Co-creation Processes by Alvin Arthur

CO-CREATION PROCESSES ‘THE AUTHENTIC VALUE OF A HENCEFORTH BRANDED MINDSET’ Alvin Arthur, January 2016

TO INTRODUCE The Why, How and What.

This paper might not be about co-creation

This research explores the construction of

process. Or, so to say, not about the one we

a business driven process, that is nowadays

have undergo and more or less subtly being

influencing a consumerist paradigm aiming

taught by Western domination. With Edward

at generating money by illusorily satisfying

Bernays creating Public Relations (in the U.S.

people’s desires. As creatives, dissect

during the 20’s) dedicated to democratize

such a process is crucial in order to deliver

consumption, and the rise of cognitive

adapted outputs, whether questions or

sciences in the early 50’s landing businesses’

answers. What is co-creation? How has

hand on top of society inner impulsive needs,

it been branded ? How is scaling a key

co-creation took a highly commercial path.

parameter of this process ? What is the authentic value of this process within

Food, for instance, is a major social ressource requiring people’s involvment on a way more advanced level than the way it actually is. Experiencing the food chain in Brabant Netherlands has been striking because on the one hand it is difficult for a customer to understand how it all works, and on the other hand the customer is still studied and exploited as a passive consumer, given the illusion to be active. Indeed, solutions can be found on smaller scale where people are dealing with food on a ‘hypo-economized’ level. And it is a central issue: What do people really need out of preconceived models? In which terms can Food become a relevant medium for this participative process ?

contemporary globalized society ?

LEARN FROM OUR MISTAKES USE KNOWLEDGE, USE EXPERIENCE

OPPORTUNITIES FUTURE IS NOW

EMPTY STABLES

CONSULTANT

SOCIETY NEEDS TRUST

CONTRIBUTIONISM

PROSUMER

UNBUNTU

SOCIETY LEFTOVER? BUILD TRUST

CONSUMER

BANKRUPT FARMER DIFFERENT ROLE

CONSUMPTION

ECONOMICAL STATUS SHORTEN DISTANCE

SOCIAL STATUS

PRODUCER

KEES

FARMER

WARENINGEN

SPEEDATING WAY NETWORKING

EVENT

AGRIFOOD

ROB

FARMLAB

CONNECT FARMERS & SCIENTISTS

INCOME TV SHOW

DESIGNER INTERNSHIP VALUE

RADIO PODCAST CITIZEN PLATFORM WITH MEDIATOR FORUM

INTERNET PLATFORM

TEAM

SCIENTIST FARMER ENGINEER/DESIGNER

BE CHANGE

DISENGAGEMENT

MORE CONTROL

CREATE CHANGE

MORE LOCAL SCALING

CHOSEN WORDS DIFFERENT ACTORS

SYSTEMS

SAME CROWD

DIFFERENT GOALS

VALUE

TRANSITION

CAPITALISM

UNDERSTANDING & PURPOSE

MINDSET SHIFT

KNOWLEDGE BASED SOCIETY

OUT OF BREATH

DCAPITAL SURROUNDING FAMILY

SCHOOL

EDUCATION

SELF ENERGY

CO-CREATION PROCESSES

WHEN INTERNET WILL BE MATURE

AUTHENTIC EXPERIENCE

INITIATIVE INVOLVMENT CREATIVITY JOY

POWER TO THE PEOPLE

RELEVANCE

ENGAGEMENT

DIVERSITY

OFF-BUILDING OFF-POLITICS

EMPOWERMENT

HONESTY NON EXPERTISE

DIFFERENT EXPERTISES

ACTORS

FOREWORD All Creation is Co-creation ?

more perceptible than others. Co-creation on the other hand recently appears to be the translation of a human intervention in the process. The merge of

Having a quick look at Human History, it

different perspectives and expertises in

seems to me legit to assume we have never

a collaboration aiming at creating more

made greater steps but by co-creation.

adapted and legit outputs. Through

Zooming in the picture, it is actually nearly

History - written by winners mostly -,

impossible for us to ‘create things’ out of

mankind realized great illustrations of

the blue: the terms invention, creation,

this collaborative phenomenon but also

progress, innovation being linked by our

embraced the denial of it. From making a

ability to be inspired, therefore connected.

living as a tribe, to creating religious wars;

We cannot create from an absolute «non-

from discovering new lands by conquering

connected» state. As a creative, a maker,

the oceans, to the construction of Keops’

a thinker, or a being, we have the ability to

pyramid, we built on, chapter after chapter,

be inspired, which is an indirect co-creation

until we needed somehow to brand in

phenomenon, showing the irrelevance of

concept a process that made us - assuming

aiming at owning ideas, and on a wider sight,

our parents co-created us - and that we

the irrelevance of the principle of absolute

needed to understand over.

property. As Daniel Lakens recently

Co-creating is powerfull and paradoxical

declared: « If not me, then someone else; But if

at the same time. The same energy

not us, then no one».

transformed to organize a global network of goods distribution, shaping access to

Creation belongs to the basic spontaneous

exotic products for everyone, can lead

phenomenon at the origin of every single

to a triangular trade. When is it therefore

existing thing. In fact Co- is the cause, and

possible to talk about co-creation ?

