This lecture was prepare for the recruitment process in Aalto University, 2023. The title was given to me.

1. Dr. Mariana Salgado, 6.2.2023
20min lecture for Master students in design
Past and Present of diverse design cultures

2. Mariana Salgado
Service designer
@Ministry of the Interior, Finland
mariana.salgado@gov.fi
@Salgado
Twitter: @inlandDesign / www.inlanddesign.
f

3. Designer/ activist
mariana.salgado@iki.fi
Diseño y diáspora podcast
Twtitter/ IG @disenoydiaspora / www.diseñoydiaspora.org
Social design
Spanish, Portuguese & English
+390 interviews published
6000 listeners per month
Spotify/ Itunes / Apple podcast
Other recent publications
Everything is published under creative commons
licences and can be found free online

4. Key learning objectives
1. To de
fi
ne design culture
2. To analyse the historical context of a design and relate it to its present shape
3. To iden
ti
fy which other design approaches relate to design culture
This is lecture is part of a course on Design cultures. This is the
fi
rst lecture.

5. What is design culture?
(…) agglomera
ti
ons of interconnected
things, people, ins
ti
tu
ti
ons and interests, as
well as material and immaterial
infrastructures that connect them. (Guy
Julier, 2022).

6. Example: maternity package
Pic. Settlementti Puijola
PEOPLE
THINGS
Finnish Social Security
INSTITUTION
(…) agglomerations of interconnected things, people, institutions and interests, as
well as material and immaterial infrastructures that connect them. (Guy Julier, 2022).
to all expectant or adop
ti
ve parents who live in Finland

7. PEOPLE
THINGS
Pic. Päivän lehti
INSTITUTION
MATERIAL & INMATERIAL
INFRASTRUCTURES
A public policy
Distribu
ti
on networks
NEUVOLA- an
ti
natal care service
Producers- Manufacturers
Procurement processes
Design compe
ti
ti
on
Example: maternity package
to all expectant or adop
ti
ve parents who live in Finland
(…) agglomerations of interconnected things, people, institutions and interests, as
well as material and immaterial infrastructures that connect them. (Guy Julier, 2022).

8. Why the package in 1938?
PAST
to parents with a low income
Reducing bed-sharing which is a risk factor
for SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrom) and
sleep-related deaths (SRD)
Clothes were valuable and expensive
for families.
Di
ff
erent messages / learnings to families
are part of the box
Design cultures deals with understanding complex and
fl
uctua
ti
ng environments in which we live
Two-thirds of women giving birth that year eligible
Winter War
(1939–1940)
Continuation War
(1941–1944)

9. How the package change over the years?
PAST
2006: bo
tt
le le
ft
out to encourage breas
tf
eeding
Lately more use of sutainable materials.
2023: 17 less products
Design Culture studies can therefore be interpreted as the ou
t­
come of speci
fi
c historical processes.
Design Culture studies can therefore be interpreted as the ou
t­
come of speci
fi
c historical processes.
30s and 40s: it contained fabric because mothers were accustomed to making the baby's
clothes.
During World War II,
fl
annel and plain-weave co
tt
on were needed by the Defence
Ministry, so some of the material was replaced by paper bed sheets and swaddling cloth.
50s: an increase in the number of ready-made clothes, and in the 60s and 70s these
began to be made from new stretchy fabrics
1968: a sleeping bag appeared, and the following year disposable nappies featured for
the
fi
rst
ti
me.
The box is a symbol. A symbol of the idea of equality,
and of the importance of children.
1970s: With more women in work, easy-to-wash stretch co
tt
on and colourful pa
tt
erns
replace white non-stretch garments
1980: Fathers were taken into considera
ti
on. The pack handbook that was used to call:
“To mother” had it named change to “We are having a baby”

10. What are the prac
ti
ces around the package?
PRESENT
Pic: From BBC From the article: why Finnish babies sleep in cardboard boxes?
Design culture can be an object, a discipline and a prac
ti
ce .
All Finnish babies starts sleeping in
similar condi
ti
ons: cardboard boxes
Feedback on the package is
collected yearly for the design of
the next year package.
Par
ti
cipatory prac
ti
ces to decide on
certain issues.
(Eg. 8000 mothers commented on the coming box, 30.000 on the
name)

11. What happens with the package now?
PRESENT
A mother may choose to take the
maternity package, or a cash grant
of 170 euros
- but 95% of Finnish mothers
choose the box because it's
worth signi
fi
cantly more.
The maternity package is an annual
purchase of almost 5.000.000 for
Kela. It is a signi
fi
cant investment in
the well-being of families.

