Updates coming soon…

Episode 3 - Intellectual Cultures: Designing Sustainable Change in the Caribbean

Stardust Life-Centred Design Podcast: *details, Published: Nov. 23, 2022

This episode explores the need to design and implement systems that not only protect and foster Caribbean nations, but also create opportunities to leverage the Caribbean’s true potential in this new digital space. We investigate what it is like to embed design into ecologically, economically and socially sustainable societies in the Caribbean…

Bajan Designers on World Stage

Caribbean Startup Scene , Published: August 15, 2018  

Barbados Business Authority, Published: Sept. 10, 2018

The amount of published work and research in design from the Caribbean region has been limited to non-existent. Mayers and Estwick will be among the first designers in the Caribbean to become academic authors in design, [who are] published by the Design Research Society (DRS)*… This opens the door for serious discussions around the more deliberate inclusion of design into corporate strategy, public policy and innovation objectives.

*The DRS is the longest established, multi-disciplinary worldwide society for the design research community.

Designing A Sustainable Philanthropic Ecosystem

Business Barbados, Published: Jan. 4, 2022

A focus on solutions for Barbados' third sector which is large, mostly unpaid and financially vulnerable.

ClimateLaunchpad* Barbados

BGIS, Ministry News, Published: Aug. 29, 2019

ClimateLaunchpad Barbados finalists will compete at the national level in the world’s largest green business ideas competition…

*EIT Climate-KIC initiative

BIDC Design Presents at Prestigious International Design Research Society Conference

Published: Wednesday, August 29, 2018

“…Estwick’s paper, entitled “A Case for Caribbean Design Principles”, proposed principles for good Caribbean design that could aid design contributions to business and export development and inform design policy for innovation, resulting in social, cultural, environmental, technological and economic benefits. As affiliate organisation for the paper, the BIDC joins Google, IDEO, Shopify and IBM, and noted design and innovation universities including MIT, Harvard and Carnegie Mellon…”

T&T Designers Unite

Paula Lindo, Guardian Newspaper, Published: Saturday, March 11, 2017

"There's a new organisation created to support the development of design and designers in T&T."

Navigating Workplace Politics

Debbie Estwick, Ask AFETT (Association of Female Executives of Trinidad and Tobago) Column, Newsday Newspaper, Published: Thursday, May 11 2017

Working relationships can be challenging. Goals, values, work styles and personalities vary widely. As we advance in our careers, we must all interact with workmates and deal with conflicts, disagreements or differing goals but we don’t need to participate in the negative practices that inspire the term “office politics”. 

Following these tips can help you deal with office politics without joining in, running away or pretending these practices don’t exist. 

Designer Island Loves List, 2016

Tanya Marie Williams-Rhule, Designer Island, Published: December 13, 2016

"Throughout the year we make notes and edit our list until the very last day. Paying close attention to the detail and craftsmanship inspired by the Caribbean and made at some of the highest standards, changing the way the world views, ‘Made in the Caribbean’.

We take great pleasure in curating our 2016 list of exquisitely created items by Caribbean makers and hope you not only invest in us, but also share the work of the designers and makers on our list."

From Fete Signs to Sign Books

Soyini Grey, CNC 3, Published: Nov 7, 2016

"Debbie Estwick is turning fete signs into books. Her signs of choice are Bruce Cayonne's iconic fete signs. His lettering style has inspired 2 computer fonts, currently in progress: Fete Font and Cayonne Sans."

Making a Living from Fete Signs

Shereen Ali, Guardian Newspaper, Published: 
Monday, October 31, 2016

"How can we apply creative skills to not only make a living, but solve problems? T&T Guardian feature writer Shereen Ali spoke to sign painter Bruce Cayonne and designer Debbie Estwick to see how their different but related projects seek to find solutions. Today, we focus on Cayonne’s story, while tomorrow, we look at Estwick’s take on recycled design products."

Lessons from a Sign Book

Republished: The UX Blog, Originally published on Debbie Estwick's Medium blog, July 11, 2016

"Perhaps visual and material “immigrants”, foreign influences and “the unsavoury” have a place in locally produced work. Packaging and repackaging the same edited and presentable things that made us “Us” is not the way forward. Like the gutter water in Curepe, a stagnant Caribbean aesthetic is one that will eventually begin to stink and destroy good life. We must be careful not to kill creativity and our aesthetic evolution by a commitment to duplication."

