Anti-po-des journal of design research
New Zealand's international reputation as a 'social laboratory' emerged at the end of the 19th century as a result of innovative labour relations, universal suffrage for women and social welfare legislation.
This reputation for social innovation inflects the powerful cultural myth of #8 wire-technological innovation based on rapid adoption and adaptation of industrial production to the diverse environmental conditions of southern islands remote from the major industrial centres.
However, as with all industrialising nations, New Zealand made considerable efforts to develop a sustaining design culture, from the first industrial exhibition in 1865 and the implementation of formal design education in 1870, to the New Zealand Industrial Design Council (1967-88), Designers Institute of New Zealand (1991-) and BetterByDesign (2004-).
