CoDesign: An Inclusive Innovation Process
Our team has been working on the after school art education for youth, which has been pivoting in many directions as we move along with the process. In order to create a fully functional summer program that addresses the needs of the youth in the community we are targeting, there must be a framework developed as a foundation before moving forward. I find that it is greatly relevant right now to mention this pivot, as the importance and recognition of co-design grows amongst designers and community organizations. Developing a summer program for the youth starts with developing a framework that has been co-created with the youth and the people concerned, in order to deeply understand their needs and actually move in the direction of making a significant impact in resolving complex social issues.
“Children born within disadvantaged households are more likely to experience disadvantage throughout their lifetime, and approximately one in four people who find their way out of poverty return again within two years.” (Walk alongside). Getting people on board with this idea of co-creation can be tough, especially when there’s no quantitative way to evaluate the outcomes, and it can start feeling overwhelming as we approach issues of great magnitude. However, approaching the process in a positive and inclusive way can lead to thriving solutions that are sustainable and that can shift based on community development and change. Creating a product or service that can shift and is receptive requires creating a space for individuals to feel agency and creativity.
Partnering with the people who face these social problems head on allows us to evaluate whether an initiative is effective in its context or not. And so, in our process, we have identified a recurring theme with all the different art organizations that are in this field, which is the inclusion of youth and their families, to create a cultural context of education.
‘True parent engagement is centered in the holistic needs of the children and their families, rather than the needs of the school.’ (Walk alongside). They then become creators instead of passive actors.
One characteristic a complex system has, as described by Dave Snowden, is that the “interactions are nonlinear: minor changes can produce disproportionately major consequences.” (Transitional design). In turn, our process of creating a framework is non-linear as well, as it considers and plans an integrated arts education youth program that is ever-evolving and molding based on needs of the youth and their families.
So how do we move forward if the outcome of an intervention is unpredictable? By working systemically, socially and experimentally, we can create conditions that affect a system’s arrangement, directing it toward a desirable state, which is our northern star of resiliency.
“Design is wonderful. It is powerful. We need design for all of the things for which it is powerful.
But social complexity and societal shifts, even local and relatively small-scale ones, are more than design can take on by itself. We need a synthesis of design with other approaches and methods.” (Transitional design). So as designers, we found our role to be critical, not in the creation of a solution, but in the creation of a space that allows for co-design, that can later inform this solution.
So what does it mean to engage the youth? Taking on a holistic approach that combines arts education with support for adolescent development, motivates them while keeping them interested and involved in the programs. Teens are offered a chance to express themselves and their imaginations in a safe environment that is flexible and conducive to informal mentoring relationships. Social interactions are built into the learning experience, with leadership development opportunities, teamwork, and other skills.
This inclusive and innovative approach is expressed through the concept of power sharing (National Guild for Community Arts Education), where the youth become co-creators of a program that reflects their needs, instead of us creating it for them. With the help of facilitators, youth build artistic skills while participating directly in a process of decision making and meaning making that helps them meet critical developmental needs.
The importance of power sharing among adolescents and between adolescents and adults is that it offers youth an opportunity to actively participate as resources, problem solvers, and community builders, rather than simply being recipients of services.
A youth development model for arts education combines development of life skills with instruction in the arts. Within this model, students gain skills that transfer to other parts of their lives through arts instruction that sets high expectations, encourages positive risks, and promotes leadership. At the same time, students engage more deeply in the arts because they are given real responsibilities that build on their inherent strengths.
It is also important to note the benefits that the organizations gain from adopting this approach of co-creating with the youth. First and foremost, it adds value to any organization, by touching the lives of a group that often lacks meaningful opportunities to engage with their peers and adult mentors. Not to mention, their insights, opinions, and energy can help drive what a program structure works best for them, how to carry outreach, and how they grew as individuals and artists as a result of the organization.
“When genuine engagement occurs, the organization will:
- Create programs that are teen centered, not adult directed
- Offer empowering arts experiences that meet teens’ needs
- Involve youth voices in the organization as participants, advisers, and advocates
- Contribute high-quality arts education options to the community’s out-of-school time offerings for teens” (National Guild for Community Arts Education).
