4.3 Navigating Pluralism in Systemic Design: Global Perspectives and Diverse Vocabularies

Corresponding Chairs

Sine Celik, TU Delft

Hannah Goss, TU Delft

Co-Chairs

Jotte de Koning, TU Delft

Mari Suoheimo, AHO

Amina Pereno, Polito

Asja Aulisio, Polito

Silvia Barbero, Polito

Thomas Maiorana, UC Davis

Abstract

Systemic design integrates systems thinking with design practice to address complex societal and ecological challenges. It draws from a wide range of methodological traditions, each rooted in distinct epistemologies, values, and contexts. As the field matures and expands globally, designers and researchers increasingly work with overlapping aims but different vocabularies, frameworks, and ways of knowing, raising vital questions about coherence, legitimacy, and inclusivity. 

This diversity is a source of richness, but also practical and methodological tension. Practitioners often work under compressed timelines and limited resources, navigating dilemmas in selecting, adapting, or combining methods. The absence of consensus can create uncertainty about what constitutes rigorous or legitimate practice, particularly in high-stakes contexts like sustainability transitions, where approaches must be both inclusive and actionable. 

The purpose of this theme track is to create a space for dialogue and reflection on the methodological and epistemological diversity of systemic design. We invite academic papers that explore how systemic design is practiced, named, and made meaningful across different regions, cultures, and disciplines. 

We welcome: 

• Case studies of context-specific or culturally grounded systemic design practices or pedagogies 

• Methodological inquiries into how practitioners navigate plural frameworks, vocabularies, or disciplinary boundaries 

• Theoretical provocations or critical reflections on legitimacy, coherence, and pluralism in systemic design 

• Literature reviews looking at the methodologies and/or epistemologies of systemic design. 

We invite contributions including empirical studies, methodological advancements, theoretical provocations, and critical accounts of challenges or failed attempts, along with the insights they offer.

Keywords

Systemic Design, Design Methodologies and Epistemologies, Systems Thinking, System Mapping, Methodological Pluralism

References

Fitzpatrick, H., Luthe, T., & Sevaldson, B. (2024). Methodological Pluralism in Practice: A systemic design approach for place-based sustainability transformations. Contexts—The Systemic Design Journal, 2. 

Landa-Avila, C., Gómez, S.B., Celik, S., Vink, J., and Sweeting, B. (2022) Rethinking design for a complex world: the systems track, in Lockton, D., Lenzi, S., Hekkert, P., Oak, A., Sádaba, J., Lloyd, P. (eds.), DRS2022: Bilbao, 25 June - 3 July, Bilbao, Spain. 

Pereno, A. & Aulisio, A. (2025), Teaching systemic design to foster sustainability learning in non-design curricula, International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education.

Van der Bijl-Brouwer, M., & Malcolm, B. (2020). Systemic design principles in social innovation: A study of expert practices and design rationales. She Ji: The Journal of Design, Economics, and Innovation, 6(3), 386–407. 

Van der Bijl-Brouwer, M., Celik, S., de Koning, J., Nieuwborg, A., and Tromp, N. (2024) Systemic Design Reasoning for Societal Transitions, in Gray, C., Ciliotta Chehade, E., Hekkert, P., Forlano, L., Ciuccarelli, P., Lloyd, P. (eds.), DRS2024: Boston, 23–28 June, Boston, USA.