M A K I N G S E N S E & M E A N I N G¶
M A K I N G S E N S E A N D M E A N I N G
Josephine Bourghardt 13.02.23
What does it mean to make sense and meaning?
Making sense of the world is a part of human nature, and we do this in many different ways, through words and symbols, through artefacts and spaces, through body language, thinking, doing, feeling. By making sense of our surroundings we search for a meaning to be a part of them, to exist with and within them. We do this in different ways and see things from different perspectives that become interrelated and we make sense and meaning of the world together. Without others I don’t believe there would be much meaning of even trying to find meaning. We are connected to other people and the world around us, it is a collaborative process of many understanding each other and the world around us, so I have also chosen to do this in a collaborative manner From the many lectures we have had we’ve spoke n about design from different perspectives and
In the words of Brian Cox, “Meaning is a property of intelligence.” This statement implies that as intelligent beings, we have the ability to assign meaning to the world around us. The cognitive psychologists Robert R. Hoffman, Gary Klein, and Brian M. Moon define sensemaking as “a motivated, continuous effort to understand connections in order to anticipate their trajectories and act effectively” (Kolko, 2010). Coming from a background in design I recognise the process of sensemaking as part of the design process to identify and forge connections to make meaning out of data through interpretation and form. To constantly search for patterns and relationships and understand the current or past connections in order to anticipate future trajectories and act accordingly. This process of making sense through finding and connecting different patterns and relationships are what I have valued and what I feel good at, but the space I have been acting on this started to at some point lose meaning. I have a background in product and furniture design and although the impact these products have on peoples lives are on daily basis and can affect health and the environment for the better, I felt stuck in a narrow alley of being in a space that was too small for the questions I had about the world around me and the impact of the things I made.
‘As designers, we have the power to shape the world around us through the decisions we make and the actions we take. Whether it is the design of an object or the design of a system, our choices have far-reaching consequences.’ - Tomas Diez, educational Notion
During the past couple of years I have tried to make sense of where I place myself in this world and how I would like to use my skills and efforts to take active actions that benefit the more, to create meaning for myself in what I do and create meaning for and with others with what I do. It was the quest to find meaning that led me to become a designer, to solve problems through creative solutions to improve the quality of life for people and the planet. A journey of zooming in and out to understand in what context I should place myself, where I can be the most useful and how to embody this. Choices were made from different opportunities that arose in this search of making a meaningful life for myself in what I do and for others with what I can do, and the further I get in this search the more I understand that it will keep evolving through new connections of people places and actions. Quoting Chat GPT ‘design has the potential to make a positive impact on society and the environment by creating solutions that address pressing issues, improving user experience, promoting sustainability, fostering social inclusion, and spreading awareness, design can reconfigure systems of extraction by utilising principles such as: circular economy: designing for resource conservation and waste reduction, biomimicry: emulating nature’s systems and processes for sustainable resource use, decentralisation: shifting control and ownership of resources away from centralised entities, collaborative governance: involving all stakeholders in decision-making to ensure equitable distribution of resources, innovation: creating new technologies and systems that enable sustainable extraction practices’. I agree with this statement and it aligns with how I would describe design, but to add to this design is based on action and learning by doing, a channel to communicate and visualise difficult topics and alternative realities, creating an experience for others to understand.
