[MANIFESTO]
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Many fairytales end with the epigram: “and they lived happily ever after”. In this workshop we will be designing for situations provoked by the pandemic. Although the idea of “after” is probably the first thing on most people’s minds at this time, because they would like to return to some form of normalcy, and governments in particular can’t wait to declare the end of the pandemic in order to salvage their crippled economies, we think it is a bit of a fairytale. We believe that the planetary health crisis provoked by COVID-19, which has obliged more than 50% of earthlings to live in some form of quarantine, should be seen as a precursor to other, more dangerous environmental crises. We assume that vaccines and medical procedures will eventually resolve the spread of the virus, allowing us to speak of an “after Coronavirus”, but in regards to the Climate Crisis, which is mostly linked to anthropogenic causes, we cannot honestly speak of a post-crisis situation. The melting of the polar icecaps, and of Nordic permafrost, the increasing PH levels of acidity in the oceans, the continuing deforestations around the planet, and of course the reduced capacity to grow food due to hostile heat will greatly change human societies. The possibility of other pandemics is thus coupled with major weather threats for which we are not ready. We need adaptative strategies for survival, both for immediate and long-term situations. We should be aware that there will probably be a cure for COVID-19 but that this will not be the last crisis. Nothing will be the same as it was before the pandemic.
 
Although in recent times a “share” culture managed through online platforms has emerged, the pandemic has reduced many possibilities of physically being together. Instead virtual socialization has become viral, so to speak, and platforms such as Zoom, have overnight taken the place of public space or places of encounter. Cell phones will soon be geared to measure temperatures and infections, and travel, both local and international, has already been heavily monitored. Health passports in the form of chips will probably be issued to those who continue to operate in the working world.
 
Normal activities, such as going to restaurants and bars will be redesigned to keep people at social distance. Tourism, museum-going, education, shopping, playgrounds, public transportation, and public space must necessarily adapt to the post-Corona condition. There will be a great demand for small design interventions to help to both connect and protect.
 
The principal lesson of the pandemic has been that we were not prepared. The same must be said for the Climate Crisis, in that we continue to plan our lives as if there will not be any major changes, even though extreme weather, food shortages, and health disasters have already occurred and will continue to arrive on a larger scale.