#MakeItRain – UWI DCFA Th?nk 3 Cultural Policy Symposium: A Stimulus for Action

Marsha Pearce, ARC Magazine, Published: Thursday, May 18th, 2017

 "“Design is often overlooked or treated as art in many local policy documents and manifestos. However design is distinct from art, craft and engineering though it has a historical relationship with both the humanities and the sciences,” [Estwick] observed. She cited the work of creativity and innovation consultant Linda Naiman who sees a design mindset as “not problem-focused [but rather] solution focused and action oriented towards creating a preferred future.” Given this understanding of design, Estwick insisted, “design must be recognised and treated distinctly from the arts and crafts in the development of cultural policy in order to capitalize on innovative opportunities for growth.”

Designing for Moko

Debbie Estwick, Designer Island, Published: February 4, 2017

"Continuous change is important, like the constant movement of stilt walking. If we want cultural practices, traditions and art forms to live on, the next generation needs to adopt them and we need to evolve their practice. This has been true for our dialects, music and other art forms."

Fete Signs Find New Life

Shereen Ali, Guardian Newspaper, Published: Tuesday, November 1, 2016

"Designer Debbie Estwick, originally from Barbados but now based in Maracas Valley, St Joseph, is currently an adjunct instructor with the UWI’s Department of Creative and Festival Arts. She is doing her own project inspired by the signs—recycling them into sturdy, unique notebooks.

... “This experiment was about trying to help people understand what design strategy can do, and what design can mean — how it can fuel innovation and help find solutions to problems,” said Estwick."

Volume 1 Ministry of Design - From Cottage Industry to State Enterprise

Editors: Lesley-Ann Noel, Michael Lee Poy, Published: Department of Creative and Festival Arts, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus, Trinidad, May 28 – 29, 2015

“Debbie-Ann Estwick, (pp. 91 - 104), hypothesizes the role of a proposed Ministry of Design to wield design as a strategic tool for innovation and economic development in and through small businesses in Trinidad and Tobago. Her paper is based on three premises that she identified in her literature review that: 1) designers are natural innovators and creative problem solvers; 2) that design thinkers are the new leaders of the future and 3) that collaboration through design can improve the competitiveness and viability of small businesses, engineering and manufacturing industries.”

Spotlight on Engineering and Design

Brunel University, Published: December 7, 2011

“Welcome to the seventh Spotlight newsletter from the School of Engineering and Design. In this issue we again celebrate the many achievements of staff and students over the past year…

“I developed a model that could align business and brand strategies as I realised that branding could not be limited to colours, logos and design of a physical space, but needed to be deeply embedded in a company’s goals, daily processes and every aspect and activity of the organisation…””

Art of the Times: A Look Back at T&T’s 2016 Art Scene

Marsha Pearce, Guardian Newspaper, Published: Sunday, January 1, 2017

"If Minshall, Hadeed, Govan, Nanan, Todd, Lue Chee Kong and Peters pointed out certain ways of looking at the local milieu, such designers as Kriston Chen, Agyei Archer and Debbie Estwick offered their own way of seeing. Instead of casting their gaze outside the region for inspiration, these designers looked within, using the fete signs by sign painter Bruce Cayonne as the stimulus for innovative offshoots."

From Party Signs to Sign Books

Tanya Marie Williams-Rhule, Designer Island, Published: October 01, 2016

"The small covers provided a new lens through which to view the details of hand-painted signs. Assertive brush strokes, bold colours, playful shapes, authentic textured effects and perfectly imperfect pencil lines from the hands of the sign painter, were the focus.

The covers felt Caribbean. — Somehow the spirit of everyday Caribbean life, music and culture made it into every little piece of the sign that became a book cover."

USC Staff Present at Progressive Ministry of Design Colloquium

USC News, University of the Southern Caribbean, Published: July 3, 2015

“…Estwick presented on “Small Business Development by Design as part of the Colloquium’s “Design and SMEs [Small and Medium-sized Enterprises]” segment. Her presentation focused on issues of innovation and economic development by way of design thinking, practice and policy development for the local Micro and Small Enterprise sector.”

USC Introduces Its First App - A Fun & Informative Game App from USC

USC News, Published: 
July 30, 2015

"During this interactive journey players are required to pick mangos, hitting the Head, Heart and Hand icons with them to unlock 15 fun levels of fact-finding about USC...

The experience of picking mangos during a cricket match or even during high winds or hurricane season are just a few of the experiences that players can expect to encounter in this intriguing game.

“…Debbie-Ann Estwick, IMC Director and App Producer shared that "This project was an opportunity to share the good news and spirit of USC while involving students in a real world project. Gaming apps are an increasingly popular way for brands to engage persons...”"