Design-based Approach

In this article we like to share our insights regarding the pilot Design-based Approach.

Pilot program Design-based Approach
To start at the beginning. In its coalition agreement at the end of 2021, the cabinet expressed its intention to involve the creative industry in working on societal tasks. The secretary of state responsible, Gunay Uslu, then elaborated and underscored this in her policy plan with the intention to launch a program that will increase the impact of designing approaches to societal tasks. 9 million has been made available for a program that will run for 3 years.

We have taken six months to set up this program. We are doing this with a design team, supported by a research team, and in dialogue with people from the creative sector, knowledge institutions and the (semi-) public sector, among others. Think of designers, artists, architects, scientists, civil servants, administrators and program managers. After all, creative professionals do not make an impact alone. And for a maximum impact on social issues we focus in this program on the use of design in and with the public domain.

Retrospective dialogue sessions
Over the past period we have organized dialogue sessions at various locations in the Netherlands. Three exploratory sessions around tensions in collaborations and three thematic sessions on impact, values and participation.

One of the main findings of this phase is that there is a strong need to find an appropriate language and vocabulary. After all, what exactly is design and who feels addressed? Who identifies as an artist, designer or maker? What is impact and when do we achieve it? And what do we mean by a creative industry? Is that a term we should use at all?

Secretary of State Uslu praises the empathetic capacity of designers. We did notice some selective empathy in that. There is much love for the end user but little real understanding of the official and his context. We also encountered a creative sector that likes to produce all sorts of high-profile examples with ease, but which also has difficulty making its added value known. And thus also a sector that has difficulty convincing decision-makers of its added value by means of convincing examples and a clear story.

At the same time, public organizations often know how to organize insufficient space for a designing approach. From fundamental differences, and resulting tensions and lack of understanding, it often fails to structurally facilitate and accommodate a design-based approach. This stands in the way of realizing its potential.

All in all, our impression is that the creative sector -if we are talking about its value for major social issues- is still developing and on its way to maturity. A sector that still needs to learn how to position itself as a full-fledged cooperation partner of the government and become even more aware of the context of this partner(s). A sector that uses its creative ability to redirect obstructive, ingrained reflexes to create space for other ways of thinking. At the same time, there is also work to be done on the other side. The government must enable designers to take up their role properly. That means also giving them a full place at the table. Designers also require trust and space to make an impact on complex social issues.

Read more about the Design-based Approach pilot here.

This article was written by Halle Ghilav.