The early digital conversations flickered and buzzed in the design crowd on ZOOM and Web EX and Teams. How can we optimize remote work functionality and make sure we can keep in touch?
We as designers adapted quickly into the WFH mode and the proof began to show in the pudding. We could communicate, create, produce and connect and the workplace was taking a back seat.
Maybe the office was not as important as we thought. There was another way.
What was next? A full range of return-to-work scenarios and how-to playbooks emerged on the internet, from architects, interior designers, and from real-estate and developer teams.
Special presentations and conferences were created to spread the word in the Design community network. What could we do so that the workplace could be adapted to a set of requirements that allowed for us to return to a new normal? We wanted to get back to the office where we could share, brainstorm, spark new ideas like we used to do.
But then it started to change again. We began to learn more about the virus, how it worked, how it was transferred, and still more and more questions came up. The Design community expanded the net. What was happening in retail? What would the office tower need to survive? What was happening to public space? What was happening to cities? What about outdoor space and safety?
Now where are we going with our design thinking?
I believe there are three main lessons that we are learning that influence the ways we think and design.
No. 1, CHANGE, We now understand that we have to be more flexible with our think and our solutions. Everyday brings new information and new understandings. Now I know I have to be always ready to rebound, to change and to react. This is not the time to be rigid and stubborn.
No.2 SAFETY We want to be safe, and we want to know we will be safe. Even though seeing someone clean a space doesn’t mean that it is safe, it is a sign that the building owners are doing what they can to protect the occupant. Seeing the restaurant owners strictly follow protocol for distancing and outdoor dining, we can feel safer.
As a designer, I have been practicing sustainable design approaches in all of my projects. Now more than ever, a sustainable and a truly safe design process is the only way we can move forward in our evolution of our cities, buildings, interior spaces and objects. Now more than ever, the HVAC system is one of the prime areas for smart and thorough design. We need safe air transfer and delivery.
No. 3 TRUST All of us in the world are having a crisis of trust. We can’t trust others around us, we cannot trust spaces and places around us as they might be carriers of the disease. And we cannot trust our own buildings, the occupant. I believe that in order to o make progress with our next steps in the design of our environment, we need to rebuild our many layers and senses of trust.
2020 will be about deeper analysis of our challenges as we spend more time within ourselves and our families and look forward to times where we can feel safe, comfortable, productive and happy in our buildings and cities.