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You'd expect the annual meeting of the Industrial Designers Society of America to feature scores of whizbang new products, hoards of vendors touting CAD/CAM solutions, and scads of design jockeys gung ho for presentations on ergonomics and psychoaesthetics.

But who knew the Boston gathering would be so, uh, spiritual?

Considering the conference's theme, "Designing Your Life," it was easy to see why many presenters at last week's conference ditched the usual PowerPoint litany of company achievements and focused instead on the personal motives driving their lives and work.

Several of the speakers took the opportunity to demonstrate how their teams tackle design issues posed by lifestyle trends, while others discussed dealing with the fear of failure, coping with the serendipitous events that invariably shape a career, and pondering the legacy they hope to leave behind.

Of course, there were plenty of cool new products too. The selection ranged from hockey skates as comfortable as running shoes, to spice jars with grinders in their lids, to a hybrid laptop computer that translates written meeting notes into digital form. Here are some of the meeting's highlights.

Out of Africa

M'Rithaa Kamampiu Mugendi, a designer from Kenya, led off the meeting by conceding that Africa faces staggering problems, including the AIDS pandemic and corrupt national governments. "Don't forget Africa!" he pleaded, pointing out that his homeland represents a vast, untapped resource and market.

"It's never too late to change the paradigm," he said, inviting designers to join him and his fellow Africans in building a sustainable environment that avoids the developed world's mistakes.

Mugendi said that African nations such as Botswana are already enjoying a high GDP growth rate, and as the winds of change sweep through others, younger leaders are focusing on environmental management and the development of technical training. But change can't happen, he said, without the pro bono help of First World countries.

Pierre Yves Panis, principal designer for the faucet-design company Moen Inc., introduced one compelling but hard-wrought idea to bolster Africa. Nearly 10 years ago, Panis moved to Zimbabwe as an alternative to serving in the Belgian armed forces. While there, he founded the Design Corp., a small firm that taught craftspeople to make and export well-designed objects from scrap materials.

The project was funded by the French and Belgian governments, and proved that good design could benefit craftspeople by generating larger profits and by enabling their financial independence. But ultimately, Panis was forced to return to Europe when project funding dried up and when he and his family became increasingly concerned about personal safety.

"It was a lesson in humility," he said of his years in sub-Saharan Africa. "For nine years, my desk was a clipboard. It was a good day if we had a drill, a drill bit, somebody to use the drill, and electricity all at the same time."

The project also made Panis rethink his Western priorities. "You tend to believe that all will be well if you provide people with jobs," he said. "But I had to learn to understand African values. I would offer a good, regular job, and nobody would take it because it required long periods away from home. For these people, it was more important to see their families than it was to make money. They valued quality of life over job description."

While he was saddened to leave, Panis said that the experience taught him not to try and plan life too carefully. "Let serendipity take over," he suggested. "It's audacious, but not crazy."