12. How it was replicated in other countries?
PRESENT
Private companies have started selling
packages claiming to be the "Finnish baby
box" or similar to it, but the original
boxes are not sold commercially.
The programs with similar packages
address:
1) reducing infant or maternal mortality,
2) promo
ti
ng the wellbeing of babies and
mothers,
3) easing
fi
nancial and paren
ti
ng burden,
4) encouraging the uptake of health and
5) reducing inequali
ti
es. (Koivu et al,
2020).
60 countries use some form of a baby "box" maternity package
Scotish maternity package- Monsters are part of Scottish national tales.
Argentinean version of the maternity package
All of these can be design and interpreted with a cri
ti
cal lense

13. Please, write in the chat
What cri
ti
cal ques
ti
ons come to your mind when
you think about the maternity package today?

14. How to redesign the package today?
How can the package support a transi
ti
on
towards suitanable consuming?
The maternity package is gathering criticism on social media - an environmental
in
fl
uencer: "I've read that almost all the products were left unused"
Designing with the non-human (M. Avila) / Designing for the planet ( V. Palacín) /Design for the pluriverse (A. Escobar).
Design culture embrace many other design approaches such as:

15. What else do we need to know about
families and babies?
Can the package communicate about
other services that the families could
reach? Including the ones from 3rd
sector organisa
ti
ons.
Cri
ti
cal design (J. G. Montalván/ J. Camacho)
Design culture embrace many other design approaches such as:

16. How the package is addressing the changes in
popula
ti
on, such as the fact that we have constant
immigra
ti
on growth?
Can the package embrase other types of families?
How is the package teaching about new crea
ti
ve
prac
ti
ces around raising children?
Design with gender perspec
ti
ves (G. Flesler) / Design in transi
ti
on (A. Belsunces)/ Grassroots sustainability (C. Kohtala)
Pic. Unsplashed . Alexandre Gray
Design culture embrace many other design approaches such as:

17. If the maternity package gives all kids a fair start in life.
Can we think in a similar package for seniors?
What are policies to support seniors’ needs?
Design for all (H. Spencer) / Design for policies (R. Mazé) / Legal design (A. Fleitas)
Pic. Unsplashed Micheile
Design culture embrace many other design approaches such as:

18. Please, write in the chat
What cri
ti
cal ques
ti
ons come to your mind when
you think about the maternity package today?

19. Other sources mentioned
Designing with the non-human (M. Avila) / Designing for the planet ( V. Palacín) /Design for the pluriverse (A. Escobar).
Cri
ti
cal design (J. G. Montalván/ J. Camacho)
Design with gender perspec
ti
ves (G. Flesler) / Design in transi
ti
on (A. Belsunces)/ Grassroots sustainability (C. Kohtala)
Design for all (H. Spencer) / Design for policies (R. Mazé) / Legal design (A. Fleitas)
One article
Publications
Podcast Podcast
Publications
Video
Podcast
Publications
One book
Podcast
Publications
Planet centric design
Podcast
Recent book
Website
Podcast
Publications
Podcast
Publications
Podcast
Publications
Podcast
Publications
Video
Podcast Video
Podcast

20. Main bibliography
Aalto University (2021) Design for government course. Reducing Carbon Footprint Procurement, Using the Kela Maternity Box Example
Julier, G. (2000). The culture of Design. Sage publica
ti
ons.
Koivu, A; Phan, Y. T. H.; Näsi, E.; Abuhamed, J. Perry, B. L.; Atkins, S; Perkiö, M-; Koivusalo, M. The baby box. Enhancing the wellbeing of
babies and mothers around the world. Kela
Kuusisto, O. (2014). Finnish researchers developing a digital maternity package. VTT
Lee, H. (2013). Why Finnish babies sleep in cardboard boxes? BBC
Mareis C., Greiner-Pe
tt
er M. Renner M.(eds.) Cri
ti
cal by Design? 2022. Design culture as cri
ti
cal prac
ti
ce. Guy Julier
Taipale, I. (Ed) (2013). 100 Social Innova
ti
ons from Finland (Finnish Literature Society.
Wikipedia (2022). Maternity package

21. 1. To de
fi
ne design culture
Key learning objectives

22. 1. To de
fi
ne design culture
Design culture can be an object, a discipline and a prac
ti
ce (Guy Julier, 2022).
Design culture embraces many design approaches.
Design culture is an agglomera
ti
ons of interconnected things, people,
ins
ti
tu
ti
ons and interests, as well as material and immaterial infrastructures
that connect them (Guy Julier, 2022).
Key learning objectives

23. 1. To de
fi
ne design culture
2. To analyse the historical context of a design and relate it to its present shape
Key learning objectives

24. 1. To de
fi
ne design culture
2. To analyse the historical context of a design and relate it to its present shape
3. To iden
ti
fy which other design approaches relate to design culture
Key learning objectives

25. Thanks! Gracias! Kiitos!
mariana.salgado@iki.
f