-creation the effect, regardless Nature -

In a world in transition from an industrial

what is beyond culture - being good or bad,

approach to a knowledge based global

but just being the most authentic medium

society, the contemporary western world

for creation. Co-creation dwells Nature

branded co-creation as a process linked to

as much as a smile affects your day. It is

the industry development. It seems to be

transformation on many scales, some being

just a tool for companies to make products

with their consumers, to fill the gap between the two entities. A pretext for the economy to embrace creativity. The magazine Forbes even declares:

ÂŤ Why Co-creation is the Future for all of us ? Âť, sounding like a claim to trust, forced - in a way - because inevitable. Nevertheless, this vision opens-up new perspectives where politics in their non-expertise will have way less impact than nowadays, watching companies definitely owning them. What is a world working less with the traditional social and business sector divide ? What is a world where politics and governments reinvent themselves not to literally die ? Overlooking the occidental definition, the topic tackled is extremely broard. It includes all types of social connections, projects. Designers and especially Social designers have an important role to play in this new flexible paradigm. On any scale, they become the moderators and mediators of trust within society, the empathic and creative connectors of knowledge and competences of society actors. Understanding the outstanding and underlying aspects of such an activity is essential.

CO-CREATION PROCESSES Spine

1 l Transitions in sparks The simplexity of human behaviours

A l Neo-liberalism: the empowerment of individualism • The western clomplex of superiority • War’s legacy

B l To brand the basis of our being

2 l Scale

Scaling is essential. It brings relevance and adaptability to change A l Less is more: the power of locality • Organic meshes • Local doesn’t mean anti-global

B l The society scale as a larger test • Political stagnation • The need of supported growth

3 l Value of Social Design Are Social Designers the new Moderators and Mediators of Trust ? A l What about value ? • Old demons of patents and owning ideas • Intervidualism: when the Internet is going to be more mature...

B l The role of Education • Raise the base of a co-creation mindset • Co-creation within educational institutions and entities

1 l Transition in sparks The simplexity of human behaviours

and act of differenciation within the trading world. With the expansion of the occidental culture abroard, its destiny was intimately

« I am not who I think I am, I am not who you think I am. I am who I think you think I am. » 1 From our deep inner self, we are programmed to be influenced by other, by our surrounding. We are constantly in the look for making up stories through our brain, this narratives addict! As the thinker Jason Silva says, we are creating ourselves « through a constant mental modeling of one another.» 2 In fact we cannot stop to co-create ourselves, as cybernetic beings we need that reflection from the other self to reach that state of ‘com’munication, ‘con’nection.

linked to merchandising, trading and all the economical ins and outs of it. Branding is a sign of a specific quality or characteristic. Flourishing from the copulation, the tribe, the village, the town, to the region, the notion of co-creation was then expressing itself through the national belonging, vector of shared values. As it gets bigger and bigger, co-creation transition requires a trust that wouldn’t be led to anybody. Societies were created, structured and hierarchied with people playing specific roles. Expertises were valued as more or less important as much as social status. The belief in limiteless expansion brought in particular by the ruling religious entities animated the idea of civilisation’s domination, acknowledging several European empires conquering new lands under the flags of ‘truth’, ‘progress’,

A l Neo-liberalism: the empowerment of individualism

‘salvation’ etc. On October 8th 2012, the President of Venezuela Hugo Chavez gives a speech

• The Western complex of superiority

concerning the war happening in Syria. He declares: « [...] this European elite, this

Branding is the marketable extension of

political and economical elite that seems

identification. It is born from the desire

not able, even after years and years, to

Edward Bernays creating and promoting the image of the ‘independant woman’ - Century of self, BBC Series, Adam Curtis, 2002 get rid of the Imperial idea. They believe

within a globalized contemporary society

they are superior to us! They believe having

where the Internet broke (or replaced so

rights, divine even, to impose governmental

to say) some historical preconceptions to

policies to the arabic people, the african

emulate the self as a ‘pilot of Planet Earth’.

people, the latino-american people, what is this ? » 3a He adds later: « The French government would rather take care of France’s issues

• World War II legacy

and carry the world in researching solutions

For decades the industrialization of goods

to severe issues, such as climate change,

had the same influence on our social

misery, hunger [...] » 3b, sounding wise and

relationships and behaviours. Already

confident to a dramatically complexified

in the 20’s, to sell easily, major western

situation.

comapnies took a role of ‘Happiness machines’ and started to study people as

Still nowadays we experience the leftover

individuals sharing common inner interests.

phenomenons of such ideology. These

It was about making categories of passive

phenomenons are more and more alienated

consumers based on desires - then later

lifestyles -, more than product based marketing. The whole process engaged when Edward Bernays - Sigmund Freud’s nephew - created the professional ‘Public Relations Industry’ in the US policy to influence the Western world by introducing propaganda in daily life, dedicated to

and perverted by society’, where Freud

manipulation and global consumption.

thinks the ‘Human being is animal and

Bernays’ philosophy would be improved

primitive, contained by society’. 4

in the early 50’s when cognitive sciences

From there, societal movements such as

would be integrated in business marketing,

‘Nones’, ‘Yippies’, ‘Hippies’, ‘EST’, and many

to attract consumers. Psychologists,

more poped-up in order to unleash a new

Psychiatrists, Psychoanalysists were

powerful self, to explore it.

trendy, taking advantage from the afterwar

Paradoxically, all this self-revelation,

climate to serve to the mass the ‘idea of

creation wasn’t an isolated process.

the ideal’: speed and abundance.

