The next Santiago Design Biennial will take place between 11 and 22 January 2017. This 6th edition of the event, the most important design showcase in Chile, will feature a selection of work and contributions from New British Inventors, curated by the British Council.

Chile is prone to suffering diverse natural disasters and therefore constitutes a real-life laboratory for testing different solutions to the problems that arise from emergency situations. Design can have a profound impact in preventing, mitigating and limiting the negative effects of natural disasters for the population. Designers can, therefore, serve as connectors between stakeholders and organisations in an emergency context.

Under the main theme of 'Design in Alert', this edition of the Biennial aims to showcase design projects that can have an impact in emergency situations, and that might point to solutions for human life in extreme environments and in a world of constant change. The events are organised by Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and Universidad del Desarollo.

Aiming to contribute to this main theme, the British Council invited Hugh Broughton and Marjan van Aubel from our New British Inventors programme to deliver keynote presentations and run workshops as part of the Biennial. Marjan will focus on how design, technology and sustainability can work more closely together to combat the impacts of increasing climate change, while Hugh will explore the context of designing for extreme environments, such as Antarctica or the Chilean deserts. 

For further details of these events and the full programme (in Spanish), visit the Biennial website.