Crafting dignity from scarcity

(Vernacular design as a material epistemology of care in Tunisia’s post-2011 resilience)

الملخص

This article analyzes vernacular design in Tunisia as a pivotal act of material resilience and political response in the post-2011 era. The Tunisian transition has been marred by structural economic precarity, with youth unemployment rates consistently exceeding 40% and an escalating ecological crisis, notably a severe water shortage. In this urgent context, the principles of form, materiality, and frugal innovation embedded in local craft practices transform seemingly simple artifacts into distributed agents of empowerment against social exclusion. Contrasting the dominant narrative of technocentric universalism that often dictates global sustainability models, this research conceptualizes design as a “material epistemology of Care” (drawing on Tronto and Ingold). This theoretical framework highlights how local artisans—driven by the necessity of survival—blend deeply rooted Berber aesthetics with relational functionality to actively resist both economic homogenization and the pervasive societal sense of injustice known as Hogra. The study employs a rigorous mixed methodology, combining ethnographic insights and interviews with a detailed semiotic visual analysis of artifacts sourced from archival and community-led initiatives, including UNESCO records. Through two contrasting case studies—the hand-coiled pottery of Sejnane (matrilineal forms symbolizing feminine autonomy and ecological frugality) and urban textile upcycling collectives in Tunis (reimagining waste into functional, zero-waste design)—we demonstrate how these practices reactivate localized cultural heritage to advance social and ecological justice simultaneously. Drawing heavily on postcolonial theory (Said, Spivak) and design sociology (Latour, Escobar), this work bridges a critical gap in Global South Studies. It establishes that post-revolutionary Tunisian design is not a folkloric survival, but a strategic innovation for material sovereignty. The findings carry significant Implications, advocating for the integration of these local design epistemologies into public policies and design curricula to ensure more equitable and socially embedded ecological transitions, aligning directly with Sustainable Development Goals 10 and 13.