D421 would to thank the featured designers — Chuck Harrison, Noel Mayo, David Adjaye, Rodney Leon, and Peter Cook — for allowing us to share their success stories.  We are also excited to have introduced you to our guest contributors, Gloria Williams, Nii Commey Botchway, Atim Oton and GA Gardner, who shared their unique voices on a variety of topics relevant to the entire D421 community.

As we begin the next annual cycle towards another black history month, it is important that we all continue to share with each other those black designers who were most influential in our lives, those we simply appreciate and those we just discovered and wanted to share. If we move in these ways next year this time we can look forward to a site that is a wealth of information and to a community that is engaged in a range of conversations that further enlighten many others. So let’s keep building!

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Eric Anderson

I’ve always wanted to use design as a way to build bridges and literally cross borders. The development of the Designers Without Borders Online Design Exchange has allowed me to do just that. The program came about as an idea that I had to connect designers in Africa to mentors in the US and allow them access to knowledge, techniques and skills that they may not otherwise have in their sometimes less-than-ideal academic environments.

Born in Uganda but raised in America, I have had the privilege of a very good formal education. Thanks to our African tradition, it was ingrained in me that education is almost sacred. A good education was just as important to me as it was to my parents because I knew that with it came the power to better control your destiny. I recently found an essay from my junior year of high school where I wrote: “As an individual hoping to pursue a career in graphic arts, I came to the conclusion that although I may never be one to step into the political arena, art—as an alternate means of communication—can still be very effective. Sometimes art is the best way to relay a message to the rest of the world for the mere fact that there are no words to contend with; only what is seen in the eye of the beholder.”

I’m blessed to be able to say that I’m doing exactly what I’ve always wanted to do: using art and technology to communicate ideas and influence thought and action. What’s even better is that I’m able to use this same passion to enhance the education of Ugandan students across the Atlantic. Technology is a beautiful thing.

Having just completed its second year, the DWB Online Design Exchange has been an interesting learning experience for me as I’m sure it’s been for the other mentors who have participated. An out-of-the-box experiment in cross-cultural, trans-Atlantic mentoring, the program is starting to get its legs, but not without its growing pains.

The Design Exchange works by matching up a US-based professional in the design field (with disciplines ranging from animation and video production to marketing and graphic design) with a design student at Makerere University in Uganda. The objective of the program is for the student to gain real world experience and coaching by a professional designer.

Image: Andrew, Ruth, Michael, Susan, and Nicholas. DWB’s first online mentees. June 25 through August 15, 2007.

Of the many lessons learned, clarity in communication is a major one. The cultural nuances of language on both sides of the Atlantic haven’t altogether been a barrier (all the students speak and write in English), but it has made it sometimes challenging to relay design concepts. Not to mention that some students may have had the wrong idea of what the program was about. One student’s request of his mentor went like this: “I am so greatful to have you as my mentor I promise not to disappoint you. Please I would really like to know whether it is possible for you to get me some clients.”

Access to technology that we take for-granted here was one of the challenges we also faced. It wasn’t always readily available to students and so often, students would respond late to assignments because the electricity had gone out or they didn’t have money to pay for access to a computer at an internet café (which are now a mainstay in the country). The hard part for mentors was that you couldn’t always tell if the students were truly in a predicament or if it was one of those “dog at my homework” deals.

But all those challenges become less relevant when you receive feedback from students like, “I have totally changed beneficially in my designing. I used to let software do a lot in my designing…But now I use my brain and sketches to create a brilliant result on the computer… Really [the program] is good and beneficial to all. Thanks for your good work.” The students are very appreciative of the mentoring experience—even when their end-of-program evaluations aren’t altogether favorable.

For myself, and most of the mentors, the effort (and sometimes headache) is worth it. Knowing that you are making an impact in the life of a young mind is fulfilling. It’s that whole “teach them to fish” concept in action. Afterall, what good is knowledge of any kind if you can’t use it to help someone else better themselves and ultimately, their lives?

Image: Student Michael Kasule worked with designer Raymond Prucher to develop this piece.

Julian Kiganda is a designer living in Washington D.C. Her work can be seen online at Vibrant Design Group.

Dori Tunstall, organizer of the U.S. National Design Policy Initiative, shares a short video of her thoughts about the role design plays in US economic competitiveness and democratic governance, how a national design policy would help, and her personal pledge to support the efforts.

Between March 15, 2009 and April 15, 2009, the Initiative collected videos via YouTube and FaceBook. Select videos will be included in the organization’s Design CEO video series communicating the same message and to be presented at national design conferences, to government officials, and other promotional venues.

The U.S. National Design Policy Initiative advocates for a governmental plan of action to support design in service of United States economic competitiveness and democratic governance through design promotion, innovation policy, design standards, and policy as designed.

Dori Tunstall is a Design Anthropologist. What is that? If Anthropology seeks to answer the question, “what does it mean to be human?”, then design anthropology tries to understand how the processes and artifacts of design help define what it mean to be human.

Dori is Associate Professor of Design Anthropology at University of Illinois at Chicago as well as an Associate Director of the City Design Center. She has a Ph.D. in Anthropology from Stanford University and completed her undergraduate degree at Bryn Mawr College in Anthropology as well.

Dori has worked at Sapient and Arc World Wide as a user experience consultant (aka. experience modeler/planner). She is a charter member of Designers421.

Go to http://dori3.typepad.com/about.html for more of Dori’s thoughts and initiatives. Go to http://www.designpolicy.org/ for detailed information regarding the U.S. National Design Policy Initiative.