The role of the social entrepreneur when designing for social sustainability

This chapter discusses methodological and conceptual social design principles that can be related to the strengthening of social sustainability, in particular in the context of social entrepreneurship that strives to take future generations in consideration. Social design focusses on needs, social and democratic participation, and access to goods and services by the widest possible range of users. While some approaches to sustainable development focus on macro-level changes, social design is concerned with individuals’ or groups’ quality of life. This chapter argues for the importance of encounter with a pluriverse of knowledge and interrelational vulnerability when designing for social sustainability. The teaching case study presented stems from the professional social entrepreneurship masters programme at Roskilde University, where students engage with external stakeholders to collaborate in solving a mutually defined social sustainability problem. The chapter presents an analysis of how the embodied learning and ethics of the designer affects power dynamics and participation outcomes in the design process. Thus, it gives insights into how the role of the social entrepreneur is to be encountered as interactional and embodied. It underlines the importance of thinking about the designer as a participant in learning throughout the social change process. The chapter furthermore reflects on how social designers’ awareness and use of embodied learning may carry new views on impact, and gives suggestions for tangible design principles for social sustainability.