The Design and Capitalism conference (12–13 November) and the Spatialising Degrowth international symposium (27–28 November) looked at the role of design and architecture in relation to social justice and ecological balance, and considered how values now seen as alternative could shift from the margins and become systemic responses. Many researchers and activists argue that growth will inevitably slow and that capitalism’s economic model has inherent limits; the real question is whether the change happens by design or triggers instability. For a designer, real professional success means contributing to an ecologically and socially sustainable world – but how can they do that within a consumer society? 

This question set the tone for the two-day Design and Capitalism conference organised by the Centre for Design Culture and Art Studies, which invited researchers, practitioners, and students of design culture to join the discussion. More than forty speakers took part, including researchers from several of the university’s centres, labs, and the Doctoral School, alongside contributors from other Hungarian universities. The keynote speakers were Eszter Babarczy; professor Márton Szentpéteri; and Matthew Wizinsky, author of the widely successful book Design after Capitalism. Transforming Design Today for an Equitable Future. In his lecture, Wizinsky argued that design must move beyond the logic of capitalism, and outlined practical ways of embedding design work in new communal and democratic structures. The talks covered a wide range of topics, from nature-based VR applications (Ágnes Bakk) and cybernetic design (Sándor Őze), through feminist sex-positive ethics (Eszter Szabó) and the IKEA paradigm (Bálint Veres, Henrietta Fiáth, Ádám Miklósi), all the way to design for socially sensitive and disabled groups (Beáta Sosity née Mrs. Pintér); while the roundtable discussions explored alternative practices that challenge the logic of capitalism (Attila Cosovan, Bori Fenyvesi, Ágnes and Gábor Kapitány), regenerative design (Anna Göttler, Apol Temesi, Attila Mester, Péter Hámori), co-design with children’s groups (Szilvia Gyurkó), and questions about designers’ responsibility (Attila Bujdosó, Tamás Fogarasy, Bálint Ferenczi). The Design Culture and Art Theory Knowledge Centre will be publishing a peer-reviewed collection of conference papers in 2026. 

Held at the end of the month, the Spatialising Degrowth International Symposium responded to the way the term “sustainability” has become hollow and explored the architectural, urban and spatial-theoretical perspectives and implications of growth criticism. Its motto – “sustainability is impossible” – points to a radical rethinking of the role of architecture and designers, raising the question of what it means to design responsibly, both spatially and socially, amid the crises of the twenty-first century. Degrowth theory calls for community self-determination and new environmental approaches across economics, the humanities, the social sciences, and the arts.  

The first day of the symposium focused on the foundations of degrowth and its economic and philosophical dimensions, while the second examined questions of architecture and urbanism. With contributions from international experts and current research, it placed architectural and urban practice in a new context for a world where “more” no longer automatically means “better”.  

Speakers included political ecologist and activist Vincent Liegey, a leading figure in the European and Hungarian degrowth movement; professor Jin Xue, who teaches urban and regional sustainability planning at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences; ecological economist, associate professor at Corvinus University of Budapest, and host of the Zöld egyenlőség podcast dr Alexandra Köves; and Spanish architectural and urbanism studio the n’UNDO collective, whose work addresses urban overdevelopment and profit-driven planning through the principles of “non-building”, reduction, minimalism, and analytical practice.  

Both events aimed to open up new ways of thinking about design – not only within a disciplinary, but also in a wider social context. With this event series, MOME initiated a conversation that treats design not just as an aesthetic practice, but as a systemic and critical tool in a world marked by complex ecological and social challenges.  

It was sponsored by the Foundation for Moholy-Nagy University and Design as part of the Global Voices initiative.