Design: reshaping the world, building networks

It’s not just about lamps and armchairs: design research at Politecnico di Torino now extends beyond domestic interiors. It explores the surrounding territory, including its history, the people who live there, its infrastructure, production systems, businesses, and products to be promoted and rediscovered.

This research extends beyond the scope typically associated with design – the aesthetic and functional design of objects. It explores ways of creating networks between organisations and businesses, optimising production and making it sustainable. At a local level, and indeed from one corner of the globe to another, we see initiatives like the C4CEC project, which stands for the Centre for Circular Economy in Coffee. This project operates globally by uniting all the participants in the coffee supply chain.

An approach that emphasizes teaching innovation and effective communication, including visual elements, in all its rich complexity.

In Turin, design embodies a contemporary and multifaceted approach. Through various workshops, it integrates a diverse range of Italian and international projects aimed at enhancing and organizing what exists, what has existed, and what will exist.

The primary focus of this method is consistently centered on the user, or more accurately, the individual. This emphasis on understanding and addressing the needs of the user is likely a legacy of traditional design practices.

We asked Silvia Barbero, professor of Systemic Design at Politecnico, coordinator of the Systemic Design Lab and Vice-Rector for Communication and Promotion, to explain the characteristics of Systemic Design: a research and working method aimed at innovating the industrial production process and beyond, rethinking it to not only reduce but eliminate waste by systematically reusing it as a new raw material.

This cultural approach recalls and is effectively close to the circular economy, a concept that has recently come onto the scene and has been strongly promoted by the European Union for some years now. But systemic design, explains Barbero, goes further. It does not, indeed, concern the circularity of production within a single system – such as a company – but aims to connect different ones, viewing them as a single entity.

Barbero explains the concept: “Let’s consider how nature works: waste does not exist, the by-product of one activity is always reused and valued in another context; the waste produced by one living being always becomes nourishment for another. We must bear in mind that nature does not operate in closed loops, but within complex networks. Forcing a cycle to close within a single company is not the best approach and carries the risk of short-circuiting. In Systemic Design, the aim is not circularity within a single company, but rather to create a network of industrial relationships in which one company’s waste becomes a resource for another, mimicking nature’s ability to metabolise matter through broad and diverse interconnections”.

Since the method is based on building networks of relationships, it is essential to be familiar with all the resources and organisations in the local area. The Systemic Design Lab (Sys Lab to its friends) – the hub of research in the field of systemic design at Politecnico – has developed a multi-step methodology. Silvia Barbero explains: “At Sys Lab, we have developed an analytical methodology based on established methods and tools of Systemic Design. We combine exploration with the development of response systems. We start with an analysis of the existing system that is as comprehensive as possible, then explore all possible solutions and converge towards a systemic project, which is later developed, tested, and finally implemented within the real-world context”.

A crucial factor is the active involvement of stakeholders in the process. Barbero explains further: “During the initial research phase, which we call ‘holistic data collection’, we gather and process vast amounts of data, which must then be interpreted and shared with all stakeholders: from public authorities to local producers, the experts collaborating on the project, and the general public. By doing so, we collaborate with colleagues who specialize in communication design, particularly those who create visualization systems. These systems help identify relationships and extract meaning from numerous data points that would otherwise remain isolated in an Excel spreadsheet. Furthermore, they establish a common ground where participants, who come from diverse backgrounds, training, roles, and levels of expertise, can share their understanding of the data, using visual language to facilitate this exchange.”.

A focus on local resources and community empowerment lies at the heart of another strand of design research at Politecnico, which runs parallel to the previous one, albeit with constant overlaps and interconnections: design for cultural heritage and the local area, focusing on the storytelling and promotion of the material and cultural resources of these areas.

As Marco Bozzola, professor of Design for Cultural Heritage at Politecnico, explains: “Design research into historical and cultural heritage aims to identify methods, tools and approaches for enhancing local resources, not only tangible but also intangible ones.” We are not just talking about products, but about enhancing the context and the whole area, increasing its accessibility and awareness. This also means developing communication services designed to tell the story, using many methods and forms: we can start, quite simply, with a leaflet, move on to web design, and end up with on-site signage systems”.

