Hartmut Esslinger’s leitmotif as a designer is ‘things do not stand for themselves, but for us.’ His new work, Design Forward, is a book about the history, practice, and future of Strategic Design.

Design is one of the few holistic disciplines in the industry that combine social and emotional desires and requirements with the realities and possibilities of technology, the economy, and resource planning, thus creating a more humane and ecological world.

Hartmut Esslinger’s message is that the future challenges for businesses are increasing due to global warming, surplus production, and energy waste, and ineffective management strategies (cheap-effective) are no longer working. He is demanding new thinking toward objectives and processes and also humane capitalism! This also calls for the establishment of a creative-focused education (Creative Sciences) alongside today’s focus on natural sciences and the liberal arts. This applies not only to finding and promoting all creative talent at an early school age, but also to then communicate the necessary professional expertise so that we are all in the position to constructively address the huge challenges ahead.