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1. SOCIAL DESIGN GUIDELINES ON DESIGNING PRODUCTS FOR LOW INCOME
FAMILIES IN BRAZIL
Aguinaldo dos Santos, PhD
Head of the Design Departament, Address: Universidade Federal do Paraná, Reitoria,
Edifício Dom Pedro I, Rua General Carneiro, 460 - 8o andar - sala 804 - Curitiba - Paraná –
Brazil, E-mail: asantos@cesec.ufpr.br
There is an urgent need in the Third World for design solutions that challenge the trade-off
between cost and higher value added for products aiming at low income families. This is a
major social issue since most manufacturers have systematically ignored their special
requirements. In Brazil the housing shortage is estimated at 5,2 million but just a small
fraction of the population is able to afford current housing costs. In addition, changes in the
population’s profile, as much as their lifestyle, is bringing new demands to the products that
are introduced within the built environment. The present paper presents the results of a
research project carried out in the city of Curitiba, Brazil, where it was possible to identify
critical issues on product design for low income families. These guidelines have been put into
test in various case studies and the results show their great usefulness in stimulating creativity
among design students as well as developing their critical views when benchmarking
products available in the market.
Keywords:
Social design, third world, creativity