Regional Indigenous Design Charter

Regional Indigenous Design Charters 

In the spirit of Geelong’s UNESCO Design City designation and with the support of DesignMind, Deakin University plans to develop a series of Regional Indigenous Design Charters. This project will align directly with Deakin’s award winning, International Indigenous Design Charter.

This globally oriented, Geelong based initiative will work with design and Indigenous organisations around the world to produce regionally specific iterations of the International Indigenous Design Charter.

The International Indigenous Design Charter is a self-regulated, trans-disciplinarily, professional best practice guide. The document provides guidance for designers to produce informed, authentic and respectful outcomes when representing culture. The role of the Charter is to promote understanding among the practitioners, clients and the buyers of design including governments, corporations, businesses and not-for-profit organisations.

The Indigenous Design Charter was developed in collaboration with Deakin’s Institute of Koorie Education (IKE) at Warn Ponds. In 2015 seven indigenous students and one academic formed a DFAT supported, research team that traveled to the Nordics (Greenland, Sweden, Denmark) to work with Sami and Inuit communities to develop the International Indigenous Design Charter. In 2017 IKE student, Elly Chatfield joined eminent Australian Aboriginal Architect, Jefa Greenaway to launch the International Indigenous Design Charter in Montreal, Canada at the World Design Summit. The next step is to develop regional Indigenous Design Charters around the world to compliment the International Charter.