Collaborative groups of individuals would

These cognitive scientists became

help themselves creating this self.

rich by collaborating with companies, politics, social planning and even people. Psychiatrists would be used not only for sick people but in any layer of society. Erase maladjustment to control people. In the

B l To brand the basis of our being

meantime, groups of so called consumers

In the ‘highest spheres’, Thatcher and

would be interviewed and asked about

Reagan would encourage neo-liberalism:

their satisfaction of the products they

individualism supporting the economy,

experienced. The more target is integrated

involuntarily - it seems - making the mass

in the process, the more the chances of

quiet and obedient slaves of a money-

selling are high, the product being adapted

driven system.

as much as possible to the demand. Today’s community managers are applying the

It sounds that by branding co-creation we

principle by triggering and analyzing their

lost the essential meaning of it, and even

audience’s outputs.

its purpose in many cases. Nevertheless,

In the early 60’s, a new psychiatry approach

the basic will of co-creation workshops’

emerges. It stands for letting the patient

facilitators for instance is to design

express themselves, as emotional beings,

a tool for different people to express

which is in opposition to Freud’s approach.

themselves together in order re-initiate

The leader of that movement is Wilhelm

a dialogue, and build up consensus. It

Reich : ‘At heart, human inner being is good

appears then that what matters the most

traditional narrative arc. It is not about winning some debate point and then going home. Rather, as the product of the decentralized networked-era culture, it is less about victory than sustainibility. It is not about one-pointedness, but is the qualitative productivity rather than

inclusion. It is not about scoring a victory,

the quantitative one. Yet the globalized

but groping towards consensus. It is

system in which we are nowadays makes

not like a book; it is like the Internet. » 5b

us forget how to adapt to each other,

Here he points out the organic matter of

how to take the time necessary to

knowledge in which we are living beings

communicate with each other. Instead

impossible to understand and perform

we are shaped to fit in certain pre-made

within the actual boxes offered by the

molds and adapt to these. The ‘Babel

business and political global systems.

Tower’ episode seems to haunt our specie.

‘Winners write History’ appears to be a decadent fairy tale. History happens and

Occupy Wall Street in September 2011,

we are direct witnesses of it. It is about

could be seen as an ‘big scale co-creation

managing, performing inter-subjective

workshop’. It shows how a money

knowledge in such a way that it serves

driven economy distorted our ability to

common progress, not necessarily

collaborate through a fair dialogue. The

particular interests. How can we realize

journalists wouldn’t understand how

such management ? How does the scale

come the ‘Occupiers’ wouldn’t be able

influences it ? What does it means to

to summerize their movement in some

work big or small ? What are the existing

ten seconds. The forecaster and societal

examples of co-creation and how to adapt

analysist Douglas Rushkoff says that «Tea

them to different contexts?

Partiers mean to wipe out the chaotic confusion of a world without definitive stories; the occupiers mean to embed

Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid • Douglas Hofstadter, Basic books, 1979

« I am not who I think I am, I am not who you think I am. I am who I think you think I am. » • Jason Silva, Facebook live video, 15 Janvier 2016

3a,3b

« Speech about the war in Syria » • Hugo Chavez, October 8th 2012

« Century of Self - Part. 1: Happiness Machines » • Adam Curtis, Documentary, BBC Series, 2002

5a,5b

PRESENT SHOCK: When Everything Happens Now • Douglass Rushkoff, 2013

themselves within it so that new forms may emerge. » 5a The idea of consensus takes a way more powerfull meaning then. The Occupiers would recreate a dicussion and voting system based on the ancient Greek one, where every citizen would have the right to speak, and be heard. « [...] this is not a movement with a

2 l Scale Scaling is essential. It brings relevance and adaptability to change

For the sake of adaptability, people, groups, companies, governments, systems need to be more flexible. They need, for instance, to decentralize their workforce to vary in scale. In that sense, Jacques Attali , much-demanded french economist and writer, declares: « According to me, a company structuring its future is a company able to give itself a generic mission independently from its production. I would give the ‘Cirque du Soleil’ as an exemple [...] They chose their mission : divert through performing arts, and they do so, constantly reinventing its products, constantly refreshing themselves.»6 This candadian company is a LAB with a strong core operating in ‘talent scouting’ to develop new and varied projects. It brings a relevant responsiveness in termsof quality and quantity.

