Design e pensiero ecologico. Politica e futures studies nelle pagine delle riviste italiane dei primi anni settanta

Abstract

Every economic crisis generates reflections about possible futures. This was true in 1970s Italy, a period characterized by a great success of initiatives based on the need for an ideological interpretation of environmental issues. Starting from the end of 1960s, both design culture, futures studies and envi- ronmentalism shared an alternative plan for society. Classical Marxist cri- tiques of capitalism offered the impetus for a new political action centered on the vindication of ecological values linked to societal reconstruction. How did the materialization of futures by design cultures influence the understanding of the relationship between design, natural resources and human beings in an ecological perspective?
The article illustrates the grow of a specific approach to the idea of ecology by design cultures, highlighting possible convergences with mediating forms, tools, and contents belonging to other fields of study, in particular “futurol- ogy”. Methodologically, it investigates mediating channels as primary sources of research aimed at reconfiguring a history of sustainability. After introduc- ing an overview of the possible fields of overlapping, it reflects on two essays that document the debate through different perspectives: the article Ecologia e progettazione industriale published in Futuribili by Gui Bonsiepe (1971) and the essay Dal design all’ecologia generale by Giulio Carlo Argan published in Strutture Ambientali (1970).