The FBTB23 Manifesto: Design impact Humanity

There's a lot of research and e-mail correspondence behind a successful design conference. The duo laying down that hard work are Lotta Gerdt and Sara Yxhage, Design Managers at inUse. Together they form the From Business to Button committé. In other words, they are the decision-makers behind the lineups and the theme.

When did you start putting the groundwork for FBTB23? Was the theme clear from the beginning?
— The work with FBTB never stops(!). We started working with this year’s conference in early spring last year, and our ears and eyes are always open for interesting topics and speakers.

How did you come about the theme for this year's conference?
— It’s been a rough time for all of us lately (and still is), so we feel that we need to give ourselves and everyone else some energy by focusing this year’s conference on how we as designers can provide hope through the endless possibilities that design provides. And that’s how the theme started to take shape and then developed over time into how "Design impact humanity".

Why do you think we, designers, would benefit from gathering around the theme in this time and age?
— We believe that by gathering to meet and get new insights we will grow as designers and leaders and establish new and better ways to improve humanity by design. 

The FBTB23 Manifesto: Design impact Humanity

It’s been a rough couple of years. The world has seen pandemics, wars and crises. Many of us have reinvented ourselves and the way we live and work. We have learned how to collaborate across borders. We know that communication is key and collaboration a necessity. Hope is a constant state of mind that will never leave us, and it drives us as designers. 

Now what? 

Well, it’s not in our nature to settle down and be comfortable. We need to keep questioning our biases and be open to the possibility that there are alternative ways of doing things and other ways of understanding and perceiving the world and humanity at its core.  

To be able to really collaborate, we need to find ways to communicate. We need to design the conversations we have and create safe spaces to have them. Can we make design choices to encourage collaboration over conflict? And how do we make decisions that impact humanity and the planet earth in a sustainable way?

But we also need to focus on the nitty gritty. Get the words to work. Raise engagement, remain curious and learn new things. How can we use learnings from one experience and adapt them to other situations? How can we identify and target barriers and then remove them, so we don’t get impeded by them? 

FBTB23 is all about hope, the true value of design and the endless possibilities it entails. For us – the FBTB team it's also about meeting all of you guys. Get to know each other and learn from each other. So let’s meet on May 12th at Cirkus in Stockholm and explore the impact of design for humanity together! 

Welcome to From Business to Buttons 2023.

/Lotta Gerdt & Sara Yxhage and the FBTB23 Team