The ‘Cirque du Soleil’ in the ‘Totem’ show, 2014

A l Less is more: the power of locality • Organic meshes One of the most striking element when you start investigating on such topic as cocreation in a context of public development is that you realize the government’s input is not necessarily needed «anymore»

environmentaly. Favela Painting project initiated by the duo Jeroen Koolhaas and Dre Urhahn shows how co-participation and the pride of selfengagement is for people a leitmotiv to co-produce and take care of their locality as well. Another interesting fact concerning these colorful walls is that they have been crowd funded or it is better to say cofunded via Kickstarter website. The Internet already nowadays helps increasing projects financial support on a wider perspective, it opens physical boundaries. Decisions made on a local level seem to be far more relevant, thus it doesn’t isolate the final product or process in its own context as we saw. On a different scale, the Tower of David in Caracas Venezuela is also a concrete illustration of this possible scenario. From 2012, the architects’ agency Urban Think Tank worked on a social plan creating the world’s largest vertical informal in terms of management, financing and

community. The architects facilitated a

ressources. Internet and Business do lead

way for people to dwell this abandoned

it already. Instead, building up a network

tower and design their own self-regulating

governance where citizens «feel responsible

system, combining shops, administration,

for things happening» 7 seems to be a

sport areas, workshops, religious places,

preferable option. Certainly the most

etc. As Richard van der Laken highlights,

vital to do so is the shift of mentality and

«the project proves that people are quite

behaviour to empower citizens to engage

capable of shaping their own life and their

as actors having a meaningful impact in the

community, without having to depend on

growth of their surrounding, socially and

their government. » 8

• Local doesn’t mean anti-global The need to raise responsible citizens

B l The society scale as a larger test

instead of passive consumers seems to be an inevitable shift to launch in

• Political Stagnation

current societies. Despite the influence of government and companies on products

Everything evolves but politics, unable to

accessible to the crowd, it is about adapting

afford society’s evolution speed, explains

food policies on a local scale without

the Designer Vinay Gupta: « Representa-

isolating the locality in its own dimensions

tive democracy is 200 years old. So for

so to say: creating «political consumerism»,

200 years, people have been voting once

with transparency.

every 4 years. Everything in the world just

Movements like ‘La Via Campesina’9a are

changed. In every other area life is spee-

allowing food to take another dimension

ded up [...]. 12 votes, that’s all you gonna

by placing it as a social landmark relating

get in your life time...» 10

many more actual questions. «La Via Campesina’s concept of food sovereignty,

Saying ‘it was better before’ or ‘no money’

the right of peoples to define their own

is not what this paper is aiming at. It is more

food and agriculture policies, is a proposal

sensitive, more human. People’s initiative,

for radical social transformation to make

when it is well driven, is extremely powerful,

food systems more democratic. It has

whether with or without money.

evolved from a catch-cry opposing trade

A clear exemple is the redevelopment of

liberalisation to a concept adopted by

Mumbai slums. Facing a major sanitary issue,

broader constituencies. [...] The campaign

the Indian government didn’t know how to

for food sovereignty spans many issues

deal with all the plastics waste accumulated

including gender inequality, land reform,

in this 12.5 millions inhabitants city. In

genetic modification, intellectual property,

the district of Dharavi (212 hectares),

biodiversity, urban agriculture and labour

the ‘Dharavi Businessmen’s Welfare

migration. It has emerged as a political

Association’ decided to launch a sustainable

project that talks to power at venues

social, environmental and economical,

including the United Nations Committee

project around these wastes.

on World Food Security.», develops Alana Mann9b.

Workers proofing bad working conditions in a microfactory in Dharavi, India, 2008

Transforming squares into neighbourhood centres in Dharavi. Illustration: Felixx Landscape Architect & Planners + Studio OxL Architects - http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/feb/18/best-ideas-redevelop-dharavi-slum-developers-india

They developed an industry employing almost 200.000 people by connecting 15.000 single room factories so they can

Political systems became too slow for what

work together. In 2008, Mumbai was then

is at stake nowadays, in most fields.

able to recycle 80% of its plastic which

« It is a blatant rejection of the binary,

has never been reached on such material

winner-takes-all, political operating system

amount/city scale ratio. The collective of

that has been characterizing political

micro-industries represents annualy $650

discourse since at least the French National

millions.

Assembly of the 1700’s. But it is also a

The ‘only’ negative point - an important one

painstakingly slow, almost interminably

- to highlight is the workers conditions that

boring process, in which the problem of how

are still neglected in most parts of India. We

to deal with noise from the bongo drummers

reach the limits of the idea of ‘co-creation’,

ends up getting equal time with how to

‘co-participatory’, ‘co-production’.

adress student debt.»12 To reinvent itself,

Regardless of this incredible model of public

politics needs to get its effective action

management, since 2004, the government

back to its etymological meaning: power to

started the project ‘Vision Mumbai’

the people. It needs to integrate drastically

which aims to create a world-class city

the concerns of all citizens in a participatory

by 2013. « After flip-flops by successive

process, whether physical or digital.

governments on the much-delayed Dharavi Redevelopment Project, the Maharashtra government has decided to go ahead with

• The need of supported growth

the public private partnership (PPP) model

Supported growth is what participatory

for the ambitious project [...] »11 According

initiative should benefit from when they

to the PPP, Dharavi will be demolished and

establish themselves as long term projects,

replaced with flats in high-rise blocks for

no matter if it is a social, financial or political

the slum dwellers, and the rest of the land

support. « When they occur, these everyday

will be used for shopping malls and luxury

social innovations are fragile and highly

apartments. The goal is to provide 300.000

localized entities. To endure and diffuse

residences of 300 sq ft for free.

beyond local communities, they must be

Once again, a government deals with

recognized and supported. In other words,

interests that are business related.

they would benefit from public actions that

would facilitate peer-to-peer collaborations.

