Design and Ethical Semiotics: A Projectuality that Aims to Otherness

The social environment includes even more people with different cultures, backgrounds, and social issues. Recently, the focus of design on ethics has been increasing. Thus, it’s necessary to take up the studies on ethical semiotics1 and combine them with those of semiotics concerned with design processes2. It will be necessary to improve and introduce this attitude in the design process and, particularly, in public communication. Indeed, from the different situations everywhere, especially in public interest communication, there is a lack that doesn’t allow establishing an effective dialogue between the social complexity. To be effective, ethical and projected semiotics need design processes made through a gaze that aims at inclusivity and openness to otherness. From a design perspective, openness to others makes it possible to always discover new needs and points of view, which provides an opportunity to create a more ethical outlook and spirit toward design planning. In the field of public communication, the need to communicate with different identities leads to the necessity to have a broad outlook towards the user and thus towards the socio-cultural context one is talking about and with. It’s indeed necessary to implement this perspective, intensifying the consideration of otherness and its relevance as a value and resource, to improve design methodologies and strategies.