Conference Agenda

How can design research foster stronger, more meaningful engagement between public institutions, legal bodies, and ‘real people’, better shaping and protecting rights collectively?

Growing global conflicts leave people feeling powerless and uncertain when it comes to their rights. While BigTech think-tanks and large oil companies are generally well able to navigate complex international policies, the rights of climate-crime and abuse-of-power victims remain endangered (Wetzels and Keepe).

Though public institutions are crucial for providing legitimacy and organising collective action (Klijn and Koppenjan 143), their reliance on outdated methods to address growing societal challenges (Romme et al. 2) and lack of inclusive design often leaves people alienated from their rights (Bosman). This pushes social resilience further out of reach in times where trust in just governance is critical (OECD).

While growing consensus amongst scholars calls for a fundamental shift of institutional research towards real-world and design-based methods (Romme et al. 2), criteria for effective institutional design remain “too general and abstract” (Neef et al. 418). 

We aim to contribute to this discussion by challenging conventional definitions of design / design research and exposing practical approaches – across design, journalism, law, health care, and more – that operationalise human rights and reimagine lasting change.