Design for the Other 90% (Paperback)

by Cynthia E. Smith (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Of the world s total population of 6.5 billion, 90%, have little or no access to most of the products and services many of us take for granted; in fact, nearly half do not have regular access to food, clean water, or shelter. Design for the Other 90% explores more than thirty projects which reflect the growing movement among designers, engineers, students and professors, architects, and social entrepreneurs to design low-cost solutions for this other 90%. Published in conjunction with a major exhibition on view at the Smithsonian s Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, Design for the Other 90% highlights a wide variety of design innovations that address the basic challenges of survival and progress faced by the world s poor and marginalized.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Editions Assouline (September 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0910503974
• ISBN-13: 978-0910503976
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #171,295 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars nice brief review of interesting design, February 16, 2008

By	John G. Curington - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"Design for the Other 90%" was published for the exhibition of the same name at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum at the Smithsonian. More like a review of an exhibition than a definitive text, the book is a nice brief review of some very interesting designs that are useful all over our planet. The book does not seem to be intended to teach you how to build, but rather to inspire you to think about building differently.

The book contains a collection of inventions - most of them quite simple. Examples are a "pot-in-pot" cooler which uses evaporative cooling to keep food from spoiling, a portable water filter for drinking water, a communal solar-powered kitchen, a gravity-powered drip irrigation system, and small-scale photovoltaic lighting. There are many more interesting ideas within these pages.

You won't learn the details of construction from this book, but you will be stimulated to think more broadly about designs that are useful for the majority of humans on our planet.

4.0 out of 5 stars Thinking out of the box, April 4, 2009

By	A. E. Hyde (Spain/USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Necessity is indeed the mother of invention. While I did not see the original exhibit that inspired the publication of this book by the Copper-Hewitt, the book stands well by itself. The fact that we take so many things for granted makes this book a revelation. I bought 5 copies to give away to architect and engineer friends. I think it will prove revelatory and may inspire them to return their thinking to the most elementary basics of design; elegant and highly practical solutions that work for all of us, not just the needy 90%.

5.0 out of 5 stars fantastic introduction, January 28, 2009

By	Maria Rogal (Gainesville, FL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Cynthia Smith put together an excellent exhibition by the same name at the Cooper-Hewitt. This book is an excellent companion and great text book for design students and especially for those in other fields to learn how design is an integral part of development. Inspiration and pragmatism make change.