
worldwide online systemic design symposium
papers 100+
15 days
1 ticket
over six online sessions every day
This is more than an online event—RSD12-ONLINE is a ticket to over 100 systemic design sessions, including livestreamed presentations from 12 partnered hubs and a cornerstone event, RSD12-Washington DC. The two-week programme includes papers, workshops, interactive sessions, systems maps, and guest speakers. The RSD12-ONLINE pass works as a standalone experience or can augment your in-person experience at a hub. Either way, you will be able to jump into a world of systemic design every day from October 6 to October 20. The sessions are scheduled over two weeks to avoid online fatigue, and you can follow several focus areas on your virtual journey.
Haley Fitzpatrick | RSD12-ONLINE: Circular Cross-scalar Governance Spiral
The Programme
The online programme features research papers and presentations of emergent work, over 30 online workshops, and speakers and plenaries live-streamed from 13 hubs.
- Papers and emergent work are scheduled every day from October 6–20 (15 days).
- Online workshops, panels, interactives, and exhibition talks will be scheduled between October 6–20 based on time zones and alignment with the focus areas and entanglements.
The online programme includes sessions from hubs in Canada, China Colombia, India, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, the UK, and the US.
All sessions include an open segment for questions and comments from online participants. - The paper track runs from 8:00 to 12:00 EDT/UTC-4 every day.
- Check out the hub timezones and convert other time zones using timeanddate.com.
Institutions
Medium & Large Enterprises- For individuals who will be reimbursed by a large or medium-sized enterprise such as a university or corporation with more than 250 employees.
- This pass also includes opt-in features that may be of value to the organisation.
Community
Small Enterprises | PROJECTS- For individuals who will be reimbursed by an enterprise such as an innovation lab or corporation that has fewer than 250 employees.
- This pass also includes opt-in features that may be of value to the organisation.
Self-funded
self-employed | students- For students, self-employed individuals and others not in receipt of reimbursement from an organisation.
- Authors may also use this pricing tier if not being reimbursed by their university or organisation.
Concession
low GNI | financial barriers- This rate is for people living and working in low-GNI countries (World Bank) and others who face financial barriers.
- There are also a limited number of volunteer passes at no charge. Contact us to discuss this option.
RSD12-ONLINE pricing is variable, and we have offered four tiers to make the symposium accessible to all. If an organisation covers the cost of your ticket or you are in a higher income bracket, please consider paying the institutional or community rate so we can keep fees lower for self-funded individuals, students, and others who face financial barriers.* The higher rates also offer acknowledgement opportunities for the organisation.
The Systemic Design Association operates on a community-as-a-service model—every participant contributes in their way. Authors contribute content, reviewers provide guidance, and attendees give valuable feedback.
*For instance, living and working in a low-GNI country. The World Bank classifies countries by income for analytical purposes.
opt-in features:
institutions & community
RSD12-ONLINE is Broadcasting from Georgetown University, Washington DC
Institutional Opt-in
- Acknowledged in the proceedings by organisation name and website link.
- Community livestream host acknowledged as broadcasting sessions onsite in a classroom, meeting space or lobby videocast.
- Acknowledged as supporting a presentation or session.
Community Opt-in
- Acknowledged in the proceedings by organisation name and website link.
- Community livestream host acknowledged as broadcasting sessions onsite in a classroom, meeting space or lobby videocast.
Contact cheryl@systemic-design.org to organise opting into these features.
RSD12-online organisers
RSD12 Chair: Evan Barba, Evan.Barba@georgetown.edu
Editor, Relating Systems Thinking and Design: Cheryl May, cheryl@systemic-design.org
Systemic Design Association Board Liaison: Palak Dudani
Production Management: cctonline@georgetown.edu
RSD is an initiative of the SDA

RSD12-ONLINE is managed by Georgetown University and is an initiative of the Communication, Culture and Technology Program and the Technology Design Studio, a multidisciplinary laboratory for the design and analysis of sociotechnical systems.
online paper tracks
Papers & emergent work are scheduled at the same time every day.
The core programme consists of four one-hour daily sessions devoted to papers and emergent work (paper track). Keynotes and plenaries will be broadcast from the hubs according to their schedule. Online workshops will be offered based on the facilitators’ preference.
Below are the local times using RSD12-HUBS as examples. You can convert other time zones using the timeanddate.com tool and GMT/UTC start time, 12:00.

UTC-7
5:00–9:00
RSD-Vancouver, CAN

UTC-6
6:00–10:00
RSD-Edmonton, CAN
RSD-Monterrey, MEX

UTC-5
7:00–11:00
Bogotá, COL

UTC-4
8:00–12:00
Pittsburgh, USA
Toronto, CAN
Washington, DC, USA

UTC+1
13:00–17:00
Loughborough-GBR

UTC+2
14:00–18:00
Amsterdam, NLD
Nordmarka Forest, NOR
Turin, ITA

UTC+5.5
17:30–20:30
Ahmedabad, IND
Entanglements of Interest
Technological Entanglements
Artificial Intelligence is on everyone’s mind, and the disruptions it portends justify that attention. However, AI, in all its manifestations, is just one of a collection of emerging technologies (quantum computing, nanotechnologies, CRISPR, etc.) that will have profound and destabilising effects on humanity. We aim to further discussions about technologies that are on the horizon and what futures they make possible — or impossible. Where should we place boundaries around technological development and adoption? What limits do we need to redefine? What processes should we use to set these boundaries?
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Biotechnology and Ethics, Citizen Science, Data Science
Natural Entanglements
Climate change has been with us for generations, but its long-anticipated consequences are finally being felt. While optimism about the possibility of mitigating the worst impacts of climate change should be a foundation of all work in this area, we also need to reckon with the reality that our world still lacks the structures and will to undo the damage we have already done to our planet and to acknowledge that the worst of those impacts are being felt by those least responsible. For these reasons, we are particularly interested in work that addresses the short- and medium-term impacts of climate change at local scales (household, neighbourhood, region), identifies and empowers communities that face the worst impacts, and offers transposable solutions for sustaining life amid profound environmental disruptions.
Keywords: Climate Justice, Adaptation, Resilience, Indigenous Knowledge
Entanglements of Policy and Power
No discussion of emergence in systems is complete without an understanding of the regulatory apparatus that shapes it — both from the external environment and from internal constraints. The power to influence emergence is not evenly distributed, but aggregated in localities of control. These leverage points have outsized effects, and deserve particular attention. What rules and regulations are having the most impact? Which need to be replaced and what should replace them? How do we identify leverage points, excavate their influence, and demonstrate their potential? How can the balance of power be shifted?
Keywords: Social Justice, Ethics, Leverage Points, Representation, Policy Metrics
Foundational Entanglements
As systemic design continues to emerge from the interaction of theories and methods in systems thinking and design, we must pay special attention to how these theories and methods shape our understanding of the world, the development of the field, and systemic design’s relationship to other disciplines. Submissions in this track should address some aspect of a foundational or fundamental element of systemic design. Examples include: interrogating a concept or method from a new perspective, introducing a concept or method from another discipline, exposing the limits or possibilities of existing theories and methods.
Keywords: Co-Design, Futuring, Reflexivity, Diffractive Methodologies, Systems Science, Design Science

RSD12-Washington DC | OCT 18–20