Almost exactly a year ago I wrote my first blog post regarding the beginning of my journey in the MACAL program, and first thoughts of the design challenge process. A few of the same feelings have remained constant throughout the year- the excitement and intrigue about the potential of this methodology to create solutions- and the strive to embrace issues from as wide of a transdisciplinary lens as possible.
One question I postered in my first reflection was wondering “what the next step is, and how this process can be transcribed into action. I believe this is a valuable tool to explore in the quest to climate adaptation, but I need to learn more about testing and implementation as steps in the process.”
Which is exactly what happened. Through the various steps of the design thinking process- prototyping, ideating, testing, more iteration and collaboration, I feel like I know exactly what the next steps would be for our design.
Along with the overall success of the design thinking challenge many things occurred which I did not anticipate. First and foremost, the fractality of diving deeply into an issue, and being so intentional about the process. And to my surprise, after hours and hours of brainstorming, testing and feedback- it was often the simplest ideas and concepts that held the most potential. Something as simple as sharing a story could be a solution.
From a practical level, the duration of the assignment and weight of the question were draining at times. There was undoubted value in having the design thinking challenge question in the back of our minds while taking each subsequent course, however after about six months of it, it began to become quite wearing. Tackling this process as a team was an absolute necessity, the intelligence and resilience of my teammates were exemplified at every step.
I would probably have to write a whole novel to relay all the revelations, reflections and learnings that occurred this past year. However, since presenting our final design framework last week there has been one concept that has overwhelmingly been a part of my reflections- that of right relations.
Looking back now, the first reading we were assigned was about right relations and decolonization practices in climate action work. In research from Gram-Hanssen et al. (2021) they share that “[t]ending to these relations is a prerequisite for tending to climate change itself.” In CALS 503, before diving into risk assessment methodology we unpacked Indigenous New Zealand author Linda Tuhiwai Smiths work “Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples” where she illustrates the incongruencies with advocating for Indigenous voices in Western research paradigms (Hall & Smith, 2000). Beginning to understand how positionally, and unknowingly I may be perpetuating colonial systems made me completely rethink our design thinking challenge. And now I feel like I have a better foundation for understanding how Indigenous practices can be and should be incorporated into climate action work.
Storytelling became an integral part of my team’s prototype, and the basis for establishing trust and connections with participants in hopes to bridge gaps and focus on commonalities. This practice, which we didn’t necessarily have a name for- but we understood the intention of and potential result of was later defined by Michael Lickers. In our Unit 4 seminar, Mike shared a traditional Haudenosaunee greeting practice called a “Thanksgiving Address” which involves attendees to share and ultimately unite the group on common ground (Lickers, Personal Communication, March 14, 2022). This intentional practice, to reframe a conversation before it had even begun was exactly the type of practice we wanted create in our prototype. Sharing stories is something everyone does, and yet somehow this practice seems to be largely absent in professional settings. As Gram-Hanssen et al. (2021) said, addressing relationality is paramount to addressing climate change as they share root causes. After a year of reflecting how this can be done- and spur action, sharing stories to connect people to how they are similar rather than different is approach I would recommend to anyone willing to listen.
“Our awareness can grow bigger than our disturbance”- Young (2020)
References
Gram-Hanssen, I., Schafenacker, N., & Bentz, J. (2021). Decolonizing transformations through ‘right relations.’ Sustainability Science, 17(2), 673–685. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-021-00960-9
Hall, T. D., & Smith, L. T. (2000). Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples. Contemporary Sociology, 29(3), 567. https://doi.org/10.2307/2653993
Repairing emotional isolation by reawakening deep nature connection | Jon Young | TEDxGrandPark. (2020, April 23). YouTube. Retrieved June 10, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMWSvUp0CYk&t=476s