Researching Climate through Design

Conchis, Erika (2024) Researching Climate through Design. Design Management Journal, 19 (1). pp. 66-77. ISSN 1942-5074

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Abstract

This paper explores how design can be used as a process of enquiry in climate research in collaboration with climate scientists. The research discusses the value of design in navigating the complexities of transdisciplinary climate research by engaging with the mess and researching everyday climate actions. The ordinary can be described as the realm of social life where the repetition of daily cycles that we learn is eventually taken for granted. Climate actions that are situated in this ordinary are vital to delivering larger‐scale transformations and achieving carbon reductions. However, climate scientists across disciplines often overlook the importance of engaging with the messiness of such climate initiatives – such as understanding how ordinary climate initiatives emerge, impact a place, and move across contexts. As a result, academics and policymakers tend to focus on global and high‐tech responses to climate issues. However, by shifting our focus on the mundane, we can research and present situated perspectives of climate actions that are crucial to achieving carbon emission reductions and improving resilience to the impact of climate change at different scales. This paper presents theoretical grounding for design to be used as an integral part of ‘ordinary’ climate research.