Hard Problems

"Being a designer used to feel like a career—now it just feels like a job." We recently came across a beautifully written article by university professor that laments the lost passion that many of us feel for design as a career. newsletter.hardproblems.com/p/being-a-de...

Want a sneak-peak of a brand new, beautifully designed tool for policy makers to make better decisions? Check out the latest @hardproblems.com newsletter — we feature a new app called Forest. The video has never been seen before and is really cool. newsletter.hardproblems.com/p/design-for...

We just published a new article on Hard Problems. Elyce shares the best websites for tech people and designers who want to do meaningful work on problems like healthcare and climate change. Find the best communities, the best content, and great resources. www.hardproblems.com/articles/web...

Public policy is where much of the powerful change in the world can happen. What can designers do to support better policy? www.hardproblems.com/articles/des...

We just started a new series where we interview design teams that work on gnarly problems. Our first interview was with Resolve to Save Lives. Their design team is trying to help save lives from heart disease around the world. Who we should interview next? www.hardproblems.com/articles/des...

We just shared several amazing opportunities for designers on the job board: - Senior Product Design at Our Future Health (genomic research) - Graphic Designer at Great British Energy (nuclear energy) - Head of Creative Studio at State Library Victoria in Australia. www.hardproblems.com/jobs

Transitioning to a career to work on climate change, good government, or healthcare can be daunting. One way to make the move is to do a fellowship program. These are often paid and will arm you with new skills and connections. www.hardproblems.com/articles/fel...

We just added more jobs to the job board. There are 464 active roles for designers, writers, and PMs to work on meaningful problems. www.hardproblems.com/jobs

Rare opportunity to work on a product used by public health teams all over the world. Good pay too. getodk.org/about/jobs/s...

We are hiring our first intern. This is a paid internship for a designer based in London. Details on the post. www.hardproblems.com/articles/des...

We just finished reading Why Design is Hard by Scott Berkun and Bryan Zug. It's such a good read and is full of actionable advice for designers who want to build their influence and ship great design work. I love how pithy the book is. Only 100 pages! www.hardproblems.com/articles/why...

There is a famous quote about design from former Jaguar and Tata motors head, Ralf Speth: “If you think good design is expensive, you should look at the cost of bad design.” Nowhere is this more true than in healthcare. www.hardproblems.com/articles/hid...

Our team at Hard Problems has pulled together our favorite books that will help you on your path to working on gnarly problems. www.hardproblems.com/articles/boo...

Joining a charity’s board is an excellent way to use your design, product, and strategic skills for good. We think that joining a charity’s board is an excellent stepping-stone to working full-time on a hard problem. www.hardproblems.com/articles/joi...

Our job board now has email alerts. Filter jobs by your location and criteria and you'll receive daily email updates. www.hardproblems.com/jobs

We just made a massive update to hardproblems.com with a better job board and lots of original writing. Comments and suggestions are very welcome, please.

Hard Problems now has an awesome job board with hundreds of roles for designers, PMs, copywriters, and researchers on urgent problems in the world. www.hardproblems.com/jobs

We had a great conversation last week about how tech people can support public health projects around the world. Video is available now! youtu.be/_1fBpkwNcAA

We're currently reading @rutgerbregman.com's new book Moral Ambition. It's very good and very aligned with Hard Problems ideas. Definitely worth reading and get a taste with his recent interview on The Daily Show: www.youtube.com/watch?v=djKB...

What are you doing on June 3? We're hosting a dinner in London for 20 people at @hardproblems.com with @andybudd.bsky.social. It's a good opportunity to discuss tech and design with smart and empathetic peers. Please RSVP lu.ma/0iqbo3f6

Join us on Thursday!

Our next event in London (and online) is coming up in a few weeks. Join us on Thursday, April 10 to discuss with ASquared how it's possible for a design agency to focus their work on sustainable development goals. Please RSVP: lu.ma/kme2kbaa

We are hosting our first campfire chat at Hard Problems, with Brian O'Donnell of the DHIS2 project in public health. Brian will coming to London from Oslo, so we can ask him what it takes to succeed at the intersection of public health and tech. lu.ma/bengeegp

Cardiovascular disease death rates have fallen rapidly in many countries

Kick-off 2025: Two great healthcare events in London, some great job openings, and our co-working space will have our first open house days next week. newsletter.hardproblems.com/p/new-co-wor...

Health icons, AI news, and job opportunities: The healthicons.org project adds new icons that match Material icons, Mozilla summarizes an important article about AI in antenatal care in Zambia. newsletter.hardproblems.com/p/health-icons

New co-working space for Hard Problems opens in London: This week we had a soft-launch of our new co-working space in London. Apply for a desk if you want to work in the same space as other people working on the world's big challenges. newsletter.hardproblems.com/p/new-co-wor...

Books we like this week: We've been reading some dark and cynical books about tech, design, and changing the world. Trust us... it was worth it. newsletter.hardproblems.com/p/books-we-l...