«Meta-design and Mining, prospects for development and progress: Case of Madre de Dios, Peru.»

Juan P. Velasquez / Karla Francisca Flores Caldas (Sweden) Table B – Hybridizations

The Madre de Dios region of Peru is considered one of the areas with the greatest biodiversity on the planet; however, it has been exposed to development perspectives based exclusively on the exploitation of resources in an extractive manner, thus impacting the ecological and ontological configuration among the different species.

Mining, as one of these development and progress practices, has generated a disorganized and violent occupation of the territory, promoting a devastating development for these communities, exposing the need to discuss the dominant visions of development and progress based on extractive activities.

On the other hand, design has been understood as a way of thinking and acting to address different problems (simple, complicated and complex). Its practice in the territory as well as its teaching in global institutions indicate an apparent serious concern for improving the quality of life of people and, lately, of species in general.

The case of Nordic design schools that have evolved their curricula to embrace sustainability is a clear example.

Thus, this paper discusses the notion of development from local practices such as mining and from conceptual and global design frameworks such as Meta-design.