2.3 Design and the Public Sector: Contemporary Methods and Practices

Corresponding Chairs

Scott Schmidt, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, United States

Sabine Junginger, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom

Co-Chairs

Federico Vaz, Royal College of Art, London, United Kingdom

Marzia Mortati, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy

Abstract

Around the world, governments are increasingly turning to design to address pressing and complex challenges from digital transformation to service delivery. Sponsored as the official track of PoGoSIG, this track explores the evolving relationship between design and the public sector through the lens of contemporary issues. It highlights how design methods are being applied to reimagine public services, drive institutional change, and foster participatory models of governance. 

Building on our tracks from DRS2022 and DRS2024, this track highlights active projects and recent initiatives that show the real-time impact of design within government, policy development, and public administration. It seeks examples of how governments are using new technologies such as big data and algorithmic tools to redesign services while also inviting work that uses creativity-based methods such as co-production and participatory design to bring citizens, society, and institutions into closer dialogue.

We welcome international submissions that reflect on current practices, examine emerging methods, and offer insights into the conditions that are enabling design to thrive in the public sector today.

We are interested in papers related to:

• Design methods and human-centered design as drivers of institutional reform and public sector innovation

• The role of emerging technologies—big data, algorithms, and digital tools—in redesigning government services

• Participatory and creativity-based approaches for strengthening dialogue between citizens, society, and institutions

Keywords

service, public, methods, practice, policy, governance

References

Bason, C., & Austin, R. D. (2021). Design in the public sector: Toward a human centred model of public governance. Public Management Review, 24(11), 1727–1757. https://doi.org/10.1080/14719037.2021.1919186

Junginger, Sabine. “Design Research and Practice for the Public Good: A Reflection.” She Ji: The Journal of Design, Economics, and Innovation, vol. 3, no. 4, 2017, pp. 290–302, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sheji.2018.02.005.

Mortati, M., Schmidt, S., and Mullagh, L. (2022) Design for Policy and Governance: New Technologies, New Methodologies, in Lockton, D., Lenzi, S., Hekkert, P., Oak, A., Sádaba, J., Lloyd, P. (eds.), DRS2022: Bilbao, 25 June - 3 July, Bilbao, Spain. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2022.1066

Schmidt, S., and Mortati, M. (2024) Past, present, and future: Understanding the expanse of design for policy and governance, in Gray, C., Ciliotta Chehade, E., Hekkert, P., Forlano, L., Ciuccarelli, P., Lloyd, P. (eds.), DRS2024: Boston, 23–28 June, Boston, USA. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.135