Co-Design / Co-Creation

The book frames co-design principles as having 'gained significant traction' and as explicitly emphasizing 'shared power dynamics and collaborative capability-building in the co-creation of new knowledge and solutions' (Ch6 §053). It groups 'Participatory Design and Co-design methodologies' together as evidence of 'a coupling with democratic ideals, social justice movements, and a growing recognition of the importance of including diverse voices and forms of expertise in the design process' (Ch6 §058, within the book's discussion of Structural Coupling). Discussing the Human Component's Users, the book notes that Don Norman's 'user-centered design,' while foundational, 'has been expanded by calls for empathetic approaches (e.g., Liz Sanders and Pieter Jan Stappers on co-creation)' (Ch10 §106). In its deepest treatment, within Partnerships, the book credits Sanders and Stappers by name as 'pioneers of co-design' whose 'convivial toolboxes' let the designer act as 'a facilitator who employs generative tools ... to empower partners to express their own expertise' — while cautioning that, 'within the autopoietic framework of this book, while these partners are indispensable co-creators, they are participating in a design process rather than "designing" in the disciplinary sense' (Ch14 §141).