The social dynamics of digital design: Building an ethics-based industry

This project aims to cultivate socially responsible design practices within the Australian digital start-up industry through two subprojects: an industry-user design ethnography and the development and delivery of a critical design toolkit for industry participants. Social ills associated with technological design have plagued Silicon Valley in the USA. Australia is positioned to avoid these issues while emerging as a global leader in ethical design practices. The Australian industry thus serves as a strategic case to address the relationship between technical decisions and social dynamics. The project advances theories of science and technology studies while positioning Australia as a leading force in social responsibility.