Indiegogo, Kickstarter, MyMajorCompany

The result would be a new generation of

are allowing people to support initiatives

public services: collaborative services where

of all types - with real business plans,

end users become service co-producers.»

mostly - on a financial and marketing level,

These are words we can find in Manzini and

with more or less warranties depending on

Staszowski research’s introduction on

the project.

Public and Collaborative13.

The famous ‘Potato Salad’ project from Zack Danger Brown on Kickstarter shook

In Lancaster (UK), a project called City

the Internet on July 3rd 2014, when 6911

Park supported by ‘PROUD’ programme

contributers gave $55.492 to make a

(European participatory program) and led

giant potato salad15 . Isn’t it wonderful

by ‘Imagination’ (the design research lab in

how awesome people are?!

Lancaster University) has been launched.

Internet erases the physical borders.

Since April 2012 over 700 people have

People are creating and supporting with

joined together on a journey to co-design

what they want; this encourages the

a quality public space for the area beyond

change of value, freeing projects from

the castle through a series of fun public

heavy political or company logistics,

events. people aged between 3 and 92

which are actually being indirectly inspired

generated hundreds of creative ideas,

by people.

drawings, stories, models and proposals, helping to define how the area around

Rotterdam is a great exemple of people

lancaster’s historic castle and priory,

investing time in food networking. Since

down the hill and over the meadows to the

the past decade, citizens are developing

quayside might be enhanced 14.

a culture of urban farming that became a valuable trend.

As evoked earlier [e.g. Favela Painting],

‘Rotterdamse Oogst’ is an interesting

nowadays Internet also offers the pos-

physical platform composed of a public

sibility to be not only co-producers or

library to research on and borrow seeds to

co-creators, but co-investors. Through

cultivate, and a network of people willing to

crowdfunding, projects have emerge from

grow their own food in the city (also willing

the ground of concepts and materialized

to give back the seeds they borrow, once

form the sky of ideas! Platforms such as

in the community)16. The community lives

9a,9b

« Food democracy: why eating is unavoidably political » • Alana Mann, August 4th, 2015 • https://theconversation.com/fooddemocracy-why-eating-is-unavoidablypolitical-43474

« Vinay Gupta - Basic Income l London Real » • London Real, February 7th, 2014

« Dharavi redevelopment to take PPP route » • The Indian Express, January 7th, 2016

PRESENT SHOCK: When Everything Happens Now • Douglass Rushkoff, 2013

projects could emerge from this.

Public and Collaborative - Exploring the intersection of design, social innovation and public policy • Ezio Manzini and Eduardo Staszowski, 2013

Many examples show how much energy

Beyond the castle – Lancaster (UK)• PROUD, Imagination, Good Co-design • http:// proudeurope.eu/proudeurope/proud/

‘Potato Salad’ • https://www.kickstarter.com/ projects/zackdangerbrown/potato-salad

‘Rotterdamse Oogst’ • http://www. rotterdamseoogst.nl/over-ons/

Governmental real estate for sale in the Netherlands • Governmental Real Estate Agency, Autumn 2015 • file:///Users/ alvinarthur/Downloads/def-brochure-dutchgovernmental-real-estate-sale-autumn-2015. pdf

through building up knowledge, having fun events and sharing food. In the meantime, the Dutch Government Real Estate Agency is selling (since autumn 2015) 330 former state’s buildings «[...] to the highest and most opportune bidder».17 A whole program has been launched to facilitate the process. It seems that citizen

and ressources are put into social projects based on cooperation. In most of these projects, a gap is still existing between the people socially and directly committed and other actors such as politics and industrials having complete different angles of tackling social issues. In order to improve the sustainability of the projects, communication and creativity play a key role. These can very certainly be managed by social designers.

« Jacques Attali : Il n’y a pas de liberté sans prévision »• Jacques Attali during the UNESCO conference of December 4th, 2015 • http:// fr.unesco.org/news/jacques-attali-il-n-y-pasliberte-prevision

Discovering Co-production by design • Christian Bason, Copenhagen Business School

« Tower of David », article by Richard van der Laken• Looks Good, Feels Good, Is Good , Anne van der Zwaag, October 2014

3 l Value of Social Design Are Social Designers the new Moderators and Mediators of Trust ?

