Writing new stories about the future can forge a means of transforming society. But exactly how does one do that? In the recent book Mobility Society. Society Seen through the Lens of Mobilities (Lars Müller Publishers, 2023), edited by Matthijs van Dijk and Lowie Vermeersch, designer and strategist Femke de Boer explains — in her essay ‘Reframing Societal Narratives’ — how a design approach based around ‘reframing’ may provide a clear process for building new stories.
Reframing Societal Narratives
There is an urgent need to think differently about mobility in the coming decades. Rapidly accumulating challenges in our societies and environment demand that we transition towards mobility systems that are more just, inclusive and sustainable. But in order to achieve lasting systemic change, it is not enough to design better products or policies. To fundamentally change mobility patterns, we need to shift the underlying stories and narratives that help people to make sense of the world. The Reframing method can help to envision alternative mobility futures based on new emerging narratives.
Narrative Change
As humans, we need stories to make sense of ourselves, each other and the world around us. Collective stories represent the values that hold communities and societies together. A system of stories that is based around a set of central ideas or beliefs forms a narrative. Narratives are at the heart of societies. They enable us to make decisions and to cooperate effectively.
"Reframing Narratives“ by Femke de Boer in "Mobility | Society. Society Seen through the Lens of Mobilities“ by Matthijs van Dijk, Lowie Vermeersch (eds.) (Lars Müller Publishers, 2023)
However, deeply rooted narratives within a society can also reinforce the human tendency to justify existing systems and resist change. In the domain of mobility, the dominant narrative highlights the role of mobility in economic and urban growth, individual speed and the efficiency of systems.1 Mobility is seen as a disutility in the sense that the most important goal is to limit the travel time of goods and individuals. Solutions to mobility problems are often sought in new “smart” technologies and services. As these solutions are based on the same efficiency narrative, we continue along the same path. We create faster and smarter means of transport that enable us to move more efficiently from A to B. But since people have a constant “travel time budget” (as explained by Marchetti’s constant), this only leads to travelling longer distances; taking up huge surfaces for infrastructure; and negatively impacting our environment, health and social cohesion. In many cities, car traffic has become so dominant that it restricts participation in public life and children’s independent mobility. This is the cost of preserving the status quo.
To enlarge our imaginative space, we have to distance ourselves from the current world of solutions and rethink the type of society we aspire to live in.
Because this has been the dominant narrative for decades, it has solidified in policies and infrastructure. This makes it increasingly difficult to imagine alternative mobility futures. The dominant frame leads to a narrowed view; it limits our ability to accept and understand new ways of thinking. Therefore, a key strategy for system change is the reframing of narratives. To enlarge our imaginative space, we have to distance ourselves from the current world of solutions and rethink the type of society we aspire to live in. The role of designers is to help see the world from alternative perspectives.
The Reframing Method
The Reframing method helps organisations, communities and citizens to understand their changing environment, envision alternative futures and develop sustainable strategies to navigate from the present into a desired future [Fig. 01]. As part of the method, narratives are used as a tool to understand and build possible futures that can serve as new reference points. Over the years, the Reframing method has been used on a wide range of societal challenges where the underlying narrative had shifted. In recent projects, the method has guided new narratives in the domain of mobility but also mental health, food systems and engineering education [Fig. 02].
Fig. 1 The Reframing method in Vision in Design, a Guidebook for Innovators by Paul Hekkert and Matthijs van Dijk (BIS Publishers, 2011)
In a current innovation program together with Deltares and other organisations, the method is being used to rethink the way we deal with flood risks in the Netherlands. The dominant narrative for handling floods in the country has long been characterised by the struggle against water, the luctor et emergo (“struggle and emerge”) narrative. In this narrative, water is seen as a collective enemy that can be controlled through collective cooperation and technological innovation. This narrative is deeply rooted in the Dutch identity and is a source of national pride.2
In this dominant technological narrative, safety from floods is seen as the highest value. The paradox is that this strong trust in technology has led to a low awareness in the Dutch population: citizens don’t know how to respond to floods themselves. With concerns about rising sea levels, climate change and biodiversity loss forming a threat to future generations, there is a need to rethink our relationship to water and floods. The Reframing method is used to explore what future alternative narratives might emerge to design alternative ways to deal with water. These take into account a wide range of societal values. One of them comprises the idea that water should flow rather than confining it between dikes. This ecocentric narrative is based on the idea of cooperation between “us” (humans) and “water” (sea, rivers). Likewise, seven other narratives have been developed that move away from purely infrastructural flood protection. On a regional scale, these narratives are used to design flood-resilient landscapes.
Fig. 2 Framework with future narratives. Reframing Studio, Future narratives on water safety (Toekomstige narratives rondom waterveiligheid), 2022. As commissioned for the programme from Kennis voor Keringen, Rijkswaterstaat, in cooperation with Deltares.
Unravelling Dominant Narratives
Narrative change starts with identifying the narratives you are trying to counter. This is easier said than done. We are often unaware or unconscious of our world views and narratives. They influence our thinking and perceptions subconsciously. Often, the dominant narrative in a society has become so normalised that we see it as neutral. We take for granted that it is unsafe for children to play in the streets, and that we have one parking space for every citizen. It is only when the dominant narrative is challenged or reflected upon that the values behind it become visible.
As designers and policy makers, we have to train ourselves to understand the past and present on a different level to that of nonprofessionals – not by looking at the world of products and systems but by understanding the underlying values and world views. The Reframing method therefore starts by deconstructing the current situation. What were the dominant conditions that have led to the current systems and solutions? And how has this narrative shifted through the years? By bringing the underlying narratives to the surface, we become more aware of our bias and assumptions.
By bringing the underlying narratives to the surface, we become more aware of our bias and assumptions.
