Girl power and 'selfie humanitarianism'

The aim of this article is to examine the ‘turn to the girl’ and the mobilization of ‘girl power’ in contemporary global humanitarian and development campaigns. The paper argues that the ‘girl powering’ of humanitarianism is connected to the simultaneous depoliticization, corporatization, and neo-liberalization of both humanitarianism and girl power. Located in broad discussions of campaigns around Malala, Chime for Change and the Girl Effect, the paper seeks to understand the construction of girls as both ideal victims and ideal agents of change, and to examine the implications of this. It suggests that this shift is intertwined with what we call ‘selfie humanitarianism’ in which helping others is intimately connected to entrepreneurial projects of the self, and is increasingly figured less in terms of redistribution or justice than in terms of a makeover of subjectivity for all concerned. The structure of the paper is as follows. First we consider the literature about the depoliticization of humanitarian campaigns in the context of neoliberalism and the growing significance of corporate actors in the world of international aid and disaster relief. Next we examine similar processes in the commodification and export of discourses of ‘girl power’. We then argue that these have come together in the emerging ‘girl powering of development’ (Koffman and Gill 2013), a cocktail of celebratory ‘girlafestoes’ and empowerment strategies often spread virally via social media; celebrity endorsements; and corporate branding which stress that ‘I matter and so does she’ and elide the differences between pop stars and CEO of multinational corporations on the one hand, and girls growing up poor in the global South on the other. Our paper focuses on contemporary examples from the Girl Up campaign. The paper argues that far from being ‘post’ girl power, global humanitarian and development discourses constitute a new and instensified focus upon the figure of the girl and a distinctive, neo-colonial, neoliberal and postfeminist articulation of girl power

Laser Shibori: A digital moulding technique supporting circular textile design in three dimensions

This paper considers the potential for digital laser technology to facilitate sustainable innovation in the field of textile design and manufacture, enabling transition towards a circular economy. Using recent design research as a case study, it discusses a newly developed Laser Shibori technique and its significance in relation to circularity. Laser Shibori describes a digital moulding technique for three-dimensional surface design and sustainable textile finishing that can be used to design accurate surface architectures for synthetic textiles. Using the photothermal energy of a CO2 laser, the method combines two heat dependent processes: heat setting and textile colouration, resulting in an effect akin to shibori. Unlike the traditional craft practice, Laser Shibori offers precise digital control, repeatability and a unique aesthetic. The study demonstrated the benefit of interdisciplinary research, synthesising design and science to support sustainable material innovation. The synthesis of material science and creative design practice proved essential in developing the laser technique and created a platform for material innovation beyond creativity as discussed through potential functional application ideas and sustainability benefits. The methods described in this paper provide a system to control three-dimensional effects through controlled tension and targeted laser irradiation. The use of laser technology to create three-dimensional textile forms presents processing advantages over traditional methods: the laser does not require physical moulds or complicated set up and offers ease of pattern change through digital generation of designs. The laser process negates requirement for additional materials, offering reversible surface design effects to facilitate ease of recovery at end of primary use, thus complimenting a circular textile lifecycle in three dimensions: through efficiency, agility and recovery