Socially Responsible Creatives
The creative industry has a powerful voice, and responsibility comes with it. It is time for creatives to step up and embrace socially responsible communication. We cannot continue to prioritise financial gain over ethical values. We must examine our parameters for accepting jobs and develop a framework to measure the impact of our work in the here and now, later and in the future.
We must reject tokenism and the illusion of progress and work towards genuine societal progress. Let us not fall prey to the seven sins of green/cause washing but instead work towards a holistic understanding of the impact of our campaigns. A comprehensive framework is needed to evaluate the impact of creative work in the immediate present and the foreseeable future. It is time to move beyond tokenism and the illusion of progress, striving instead for genuine societal advancement. Creatives must adopt a confident stance, align their work with ethical values, and cultivate a network of like-minded individuals.
It is time for creatives to take a confident and socially responsible stance, make well-considered decisions aligned with our values, and build a network of people who share the same values. Let us use our voices to create positive change.
Know what you (won’t) communicate, determine your parameters, stick to your parameters and build a network of people with the same values.
Design Research
The line between commerce and activism blurs in a world where brands wield immense influence. The power of creativity in socio-political campaigns is undeniable, but it comes with a responsibility that many are still grappling to understand. During the Master Design at the Piet Zwart Institute, I started an unfinished research that explores the intricate dance between advertising, branding and activism, unveiling the often-unseen roles that creatives play in shaping the narratives that define our society. During this Master's, different methods were introduced, such as Research through Design, Embodied Design, Reframing Method, Conversation Pieces and In-person perspectives to create a diverse opportunity to start the research.
As a designer, I often questioned our role in creating socio-political campaigns. What can a designer contribute, and what responsibilities should we take on? Are we merely the executors of a brief, or do we have the power and perhaps the duty to influence the ethical direction of the messages we help create? This research began as a personal journey to explore these questions, understand how designers can navigate the murky waters of socio-political communication, and find where we fit in the larger conversation.
The journey began with establishing a network where designers, consumers, and activists could collide and converse. Voices often closest to the fire of socio-political communication shared their insights, exposing the ethical quandaries and diverse perspectives that make this field both challenging and crucial.
Street interventions
Street Interventions were one of the first methods to capture raw and unfiltered perspectives. By engaging with everyday consumers in public spaces, like bus stops with abri posters, these interventions allowed us to gather spontaneous reactions to brand activism. These quotes were then mapped along a spectrum from value-driven to business-driven, revealing the public’s scepticism towards companies' motives. It was clear that consumers are increasingly aware of the thin line between genuine socio-political stances and performative activism.
Brand activism sits at a precarious intersection. On one hand, society demands that companies take a stand; on the other, the motives behind these stands are frequently questioned. The ethics of brand activism are murky. Is it ethical for a company to engage in socio-political discourse if profit remains a primary motive? This question reverberates through every campaign, every strategy meeting, and every creative's mind.
Conversation pieces
Conversation Pieces were a critical component of this exploration, offering an interactive approach to engaging participants, including professors, industry professionals, and creatives. Using platforms like Miro or an abri, I facilitated immersive sessions where participants visually mapped their thoughts and boundaries. One noted, "The true challenge lies in balancing commercial interests with authentic engagement. Designers often stand at the crossroads where they must decide whether to fulfil a brief or to challenge the status quo.” This sentiment resonated with many, including a designer who shared, "When the brief conflicts with my values, that’s where I draw the line. It’s about knowing when to say no, even if it costs you a client; that is a privilege.”
These conversations underscored that successful socio-political communication requires courage, dignity, authenticity, distinction, excitability, inclusion, diversity, and transparency. As one participant emphasised, "Openness, honesty, and transparency are essential for a socio-political campaign. Transparency means being able to show the real changes happening, even if the full story doesn’t fit into the campaign itself, it must be accessible for anyone who wants to verify it." They noted that there should almost be more budget for the back-end of campaigns to provide a strong narrative and evidence, answering critical questions like how a company is truly sustainable and inclusive or where materials are sourced, for example.
Participants also stressed that everyone in a company, from the CEO to the primary employee, needs a voice in socio-political matters, as the brand's position is increasingly crucial for young employees choosing where to work.
"Our responsibility as creatives," another noted, "is to make clients aware of their role and impact. It’s more valuable to guide them in becoming more responsible, to learn and discuss improvements, rather than just claiming those.”
The conversation pieces enabled participants to confront the complexities of their roles in a safe, collaborative environment. We explored how values like transparency, authenticity, and social responsibility can be woven into the fabric of their work, even when external pressures push in the opposite direction. The insights gained highlighted the importance of honest, reflective dialogue in pushing the boundaries of ethical communication in the creative field.
