Dunne & Raby's 'United Micro Kingdoms' Explores Future England Through Design Fiction

The project 'United Micro Kingdoms' by Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby imagines a future England segmented into four distinct social factions: Communo-nuclearists, Digitarians, Anarcho-evolutionists, and Bioliberals, each prioritizing different principles regarding energy, privacy, community, and biotechnology. This work serves as a 'design fiction' that explores design ideas through intricate future scenarios. Dunne is the head of Design Interactions at the Royal College of Art in London, while Raby leads Industrial Design at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna. Experts in bioethics, international relations, and synthetic biology contribute academic depth. The exhibition showcases small models, such as a nuclear-powered train and bio-gas vehicles, all measuring under 20cm. Initially reviewed in September 2013, it emphasizes the importance of tangible outcomes in speculative design, similar to writers like Margaret Atwood and China Miéville.