Sustainable Transitions through Democratic Design
Lead Research Organisation:
University of the Arts London
Department Name: Central Saint Martin's College
Abstract
Abstract:
CoDesign4Transitions will develop 10 trans-disciplinary Early-Stage Researchers (ESRs) at the intersection of co-design, design for sustainability, service and systems design, democratic innovation and climate transitions equipped to develop new approaches and validated prototypes for action. This is urgent to enable governments, businesses and civil society to deliver multi-level solutions required to achieve net zero targets committed to in the Paris Agreement. Design is central to achieving this because of its capacities for enabling experimentation through prototyping to reduce the risk of failure; synthesising ideas and evidence into material and visual forms for engaging stakeholders in co-creation; and facilitating innovative change. In contested sustainability transitions, design provides a connective tissues essential to engaging publics in democratic innovation towards net zero.
CoDesign4Transition offers ESRs the possibility to develop crucial new approaches to democratic design for climate transitions in a cross-disciplinary, inter-sectoral environment. This will provide a unique training experience for each ESR, who will benefit from access to expert supervisors and mentors from academic and non-academic sectors. The network comprises of 6 leading higher education beneficiaries and 13 Associate Partners from 9 countries, who will provide advanced training including transferable skills. 10 non-academic organisations will host secondments where ESRs will develop and test design approaches to transitions and critically assess how to build design capabilities. The 4 year research and training programme comprises research work-packages investigating prototyping , materialisation and visualisation, and facilitating practice-systems change in democratic climate transitions; one on one training and research development. Two horizontal work-packages devoted to communication, dissemination and exploitation and project management underpin the work.
CoDesign4Transitions will develop 10 trans-disciplinary Early-Stage Researchers (ESRs) at the intersection of co-design, design for sustainability, service and systems design, democratic innovation and climate transitions equipped to develop new approaches and validated prototypes for action. This is urgent to enable governments, businesses and civil society to deliver multi-level solutions required to achieve net zero targets committed to in the Paris Agreement. Design is central to achieving this because of its capacities for enabling experimentation through prototyping to reduce the risk of failure; synthesising ideas and evidence into material and visual forms for engaging stakeholders in co-creation; and facilitating innovative change. In contested sustainability transitions, design provides a connective tissues essential to engaging publics in democratic innovation towards net zero.
CoDesign4Transition offers ESRs the possibility to develop crucial new approaches to democratic design for climate transitions in a cross-disciplinary, inter-sectoral environment. This will provide a unique training experience for each ESR, who will benefit from access to expert supervisors and mentors from academic and non-academic sectors. The network comprises of 6 leading higher education beneficiaries and 13 Associate Partners from 9 countries, who will provide advanced training including transferable skills. 10 non-academic organisations will host secondments where ESRs will develop and test design approaches to transitions and critically assess how to build design capabilities. The 4 year research and training programme comprises research work-packages investigating prototyping , materialisation and visualisation, and facilitating practice-systems change in democratic climate transitions; one on one training and research development. Two horizontal work-packages devoted to communication, dissemination and exploitation and project management underpin the work.
| Description | Keynote at Democratic Innovation conference in Basque Country |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | I gave a keynote on democratic design at a 3 day event on democratic innovation aimed at policy makers and practitioners, involving speakers from practice and academia from around the world, organised by the Arantzazulab Democratic Innovation Centre in the Basque Country. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | http://arantzazulab.eus/dbj2024/?lenguaje=en |
| Description | Keynote at innovation conference for Latvian civil servants |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | I gave a keynote on design and public policy to an audience of civil servants and public services as part of a one day innovation conference organised by the Innovation Lab in the State Chancellery. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://inovacija.mk.gov.lv/en/ |
| Description | Keynote speech at conference for Irish public/civil servants |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | The Irish Public Service has an annual conference on Better Public Services and public sector innovation led by the Department of Public Expenditure. I gave the keynote about design in this context, to an in person and online audience of senior civil servants and leaders and managers from public services from across Ireland. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
| URL | https://www.linkedin.com/posts/ourpublicserviceirlirl_betterpublicservices-activity-7237458136557588... |