Research through Design
Furthermore, mini-cases that simulate real-world scenarios challenge participants to design campaigns for contentious clients like Shell, Philip Morris, or airlines promoting ultra-cheap flights despite environmental concerns. Each case was designed to provoke reflection and push creatives to examine their own ethical boundaries. Throughout this process, self-reflection and self-expression were crucial components. As participants engaged in the act of making, they not only explored creative solutions but also confronted their own values and limitations. The iterative creation process allowed them to see, in real-time, where their lines were drawn, what felt right, what felt wrong, and why.
The reflective dialogue was not just about assessing the end product but also about understanding the journey and what it takes to make an informed, ethically sound decision as a creative. The sharing of these experiences underscored the importance of transparency, ongoing learning, and the courage to voice dissent when necessary.
This process of self-discovery through making was transformative; it highlighted that the act of creation itself is a form of dialogue, not just with the audience, but with one's own beliefs.
Framework
Understanding the complexities of socio-political communication also means acknowledging that impact goes beyond economic gain. While traditional metrics often prioritise financial success, the need for broader parameters became evident, including social, environmental, and even emotional well-being. To start, it is crucial for creatives to define their parameters that align with their vision and values. By clearly identifying what is necessary for you to take on a project, be it sustainability, ethical alignment, or personal growth, you empower yourself to approach assignments in a way that not only positively impacts society but also resonates deeply with your principles. When your parameters are clear, every project becomes an opportunity to contribute meaningfully, not just to the bottom line, but to the broader fabric of the world around you. It’s about measuring success not just in profit margins but in how well a campaign aligns with broader values and contributes to societal good.
However, the journey towards responsible communication is not without its pitfalls. The "illusion of progress" and "tokenism" are pervasive challenges that often undermine genuine efforts for change. The illusion of progress refers to superficial actions or gestures that appear to be positive change without addressing the root causes of issues. Tokenism, on the other hand, involves making symbolic efforts to be inclusive or socially responsible, often to avoid criticism rather than to enact real change. Both practices can be misleading and counterproductive, creating a false sense of accomplishment while the underlying problems persist.
To combat these issues, a comprehensive framework is essential. Such a framework serves as a guide for creatives to critically assess their work and the projects they choose to engage with. By setting clear criteria for meaningful impact, beyond surface-level gestures, creatives can better identify and avoid tokenistic actions. This approach ensures that efforts are not just performative but are rooted in genuine intent and long-term commitment to societal progress.
But frameworks alone are not enough. Creatives need communities and networks of like-minded professionals equally committed to socially responsible communication. This research did more than just document findings; it helped build these connections, fostering dialogues that spanned industries and disciplines. Through the expert interviews and Collaborative Workshops, we discovered that a shared commitment to values can inspire better work and challenge the norms that often keep creatives silent or complicit in less-than-ethical practices. In these settings, designers were not just passive listeners but active participants, questioning each other, pushing boundaries, and collectively shaping new standards for ethical communication.
During the Expert Lecture, I expanded these discussions with a broader audience. The lecture became a platform for critical engagement, where real-world examples and case studies were dissected and debated. Participants were not just passive listeners; they actively contributed to the dialogue, sharing insights and challenging each other’s views. The lecture underscored the importance of a shared vocabulary and a collective understanding of our roles as creatives, reinforcing that responsible communication must be a cornerstone of our industry practices.
As this research progressed, a clearer picture of the future role of creatives began to emerge. It is a future where designers are not just service providers but active participants in the socio-political discourse. They are empowered to push back against superficial tokenism and to champion campaigns that are genuinely impactful and rooted in authenticity. This shift requires courage, transparency, and a relentless focus on the values that underpin each creative decision. The designer's role is not just to create but to advocate, to challenge the status quo, and to ensure that the messages they craft are heard and felt meaningfully.
Ultimately, this journey is about more than just understanding the current landscape; it is about reshaping it. The creative industry has a unique power to influence how we see the world and, by extension, how we act within it. By embracing socially responsible communication and embedding it within every campaign and every project, we can move towards a future where creative work consistently contributes to positive societal change. It is about using our skills not just to sell but to tell stories that inspire, challenge, and push the boundaries of what is possible.
The story of creativity in socio-political campaigns is still being written. This research marks a chapter, a call to action for all creatives to step up, take ownership of their roles, and wield their influence with intention and integrity. The responsibility is great, but so too is the opportunity. Together, we can craft narratives that reflect the world and imagine it as it could be: that is where we would work towards. Through our work, we have the power to shape a future where creative decisions are driven by values that matter, not just profits that count.
— Niels Stevense | 2023 | Rotterdam