Beyond Co-Production: Design as a Means of Evoking Agency Through Ecological Citizenship

Phillips, Robert and Alexander, Jon and Boxall, Emily and Gooding, Luke and Knox, Daniel and Nordmoena, Charlotte and Shepley, Alec and Simpson, Tracy (2024) Beyond Co-Production: Design as a Means of Evoking Agency Through Ecological Citizenship. In: P/References of Design. Cumulus conference proceedings series, 1 . Cumulus Association, Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest, Budapest, pp. 1877-1893. ISBN 978-952-7549-02-5

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Abstract

Design (as a practice) encompasses; appropriate, contextual, and strategic interventions empowering new ways of living together. In current times of; climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, design has a role to play. This triple planetary crisis threatens ecosystems at a global scale, necessitating contextual approaches. We (the public) are used to being designed 'to or for', with common terminology referring to people as users and consumers, not 'citizens'. Citizens are already becoming involved in 'Public Interest Technologies', a contextual design field akin to democracy and politics. Cross-disciplinary practices nurture new approaches to collectively design 'with' people, enabling public agency for sustainable action. Design propositions are not always initiated by designers, or even simply organisations, but created by people in-the-field. Ecological Citizen(s) (EC) is an approach (and project) to create autonomy/agency and sustainable actions within contemporary times (Phillips, et al., 2022). Ecological Citizenship is a design approach intent on catalysing/inspiring/invoking a 'citizen relationship' with our natural world. We focus on citizenship as a practice rather than a 'status distinction' as it concerns the agency to mutually benefit others and the planet through sustainable means. This positioning article includes; historic and contemporary insights, literature, up-to-date practice-based examples/projects, experiments, and proposals. It advocates for designing proposals to catalyse citizens' agency, supported by appropriate technological outputs. We define a clear distinction between 'design for citizenship' and citizen positioning, a post-participatory perspective for design. Our research question unpicks: What are the attributes and positive benchmarks of design, as a means of evoking agency through Ecological Citizenship? The audience are not only designers, but leaders in; social innovation, social decision making, design for equity, civic engagement, communities, DIY movements and more. Our Ecological Citizen(s) framework; supports individuals, organisations, businesses to make more positive choices, impacting the planet we inhabit and are reliant upon for all life. The convergence of; the triple planetary crisis, Ecological Citizenship, public interest technologies and designing for citizen agency, offers new modalities of ways we 'live together'.

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