Anonymous mask - YZGeneration

In his ‘Good Country Index’, the international policy advisor Simon Anholt asks the question: Which country does the most good for the world? When he talks about good countries, he doesn’t mean morally good but differenciates «goodest and best» countries. The word «good» is to use as an opposite of «selfish» and not «bad» in this context. Anholt says the data index he created «measures, or at least it tries to measure exactly how much each country on Earth contributes not to its own population but to the rest of humanity.» 18 He compares countries with 7 criterias: Science & Techonology, Culture, International Peace & Security, World order, Planet & Climate, Prosperity & Equality and Health & Well-being 19 . I do think it is an interesting way of thinking. Still it is not be forgotten that the design comes from a western

mind, measuring up world scale data based on western standards of being «good». Social Design would help in recognizing and reprocessing values lost in translation, especially when we come to talk about the Internet.

encourage innovation and production by limiting copying as much as possible. It would also give time to develop on a more mature level what one « brought on the table ». Yet the over-economization of work fields focused innovation on protecting, often more than developing. Even nowadays the patent deposite gears unrelevant competition because it can stop creativity

A l What about value • Old demons of patents and owning

through law. As says Ben Schouten, Professor of Playful Interactions, « our world is changing so fast that there is no readiness

ideas

anymore » 21a before adding that it is about

‘Knowledge volcanoes’ in perpetual

knowledge, not to possess it, and how

eruption such as universities, moved by the

to create meaning from already available

tectonic vibration of Evolution at stake,

knowledge, to become a better scientist, a

shifted from the aim of Research to the aim

better human, a better whatever. » 21b

of Industry based Research. A significant

Mediate knowledge, mediate creativity is

part of society has been dedicated to fulfill

still to improve.

« being competent in how to process

the need of a neo-liberalist economy. « Many scientists, economists, and lawyers believe the act [of obtaining patent rights as a

• Intervidualism: when the Internet is going to be more mature

priority] distorts the mission of universities , diverting them from the pursuit of basic

While writing this paper, I keep thinking

knowledge, which is freely disseminated,

about the value that Internet gives to

to a focused search for results that have

any dynamic process of nowadays. If

practical and industrial purposes. [...]

Charles Darwin still seems right when

academic institutions behave more like

he declares « in the long history of

businesses than neutral arbiters of truth. » 20

humankind (and animal kind, too) those

The patent at its origins was launched to

who learned to collaborate and improvise

most effectively have prevailed » 22, there

As Vicotr J. Papanek argued already in the

remain several questions about the value

70’s in ‘Design for the Real World’, the

of the collaborative process through the

world is in need of creative people able

new paradigm of connectivity. Is social

to operate beyond furniture, products

media designed enough to fulfill our social

and corporate styles. The complexity and

needs ? What is the impact of social

multiplicity of contemporary dynamics

designers in this new ‘screened’ society

makes hardly impossible to possibility

? Will the development of emerging

have an overview on what is globally

countries influence our global approach of

going on, even for large scale companies

connected social standards ?

(even for Google and other survilliance agencies), especially when most media

The major impact of the Internet on our

curate information to sell. Therefore, as

interactions is obivously something

much as we crave for less and less filters

to take into account even though this

to the information access, we need people

invasive entity is young and evolving as

to create quick and sustainable bridges

we do as a specie.

between people in a ‘common interest’

We - the general public - are now

perspective. What social designers bring

navigating in a virtual space from which

Bason says is «professional empathy».

we only see the surface, the so-called

The ability to integrate and digest

‘chocolate layer’ as Schouten highlights.

multiple points of views in order to build

Everything seems bright and interactive

the most adapted outcome they can

where our browser actually knows us

possibly come up with. The process is all

more than we know it ourselves. Our

organic. In these common interests lies

thirst for information and connectivity

the hard balance to find and so far the

passively transformed the browser as a

Occidental approach didn’t manage to

tool for the network to access us, rather

achieve so. Papanek also promoted the

than the inverse. Seeking speed and

fact for non-western country to educate

relevance (efficiency), we scroll down,

their own designers to consider western-

not necessarily bothering about the legal

made problems from a different angle.

‘Terms & Conditions’.

It is a slow process but the promising horizons are exciting because the Internet is growing and we keep learning it.

96% of the Internet - called Darknet - is space made form labrynths of codes where it seems scary or at least noninviting to practice serendipity. Yet, today’s reality is 14 years-old kids can hack a bank within fews hours! As henceforth aware «Algorithmic Citizens»23, children are growing in a world where Internet is a second nature, an extension of themselves. Already in few ‘primary schools’ around the world, children are learning how to code as another language. So yes, newer generations accepted the fact to deliver themselves through the global platfom of Internet. If information is control, how much does it matter then to be able to control our own flow of information? In the late year 2014, I attended a socalled Design Debate in the DesignHuis of Eindhoven about the following topic: ‘Google: the ultimate designer?’ As we, cybernetic beings, need water and social experiences to live, Google needs connectivity and people sharing to live as an informative entity. So, in a sense yes Google is a designer that became almost autonomous because actual company’s engineers

are

not

able

control

everything about the evolution itself of the artificial intelligence.

« Disciplinarities: intra, cross, multi, inter, trans » - Alexander Refsum Jensenius - http://www.arj. no/2012/03/12/disciplinarities-2/

In the meantime, Social Networks such

of both parallels previously evoked.

as Facebook, Instagram, Youtube still

From the within, globalized compasses

have a specific branded development

are already promoting the acceptance of

of their design. In the end, data control

coding and hacking as regular practices.

