Abstract
Design has long demonstrated an interest in shaping society and the world for good. In Australia, there are 59,747 non-profit organisations that seek to do the same. Surprisingly, there is little research situated at the intersection of these fields. This research explores the potential remit of design in non-profit organisations and provides insight into where and how design practices may be beneficial to non-profit partners. This paper first thematically analyses the responses of 140 Australian non-profit organisations as they reflect on their strategic position and core activities. Drawing on these insights, we outline five thematic notions of value as it pertains to non-profits, their stakeholders and beneficiaries. Finally, we contribute a preliminary map of the Australian non-profit value ecosystem and speculate on design’s potential for integration.
Keywords
design integration; multi-order design; non-profit
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.676
Citation
Gulbransen-Diaz, N., and Hepburn, L. (2024) Design x Non-Profits: Towards an understanding of design integration in the Australian Non-Profit Sector, in Gray, C., Hekkert, P., Forlano, L., Ciuccarelli, P. (eds.), DRS2024: Boston, 23–28 June, Boston, USA. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.676
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Conference Track
Research Paper
Included in
Design x Non-Profits: Towards an understanding of design integration in the Australian Non-Profit Sector
Design has long demonstrated an interest in shaping society and the world for good. In Australia, there are 59,747 non-profit organisations that seek to do the same. Surprisingly, there is little research situated at the intersection of these fields. This research explores the potential remit of design in non-profit organisations and provides insight into where and how design practices may be beneficial to non-profit partners. This paper first thematically analyses the responses of 140 Australian non-profit organisations as they reflect on their strategic position and core activities. Drawing on these insights, we outline five thematic notions of value as it pertains to non-profits, their stakeholders and beneficiaries. Finally, we contribute a preliminary map of the Australian non-profit value ecosystem and speculate on design’s potential for integration.