Decolonising service design in government - an open discussion [90 mins]

"Coloniality exists when patterns of power that emerged as a result of colonialism endure...” Wangũi wa Kamonji. 

In government service design in the UK and across the world, colonial legacies shape everything from our contexts and practices to tools and language. 

This often means we are perpetuating inequities rather than addressing them.

This session will be an open discussion (not a talk) where participants move between listening, reflecting and sharing. We hope to honour and make space for a multiplicity of perspectives, stories and experiences.

Colonialism represents profound intergenerational injustice and violence which continues to impact the more-than-human, lands and peoples in and beyond countries with colonial histories. 

In this session we will hold space to discuss the challenges and strategies for unlearning and challenging entrenched colonialism in our practice. We will propose pathways to reorient toward decolonisation that we can commit to together.

We will set the context and some prompts for discussion.  We invite you to enter with an open mind, curiosity and care for yourself and others. Where we can, we will prioritise the voices of those most impacted by oppressive systems.

No prior knowledge of the topic is needed. This session will scratch the surface of an expansive and challenging topic that can’t be fully explored in one session. We seek to hold the complexity, confusions and questions that may come up beyond the session, rather than seeking quick answers and solutions. Be prepared to come away with more (richer? different?) questions rather than answers!

'Pay what you can' donations

It takes time and energy for us to create this event, hold the space and facilitate this discussion. We believe that people should be paid for their labour. We also believe that everyone should be able to join this conversation and do this work, regardless of their financial position. 

For all of these reasons, we offer these tickets on a 'pay what you can' basis. Please make a donation to whatever value you are able or which you feel the ticket is worth 🙏🏽, and if you are not able to make any donation we welcome you with open arms. 

If you have the means, you're welcome to pay it forward for others who can't to donate. 

We will donate 20% of all donations to this event to emergency relief in Gaza via the UNRWA.

Your hosts

Clara Greo is an independent designer, researcher and trainer. She is trying to bring equity and justice into public sector digital transformation by building community and connection. She’s a mum, an immigrant, a part-time worker and a grieving daughter.

Sonia Turcotte is a freelance designer and researcher, interested in building more equitable, abundant futures. Their focus is animal-human relations and ecology. They would like to see the end to anthropocentrism and human supremacy.

Eloise Smith-Foster is a freelance decolonial futures facilitator, service and strategic designer and climate justice activist focused on eco-social transformations. She cares deeply about contributing to more liberatory services, organisations and futures for all, including the more-than-human. Current roles include Falay Transition Design Collective Member, Design for Planet Expert at the Design Council, Jury Member at Creative Conscience and Associate Lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University.

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Header image is Nightime Wanderers by Lenny K Photography on flickr and shared under CC BY 2.0 Attribution 2.0 Generic