(possessing and processing so to say) is

On the one hand, children learn to do so.

much more valuable than money, because

To tend to master such overwhelming

it is intrusive power. Data redifines then

paradigm, it seems that these children

the stakes of society, so the role of

might be highly involved in social good.

social designers, in particular out of the

They might become tomorrow’s social

business-driven context.

designers and not simply seen as realitydisconnected (or over-connected) geeks. From this perspective, an adaptation in

One of the main aim of social design is

Design Education is to seriously consider.

to make people access freedom in their

On the other hand, the Darknet dwellers

development, a collaborative or else

or hackers, such as ‘Anonymous’ for

‘intervidual’ freedom. This by ‘hacking’

instance (and yet is it a branded media

the economical-based and culture-

fairytale or is this happening ?), are ahead

based stiffness of social systems.

of our understanding of the Internet

Acknowledging the growth of digitalized

potential. They deliver social messages

dynamics, social designers shifts their

(be free, release ourselves from the

tools and practices to adapt to different

invisible hand pulling threads over our

needs. As the Internet is outdating

heads, get away from standardized paths

notions of nations and countries to

conditionning us to pressure or ignorance,

lead to algorithmic citizens, overlook

and s on) and put action in what they

globalization to welcome glocalization.

claim to be common interest. We - regular

From the within and the without of

web users - don’t use yet the keys to

the web, a link is to be maintained so

verify the truth of such actions.

both worlds don’t collapse or harm one

From the without - the henceforth real

another. A social designer might be useful

world -, social designers might help

in their multi/inter/trans-disciplinary

developing a transition to more empathy

approaches (I will emphasize later) to

and recognition of the other’s being

moderate and mediate the co-existence

and condition. Internet helps already in

discovering new perspectives, but as it is

education appears essential in order to

still led by financial interests, it creates

make relevance of globalization by initiating

mainstreams in order to capitalize trends

a new dominating mindset based on co-

in monetary value, so regular users can’t

production. « We should rethink the process

really have control: it is not mature yet.

of education and of professional formation

Social designers can facilitate a transition

in view of optimization of social good

that subtly started making ‘cultural

instead of the maximization of profit. » says

and lifestyle psychopaths’ of us, and

Arjen Oosterman, Chief-editor of Volume

so potentially from scratch, from basic

Magazine. 24

education.

Beyond ‘Education’, it is also about making ‘Learning’ regaining value within the social hegemony of school and its stiffness.

B l The role of Education • Raise the base of a co-creation mindset

Coming back to the multi/inter/transdisciplinary approaches, I would like to refer to Emilie Wapnick without defining what she does, because it is what

In the need of a fast and constant

she’s talking about: the harm of labels

economical growth, the industrial era

introduced by society. Wapnick describes

gave birth in its early stage to an hyper-

the question « what would you like to be

industrialized education phenomenon that

when you are grown up ?» 25 as a cause of

influenced many cultures and societies. The

anxiety a agent narrowing down potential

Western world is still leaving deep habits and

within some children. This question

sequels through its domination quest.

promotes the former way of thinking

Nevertheless, the third industrial

which is to fit a box within society, that

revolution is changing the game because

western idea telling that you are here on

it presents different issues such as social

Earth to find out that ‘one thing’ - your

and environmental crisis, products of a

duty, vocation - and perform it your whole

static model. Industries are understanding

life for the sake of society.

the stake of ‘smooth transitoriness’.

But society evolves fast, adaptability is

Creativity takes more and more importance

one of the first qualities companies are

in this development. Therefore design

looking for, and one of the mandatory

CO-CREATION WORKSHOP

CRASH TEST

l THURSDAY 17 TH DECEMBER - @DAE l « THE FUTURE AND OPPORTUNITIES OF THE DECREASING CULTURE OF FAMILY FARMS »

COME AND DESTROY OUR PLANS ! alvin.arthur.jxv@gmail.com CRASH TEST invitation visual.

Bringing a collaborative atmosphere by cooking together as social connector - picture Jonas Ersland, 2016.

Alvinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s atelier 1: reflecting on the farmer â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s meaning in the future for society with 3 criterias: social, cultural, econonomical - picture Jonas Ersland, 2016.

Leifâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s atelier 1: reflecting on the emotional and rational influences on stables by representing them on an archetype architecture model of an empty stable - picture Jonas Ersland, 2016.

ones companies will look for. It is exaclty

education played a major role. The aim

the same for team-up skills. She has then

of the school was to shape aware and

found a strong word to acknowledge

responsible citizens. Black Mountain was

the way she is wired: ‘Multipotentiality’,

experimental by nature and committed to

« an educational and psychological

an interdisciplinary approach, attracting

term referring to a pattern found

a faculty that included many of America’s

among intellectually gifted individuals.

leading visual artists, composers, poets, and

[Multipotentialites] generally have

designers 27. The adventure lasted 24 years.

diverse interests across numerous

Earlier in Europe, 1901 to be more precise,

domains and may be capable of success

emerged ‘La Escuela Moderna’ in Catalonia,

in many endeavors or professions,

funded by the pedagogue Francesc Ferrer

they are confronted with unique

i Guardia. It was « a primary for children

decisions as a result of these choices.» 26

based on freethinking, rational, secular,

Multipotentialites are able to evolve in

universal and egalitarian education » 28a.

a multi/inter/trans-disciplinary state,

Ferrer «invested in a co-education of social

they are more than needed to bring a

classes and genders and aimed at dissolving

more creative point of view and connect

the intellectual and emotional prejudices

specilists.

