Seeds of thought for a new sustainable culture

“Science is increasingly aware that everything is strictly connected to everything else. Everything is an open system. Nothing is completely closed or independent – everything is connected in a sensitive way,” states Ervin László, considered to be the founder of systems theory. In his writings, the Hungarian philosopher and pianist invites us to adopt "complex thinking", which addresses critical contemporary events with a broader vision, and recognises in the environmental issue a planetary urgency and at the same time an invitation to peace and cooperation. This challenge requires creativity, predictive skills and great flexibility in prefiguring scenarios in a non-linear way, assessing situations in real time, having the courage to correct one's actions and, above all, a new ethic of shared responsibility.

This attitude is followed by Seed. Design actions for the future, a festival that was created with the ambitious intention of bringing the culture of design into dialogue with the humanities and other fields of knowledge, in order to investigate some of the great questions of our time. On the occasion of its third edition, from 25 to 28 September 2024, Perugia will welcome over 50 experts including architects, designers, scientists, philosophers and artists, to stimulate reflection and generate new ideas and proposals on the interpretative, operational and political levels: seeds of thought (seeds) from which to germinate a culture of sustainability that is argued and aware. An event that aims not only to inspire, but also to chart new courses for a fairer future.

The theme of the next edition, "Equilibriums", reflects on the condition of general instability in the 21st century, marked by the devastating effects of climate change on urban, environmental and social systems all over the world, the eruption of international conflicts and the sharpening of inequalities.  Organised and promoted by Fondazione Guglielmo Giordano E.T.S. in partnership with the National Institute of Architecture and numerous other leading figures from the worlds of architecture, urban design, university and research, in 2024 Seed meets Domus and gives life to a partnership in which visions, values and thoughts on the role of culture in facing the challenges of contemporaneity converge.