Citizenship.design

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What is

A design field exploring how we engage with public life — and how design can empower it.

We know what UX Design is. We know what Service Design is. But what about Citizenship Design? This website is an open exploration of a design discipline that doesn’t yet have fixed boundaries. Is it about participatory democracy? Public services? Civic tech? Or something else entirely?

Join the exploration below.

Move and Resize the Circle to Show the Field’s Place

Place the dashed circle where you think this design field belongs on the axes: Individual ↔ Collective and Now ↔ Future. Design fields often operate across blurry boundaries — this map helps us visualise complexity in a way that's easier to discuss, reflect on, and build from.

future

now

individual

collective

💬I would love to hear your thoughts! What shaped your decision? What influenced your choice? Do you have other suggestions?

Choose a Name for the Field

Select the name that you feel best captures this emerging design field focused on democratic engagement, public services, and civic life. Design fields are shaped by the words we use to describe them — naming helps clarify intent, communicate values, and invite others into the conversation.

Citizenship Design

Strategic and big-picture, but lacks an explicit focus on experience and interaction.

Citizenship Experience Design

Broad and systemic, but "citizenship" might sound too academic or institutional. Or too long.

Citizen Experience Design

Clear and user-focused, aligns well with "User Experience Design" terminology, but could be confused with customer experience (CX).

Civic Design

"Civic" is already used in civic tech, civic engagement, and civic innovation, making it a natural fit, but whether blending in is a strength or a limitation is up for discussion.

Civic Experience Design

Aligns well with existing terminologies, like civic tech, civic engagement, and civic innovation as well as UX, but whether blending in is a strength or a limitation is up for discussion.

Public Experience Design

PXD has strong potential as an abbreviation, but is even less established than terms like Civic, Citizen, or Citizenship

💬 Share your thinking! Do you have another name in mind that better captures the spirit of this work?

Slide to Set the Field’s Focus

Use the sliders to show where you believe this field should focus its energy and imagination — from shaping physical civic spaces and public infrastructure, to building digital tools and platforms for participation; from individual empowerment to collective action. This design field can take many forms and span many domains — this task helps us understand what feels most urgent or essential today, without dismissing other areas of impact.

physical

digital

Urban Planning & Public Infrastructure Community Development & Place-Making

Government & Smart Cities Cultural Preservation & Civic Memory

Digital Public Services & E-Governance Civic Engagement & Activism

E-Participation & Political Engagement Platforms Data-Driven Policy Design & Policy Modeling

autonomous

relational

Self-Guided Civic Learning & Civic Services Personalized Political Tech & Decision Support Tools

Policy Feedback & Structured Public Consultations Citizen-Led Research & Open Data

Cross-Sector & Multi-Stakeholder Policy Innovation Grassroots Civic Networks & Movement Building

Radical Decentralization & Participatory Democracy Self-Organized Civic Networks & Neighborhood Assemblies

💬 What shaped your view? Did any experiences, practices, or examples come to mind while deciding? What influenced your focus?

Stretch Each Cube to Reflect the Field’s Role

Stretch each cube downward to indicate how involved you believe this design field should be in each phase of the double diamond process: Discover → Define → Develop → Deliver. Design disciplines show up differently across the double diamond framework — this task helps visualise where this field is making, or could make, its strongest contribution.

The taller the cube, the greater the involvement — with levels ranging from 0 (no role) to 4 (very central).

Deliver

Develop

Define

Discover

💬 Why did you assign more or less importance to certain phases? Did your decision come from your own experience or from where you wish design like this would show up more often?

Recommend a Resource for the Starter Kit

Share a resource — a book, article, podcast, project, or tool — that you feel offers something valuable or essential for understanding this field. What would you recommend to someone pursuing a career in this blurry discipline? Imagining a starter kit is a way to surface what feels foundational — not to define the field, but to reflect on the ideas, tools, and references that is essential for a practicioner.

💬 Why did you choose these resources? Has it shaped how you think about civic life, democracy, or design? In what way?