that separated these groups »28b. La Escuela

By offering, from basic education, the

moderna closed its doors in 1906 but was

possibility for children to flourish as they

a model for many other. In 1909, Spain

are wired, they might find more naturally

counts 32 schools based on this model, later

a way to apprehend society and fellows,

it develops all over the world.

as they grow up. This is a crucial step

Nowadays, ‘Out of the Box’ is a Belgian

to enhance collaboration by allowing

initiative based in Brussels proposing a

one to express and grow to reach its full

one-year program to kids who dropped of

potential.

the school system, in order to work on selfconfidence and confidence in learning. Once

Funded in 1933 in North Carolina U.S., the

again, topics are intermeshed, the school

Black Mountain college was a new kind of

helps system outsiders, those who don’t

institution in which the study of art was

fit in the box, to reengage within society in

seen to be central to a liberal arts education,

a more meaningful way for themselves. It

and in which John Dewey’s principles of

helps acknowledge one ability of choice.

• Co-creation within educational institutions and entities

Later on I teamed up with Leif who was working on the emotional and rational influences on stables, on an actual level.

On January 13th 2016, Leif Czakai and I

It made sense to team up because I would

launched a co-creation workshop on the

say the most motivating was to launch

topic ‘The future and opportunities of the

learn how to moderate knowledge around

decreasing culture of family farms’. It was

the issue of bankrupt farmers; those two

a exciting and exhausting process that

subtopics were intimately interweaved

we created ourselves from scratch. We

and merged then to rise the main topic

learnt how to communicate, coordonate,

previously announced.

moderate, visualize and facilitate people collaboration in a specific case. But before proceeding on explaining the workshop design, I would contextualize it by the «why,

We have first been investigating and

what and how.»

testing out and refining participatory

I’ve been focusing my research on

design methods in two draft sessions

knowledge sharing because I truly believe

(e.g. CRASH TEST).

that we are shifting from this industry based society to a knowledge based

On the ‘D day’, networking naturally

one, where industry serves actually

happened between few participants. The

communication, trade of information, as

way we designed the session is certainly

well as energy. Then I encountered facts

not anodyne to it. Interests do exisits

about bankrupt farmers phenomenon

for all participants and many are actually

and it really took my attention. So the

shared. We were happy to see our efforts

way I approached the Food chain has

bringing some pieces of the puzzle

been: How can I make society benefit

together!

from all this knowledge (which is still valuable)? Assuming Farming to be the

On that same day, to bring the

biggest endeavor of mankind, so a great

participants to the Design Academy

resource in itself, I decided to focus on

Eindhoven was an immersive experience

reconversion of farmers knowledge within

in a creative place. An opportunity for

society.

people from the outside to step out of

their comfort zone and share opinions to find solutions.

« Which country does the most good to the planet ? »• Simon Anholt, TED Talk, July 2014 • https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_anholt_ which_country_does_the_most_good_for_ the_world?

http://www.goodcountry.org/

« Bayhingfor Blood or Doling Out Cash? »• The Economist, 2005

21a,21b

« Power Play » • Interview of Ben Schouten • VOLUME #45 - LEARNING

processes should be more promoted

Descent of Man • Charles Darwin, 1871

and implemented within the design

Citizen Ex • James Bridle • http://citizen-ex. com

« Permanent Learning », Editorial • Arjen Oosterman, VOLUME #45 - LEARNING

« Why Some of us Don’t Have One True Calling?» • Emilie Wapnick, TEDxBend, May 2015

Multipotentiality • wikipedia • https:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multipotentiality

Black Mountain College • wikipedia • https:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Mountain_College

28a,28b

« The book of aesthetic education of the Modern School » • Priscilla Fernandes, VOLUME #45 LEARNING

Creative schools have this amazing potential of opening up debates and participation because they are seen as a neutral ground to build on. Instead it often turns out into economicalbased partnership with companies. Cocreation, participatory, collaborative

educational agenda because moderating and mediating knowledge is an unavoidable main practice of the future. Most Businesses schools understood the monetary benefit of such practice and deliver collaborative businesscentered skills to their students. Design schools should propose an education for parcticipation facilitators.

TO OPEN UP

There is the authentic value of co-creation

We have seen that co-creation has become a branded term limiting the practice to its only business-centered interests. This is one of the numerous results of western domination over the globalized society. Though, participatory processes are much more than this. They explore all types of interactions within all types of contexts. They seem to find their authentic value in the equity among interests from each stakeholder involved, to reach common ones. Politics appear to slow down the expansion of equite interest by standing still in serving national and countries selfish wealth and prosperity. This hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t changed for the past 200 years. As the world is evolving faster and faster, due in particular to the growth of the Internet as an unlimiting connector, we need to redifine the role of social actors within that evolution. Designers are promised to play a key role for general development in the coming years. Educational tools are on the track to enhance the adaptation of that shift. Co-creation practices are not ÂŤthe futureÂť, they have always been and will be part of our evolution. What we can do, as creatives especially, is to recognize and reprocess the values lost in translation.

INDEX Books, Articles, Videos, etc.