boundaries. Speculative design is thematically promiscuous and demands interaction / dialogue / collaboration with diverse “others”.
• Rather than designing objects to be replicated everywhere, design things with local resources, materials, knowledge, communities and making. This, by necessity, involves dialogue with locals.
• Speculative design is about learning to question, examine and critique – and this is a duty, not a privilege.
The full article can be found in the book downloadable here.