How To Shift Power Relations Of Speculation

‘How do we shift the power relations of speculation? How can design education create a culture where subaltern voices have visibility and power? Can CSD enable the democratisation of speculation?’ p178

• participation and engagement:
  ‘As with all forms of design, it’s important to acknowledge your work is both relational and political in nature. CSD is no different: future speculation or world built defines a set of relationships with imagined users. By engaging with people and asking for their insight and help, CSD can start to understand the diversity of hopes and fears that people have about our current condition. Therefore it’s important to ask; who’s inculcated in our future imaginary? Is this a future our users want?’

• authorship and benefactors:
  _Once a relational dynamic has been established, it’s essential to ask; who benefits from the work? Engaging people in your speculation is important to ensure that you don’t make assumptions about people’s lives, however, ensure that you don’t use people as a “resource” to enrich your project. Guarantee that authorship and benefits are distributed and co-owned.

• inclusion and exclusion
  _Be aware of who you include in your speculation; whose lives are you imagining? Whose challenges are you representing? Who are you excluding? Make sure that you think of people beyond your own experience of the world, because they may have a different future.

• maintenance and social infrastructure
  _As you speculate on alternative futures, think of how and who maintains the worlds that you are building. Who is fixing the infrastructure when it fails? Who cleans the streets and workplaces when your gaze is elsewhere? All futures are maintained; those that sit at the periphery of design’s privileged gaze are the ones we need to represent.

• feedback and reflection
  _Once your project is “finished”, show it to people and explain your ideas. Get feedback on the world / scenario you have created. Try to understand how it sits with their understanding of the world. This feedback should come from a diverse group of people inculcated in your future. Use the conversation to learn about the process and practice of the imagination.

p178-179