From System to Local to System: Design principles to scale for a system in transition

C.S.H. De Lille and A. Overdiek

Societal transitions require the activities of multiple stakeholders on different systemic levels. Designers and design researchers are often involved in supporting specific interventions and sometimes in enabling and facilitating entire processes. Practices and literature in ‘co-creation ecosystems’ are a developing field for them to discuss differences and relatedness of micro-, meso- and macro perspectives. Using the case of a three-year multi-stakeholder co-creation project in the retail industry, the paper analyses processes and principles for making an impact in design-led transition projects. A transition process with three phases is constructed and four principles for making an impact at the various levels were found.

Comparing findings with the UK Design Council’s ‘Systemic Design Framework’, the paper suggests process adaptations to scale between the local and the sector/national level. It also contributes to a better understanding of systemic design principles such as Leadership, Storytelling and Systems Thinking.

Keywords: living lab, systemic design framework, design principles, co-creation ecosystem, transitions