‘Design is not just about aesthetics or proportions, it is also about the attitude we have towards the world and the choices we make. The meaning and purpose in design are personal perceptions that translate into actions. However, it is important to remember that these actions also have a collective impact and require a coordinated effort at multiple scales.’ - Tomas Diez, educational Notion
As quoted in the previous paragraph the actions we take have far- reaching consequences and a collective impact, and thus my perception of what design is and the scale that I have been working in has changed leading me into a space of broad and interdisciplinary questions of the world we are living in and what world we want to live in. It is an uncomfortable situation of being in an unknown space, feeling lost in where I want to go and where I could be useful. A feeling that origins from constant questioning of oneself and the world around us. A space that I can literally say that I am constantly searching and moving towards as I also deep down believe that when in unease and completely out of the comfort zone we have a greater ability to make changes. At the moment I am studying the second term of MDEF and I have during these two terms tried to work hard on accepting and embracing this feeling of lostness instead of trying to dismiss, analyse or ‘solve’ it. According to Dr. Akomolafe the first step toward emancipatory wholeness is finding comfort in the unknowable, and embracing bewilderment and wonder (Atmos, 2023). I would say that it is easier said than done, we are still living in a world where we are constantly met with pressures to achieve more, act faster and be better, so how is that done when you have a feeling that you don’t know what you are doing? How do you learn and lead in times of disruption when you cannot rely on the experiences of the past? A question posed by Otto Scharmer about 20 years ago and resulted in the method and framework for the U Theory. It is an awareness-based method for changing systems blending systems thinking, innovation, and leading change from the viewpoint of an evolving human consciousness. It draws attention to the invisible source dimension of the social field, to the quality of relationships that we have to each other, to the system, and to ourselves. The theory is visualised as a U where we start at the top of the U and as we move down one side of the U we allow ourselves to connect to the world that is outside of our institutional bubble. When at the bottom of the U, we can connect to the world that emerges from within. This space requires us to drop everything that isn’t essential where the process of letting-go of our selves as we have been and are establishes a subtle connection to a deeper source of knowing before moving up the other side of the U as a better future self. The essence of presencing is that these two selves—our current self and our best future Self—meet at the bottom of the U and begin to listen and resonate with each other. When this subtle threshold is crossed, nothing remains the same and you begin to operate with a heightened level of energy and sense of future possibilities that could begin to function as an intentional vehicle for an emerging future (Sharmer, 2022).
The past year leading up to joining the Master in Design for Emergent Futures has been a path leading to the bottom of the U and I can feel how my two selves are connecting, creating this feeling of lostness when my outer and inner self are debating. This does although mean that I am moving forward and it helped me to understand what Dr. Akomolafe means with finding comfort in the unknown and embracing it. My journey will keep moving by doing and acting towards becoming a one with what I do and with who to move towards the other side of the U. In a time of environmental, social and personal uncertainty I will do this by slowing down, not in speed but in awareness or presence, to listen to my inner self that I can hear has something to say about my outyerself and what I am doing. ‘To slow down is to hack the machine, like we’re taking on other forms of body that allow us to penetrate into different kinds of realities—other worlds’ as Dr Akomolafe says (Atmos, 2023).
We need to work together as one for regenerative design and futures.
https://www.innerdevelopmentgoals.org/framework The Inner Development Goals (IDGs) is a not for profit and open source initiative. The framework of skills and qualities relate to what is needed in order to successfully work with complex societal issues, in particular those identified in UN’s Agenda 2030 and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Some similar frameworks have a broader scope, such as skills and qualities that are important for general well-being or for empowering individuals to lead satisfying lives.
REFERENCES
Atmos (2023). Dr. Bayo Akomolafe on Slowing Down in Urgent Times. [online] Atmos. Available at: https://atmos.earth/dr-bayo-akomolafe-on-slowing-down-in-urgent-times/.
Diez, T. (2023). Notion – The all-in-one workspace for your notes, tasks, wikis, and databases. [online] Notion. Available at: https://mdef.notion.site/mdef/Master-in-Design-for-Emergent-Futures-2022-23-54743dad9b244abba796420cd0642cec [Accessed 10 Mar. 2023].
Kolko, J. (2010). Jon Kolko - Sensemaking and Framing: A Theoretical Reflection on Perspective in Design Synthesis. [online] Jon Kolko. Available at: https://www.jonkolko.com/writing/sensemaking-and-framing.
Sharmer, O. (2022). The Essentials of Theory U. [online] U-school.org. Available at: https://www.u-school.org/theory-u.