Mapping Future Narratives
Our world is continuously changing. The next step, therefore, is to understand the future context of a city, region, country or continent. Although many aspects of the future remain uncertain and unpredictable, it is possible to foresee the larger drivers of change. The aim of forecasting is therefore not to predict the future but rather to understand the underlying driving forces that shape the future. From shifting global power to resource shortages and from ageing populations to migration – all of these may have an impact on the values, concerns, attitudes and behaviours of people in future societies.
A society is an extremely complex system, full of interdependencies and in constant flux. This means the world is never moving in one direction; there are always opposing forces. We want to travel faster but also increasingly feel the need to slow down. Digitalisation enables us to work anywhere while at the same time place matters more than ever. We experiment with horizontal power structures but also long for strong leadership. We see the rise of the degrowth movement while the ecomodernists emphasise the roles of technology and economic growth in meeting the world’s social, economic and ecological challenges. In the Reframing method, this ambiguity and complexity is dealt with by laying out opposing forces in a framework.
Frameworks can be helpful in identifying alternative narratives. Recognising different forces and how they interact with each other can help us to see new narratives that could emerge in future societies, and may have the potential to challenge the current mainstream narrative in a particular domain. Sometimes these alternatives are already emerging in society, sometimes they are actively created by groups in society as a counter-narrative.
By envisioning alternative futures, designers can give people the experience of how things could be different. We must first have a vision of what a better world could look like before we can build it.
Design for Debate
Different narratives reflect different points of view and represent groups of people with dissimilar concerns. Often, narratives also embody different social positions in society. Dominant narratives reflect the point of view of socially dominant classes in society: these narratives serve their interests. Think, for instance, of the meritocracy narrative, whereby you earn your success through talent and effort. Just work hard and you will succeed. In real life, however, people don’t have equal access to resources and opportunities.
Mapping the range of narratives that may emerge in society can therefore be helpful in understanding who does and doesn’t have a role and voice in current societal narratives. In sessions with diverse groups of stakeholders, a set of narratives can be used to understand different perspectives.
Bringing narratives to life though design is also helpful in making alternative futures more tangible and accessible, and in facilitating debate. What would a certain narrative mean for the world of solutions? By envisioning alternative futures, designers can give people the experience of how things could be different. We must first have a vision of what a better world could look like before we can build it. In this way, designers enable constructive dialogue between organisations, communities and citizens about their future.
"Reframing Narratives“ by Femke de Boer in "Mobility | Society. Society Seen through the Lens of Mobilities“ by Matthijs van Dijk, Lowie Vermeersch (eds.) (Lars Müller Publishers, 2023)
Shifting Narratives
Every design decision has consequences. Design impacts not only the lives of individuals but also society and the planet as a whole. The responsibility for us as designers is to be accountable for the things we create. Weighing up the long-term social, ecological and moral impact of different directions should therefore be an essential step in any design process. For designers and policy makers, this means thinking actively about the values we want to take responsibility for. Before we can start to design, we have to decide which narratives to counteract, which narratives to “bend” or transform and which narratives to foster and move into the centre of the discourse. Do we see mobility as an individual right or a common good? Do we want to continue to accelerate, or should we transition to a slower pace of life? And how is mobility defined by our relationship to the natural world?
The outcome of this phase in the Reframing method is a clear vision on the narrative(s) that can guide future goals, rules and solutions. A good narrative can serve as a reference point to articulate why a certain solution should exist and has societal value. For an alternative narrative to resonate, it has to be clear, understandable and desirable.
Do we see mobility as an individual right or a common good? Do we want to continue to accelerate, or should we transition to a slower pace of life? And how is mobility defined by our relationship to the natural world?
Our current mobility system is sometimes characterised as a monoculture dominated by cars. Most streets are therefore only optimised for the goals of moving people around and supporting a car-dependent lifestyle. Recognising that there are multiple mobility narratives can also help us to become more aware that the world of mobility does not have to be defined by just one dominant narrative. Depending on context and local conditions, certain narratives and solutions can be more appropriate than others. This could lead to a much more diverse mobility landscape than hitherto – one that does more justice to the different concerns within a society.
Present-day Choices
Design has the potential to shape our idea of the future. And how we think about the future can change how we think and act in the present. Our future depends on today’s actions. The last phase in the Reframing method is therefore about committing to a long-term vision and acting accordingly.
Desired future narratives are translated into transformational paths and actions for the short term. Many societal issues, like urban mobility and income inequality, are defined by complex interdependencies and conflicting logics. Transformational design starts with understanding how alternative narratives can influence systems on a micro, meso and macro level. This can entail conducting experiments to see how a system responds, but also challenging current world views.
Systemic change in mobility is therefore not only about technological innovation but also about social change. It is about changing our beliefs about what mobility means for us personally and for society as a whole. Language can play an important role in this. Our stories about mobility also shape our reality.
This extract is republished from the book Mobility Society: Society Seen through the Lens of Mobilities (2023), edited by Matthijs van Dijk and Lowie Vermeersch, with the kind permission of Lars Muller Publishers.
Bio
Femke de Boer works as a senior designer at Reframing Studio, based in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. As Senior Design Strategist, De Boer is passionate about finding tangible solutions to complex, societal design challenges. In addition to her work at Reframing Studio, de Boer is a board member of the Redesigning Society foundation and part of the Patterns of Life research project.
Notes
1 Brommelstroet et al, ‘Identifying, Nurturing and Empowering Alternative Mobility Narratives,’ Journal of Urban Mobility 2 (December 2022), pp. 1–9.
2 Lotte Jensen, ‘Floods as Shapers of Dutch Cultural Identity: Media, Theories and Practices’, Water History 13 (2021), pp. 217–33.
