SHIFT LAB 1.0 TO SHIFT LAB 2.0: HOW THE LAB EVOLVED
Incorporating Indigenous epistemologies: land-based practices, ceremony, deep listening, asking elders for guidance, storytelling, relationship-building practices
Inspirations from other lab practitioners and gratitude towards them
Behaviour-change Science: relying on best practices and research across fields
16
There is no single way to design and lead a social innovation lab. A lab for us is less about beakers and Bunsen burners, and more about creating an experimental safe zone — a space to dig deep, build trust, remove fear, be bold, and find meaningful pathways forward as a collective. As there are many approaches, lab design and methodologies need to be tailored to the context of the particular lab. We drew on the following key approaches and practices.
Design thinking process: employing a “scrappy” humancentred design process to co-create solutions with community
Ethnography: searning and listening to people affected by the issue by hanging out with them in context, deep canvassing, capturing the environment with audio and visual tools
Whole-systems thinking: bridging experiences across public + private + non-profit + communitybased sectors
