Over the past century or more, humanity has been witness and benefactor to unprecedented technological, scientific, medical, social and population growth. In a rampant free-for-all, the newest-new has been embraced with optimistic fervour and development-for-the-sake-of-development has been favoured over caution and wariness. Indeed, it has been frontier country.

Now, as the frontier’s resources are creaking under the strain, the anarchy of unbridled growth must come up for review. Based on this, Design Indaba proposes World 2.0 as a blueprint for the new, sustainable, environmental, ethical, people-centric, network-interdependent phoenix that must emerge from the ashes of our fossil-fuel-dependent World 1.0.

World 2.0 is not about colonising the next continent or the next planet, but about making our own Earth work. Everything must come up for review – from tetrapacked milk, bottled water and toilet paper wrapping to the toaster, automobile and television, not to mention energy, food and water resources. The question is not so much about creating alternative products, but about how to re-engineer entire systems of delivery and dependency to make them closed, self-sufficient solutions that maintain and enhance life on this planet.

It is an exciting and crucial time for the design profession. Rather than being the handmaidens of consumption, designers must move upstream to re-design the very system processes on which contemporary civilisation relies. Some will be thrown out, some revitalised and some, very few, be given the nod. Above all, however, there are no givens in World 2.0 in which Design Indaba invites the world to redesign itself from the bottom-up.

But first, we (as in the world) must write the manifesto. To kick it off, we’ve sourced these quotes from previous Design Indaba speakers.

Give us your contribution to the World 2.0 blueprint in the comments below. And vote up the suggestions that you like!