Lots of great ideas never come to be simply because they aren’t shared. 

That’s the power of communication. This notion has proven more true than ever over the past year of my professional life. As Communication Lead for the DDC on the transnational EU Horizon 2020 project OPENNEXT, my task has been to navigate the uncharted territory of open-source hardware and turn learnings, tools, and guides on open-source product creation into comprehensive knowledge.

First and foremost, I’ve learned that new perspectives won’t pass your way unless you think outside of the box. Easier said than done when you live in one of the most closed box societies in the world. Very few countries house the same amount of niche interest organizations and theme-specific societies as Denmark, despite only being home to roughly six million people. Yet, we are inherently bad at communicating across sectors, industries, and interests. We function as a tribe rather than a nation, putting societal restraints on a population otherwise financially and resourcefully well equipped for making radical changes in the world. Our shared narrative is seldomly challenged. After all, we’re “the happiest nation in the world,” so what’s there to change?

And that’s the second thing I’ve learned: Established narratives are roadblocks on the path to change. That is why communication is essential and why organizations like the DDC continue to put a massive effort into the free and open sharing of tools, methods, ideas, best-practice examples, knowledge, and resources.

The principles of openly and freely sharing resources seem counterintuitive to most because our market-driven societies have taught us that this is counterproductive in a competitive, proprietary, and closed market. If you share your designs, they are bound to be copied. If you share your resources, someone else is bound to use them. Dare I say: And so what?

Open-source requires an altruistic mindset. In design, it requires us to understand that not everything is about finding solutions but rather about exploring the space of opportunity. And this is an excellent place to start. What opportunities lie ahead if we start opening up rather than closing down? I invite you to dive in.