When we design, we don’t just solve problems — we reframe them. We turn complexity into possibility, short-term fixes into long-term systems. Design gives us agency to choose between a linear, extractive path or to pivot toward a circular, regenerative future.

From 2023 to 2025, this initiative was championed by the WDO Board and presented to our General Assembly in September 2025 in London. We are carrying that momentum forward and looking for input from WDO Members. We need your expertise, your practice and your commitment to make Design Codes a living force for change.

What we want to do

Reboot our framing, as global citizens and local leaders and adopt a fresh paradigm for how design is governed and practiced.

Revisit the semiotic codes, laws and guidelines that shape design thinking and decision-making.

Refresh the purpose of design, lifting it toward higher-order outcomes for people and planet.

Why co-design matters

Design Codes should not be written by a committee in isolation. They only work if they reflect lived practice, diverse contexts and the courage to challenge entrenched mindsets. That is why we’re calling on designers, makers, educators and policy-makers within WDO Members organizations to co-design the codes: to test them, critique them and put them into practice.

How you can take part

Review the presentation that was shared at WDO’s General Assembly, September 2025 at the Design Museum in London.

We need active participation across members.

  • Share case studies, toolkits or teaching materials that demonstrate code-led practice
  • Review and commenting on draft sections ahead of the June 2026 milestone
  • Champion adoption with your WDO member organization

Review the presentation that was shared at WDO’s General Assembly in September 2025 in London.

View presentation

If you’re ready to participate, share your design codes or attend a workshop, please express your interest and we will be in touch.

Design Codes is a chance to shape how design is understood and governed worldwide. Join us as we co-design the rules that will let design deliver a better world.