It did not go unnoticed that there was some irony in having several hundred people assemble in Dubai last week (see my previous post) to discuss how to make global institutions and systems more sustainable, especially given this week's announcement of delayed debt repayments by Dubai World.

Despite this, or perhaps because of it, there was plenty of robust conversation about how a shift in values within our economies was called for. I was moderating a great discussion on values with several of the Global Agenda Councils and one of the attendees suggested that a shift in focus was called for from "having more to being more".

This seems a great call to action to me and one that resonates with my own views about design's role changing from encouraging consumption to enabling participation. My question is whether this sentiment can be globally relevant or whether it applies only to those of us who already have lots?