It is not merely a matter of providing information, but also of contextualising it within a particular place, all the more so if that place holds special cultural significance. One of the key aims of research is to identify the most philologically sound approaches to ensure that communication is consistent with the landscape and that specific site, whilst respecting its history and natural environment.

Bozzola further explains: “The essence of a site must not be altered by communication, but rather revealed and made intelligible through interventions that are consistent with the history, meanings and very nature of the place. They should blend into the context without creating intrusive visual impacts, thereby preserving the original perception of the site. Every choice regarding colour, materials and positioning must respect the surrounding context and its constraints: for this reason, we also consult with the relevant stakeholders, including the Superintendency for Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape, where necessary”.

Designers therefore focus on creating functional fittings, interpretative systems and experiences that make it easier to engage with the space, allowing visitors to appreciate its value without the design intervention ever overshadowing the original work.

As Bozzola explains, “The project aims to ensure that visitors can fully enjoy and better understand their surrounding space.”

An essential aspect of cultural heritage design projects is the promotion and revitalisation of local craft traditions, which can act as a catalyst for tourism and growth: this is the case with the European Culturality project, led by Professor Elena Dellapiana, funded under the Horizon programme, and developed in partnership with 13 partners from 9 European countries. Bozzola explains: “In this case, the aim is to develop initiatives that can identify artisanal or local production contexts which may need to be revitalised in some way, so that they can become drivers of economic growth. This also includes attracting sustainable tourism – not the kind of hit-and-run visits, but tourism focused on immersing oneself in local traditions, for example, through visits to artisanal workshops. In this context, we are contributing by providing educational activities aimed at rediscovering and promoting the local artisan heritage. We will develop specific initiatives in the Carnia region to promote, in particular, the production of so-called scarpets, traditional Friulian footwear traditionally handmade by women from rags, using techniques perfected over the centuries.”

Pier Paolo Peruccio is professor of Design and teaches the History of Systems Thinking and the History of Visual Communication and Design; he is also director of the Sydere laboratory, which focuses on research, training, technology transfer and innovation in the field of systems design. Here, we discuss a particular aspect: the relationship between design and history.

“I’ve spent over twenty years studying the history of the relationship between design and systems thinking, and I can say one thing: systems design didn’t emerge in the year 2000; its roots go back as far as the 6th century BC, to Heraclitus. When the Greek philosopher states that ‘everything flows’, he is in fact articulating a fundamental principle of systems thinking: shifting the focus from the object to the context, from the product to the process, means looking not only at what is created, but at how it is created.”

Within this constant flow, Peruccio argues, it is essential to remember that history offers valuable tools for imagining the future: “Where, after all, does the word ‘project’ come from? From the Latin projectus, the past participle of proicere, meaning ‘to throw forward’.” Historical archives are not dusty collections of dead documents but living heritage, which can be continually reinterpreted and projected into the future. And I can give you a few examples.”

Adriano Olivetti's model. “From Adriano Olivetti, we learn how important it is to invest in people’s well-being. The factory was not merely a production site, but also served a social purpose. Olivetti provided services of the highest standard, from nurseries to staff accommodation. There was even a department dedicated to designing homes, conceived to offer all the services needed for a good quality of life.” Today, what does it mean to build homes equipped with all the necessary services? It means designing smart buildings, characterised by high-tech systems and devices. But an inevitable question arises: how can we ensure that all residents, including the elderly, can effectively use these technologies? Precisely to address this need, on behalf of EuroMilano SpA, we have designed and produced a handbook dedicated to the residents of the Cascina Merlata smart district in Milan. In the handbook, we have outlined the four fundamental systems of the home – lighting, water, air, and building systems – alongside the numerous services available in the neighbourhood. It serves both as an educational tool, guiding residents towards healthier and more sustainable lifestyles, and as a practical toolkit for managing their homes, accessing services, participating in community activities and organising new forms of collaboration among residents. Through a series of narratives and practical tips, the handbook guides users from the micro to the macro: from managing one’s own home to shared spaces, to the life of the entire neighbourhood. We have also dedicated a specific section to the topic of behaviour. With the support of a behavioural science expert, we sought to understand how to encourage concrete changes in people’s habits, because behaviour change is one of the most complex yet also most important aspects of systemic design. We went to Cascina Merlata to meet its residents, and it was precisely by listening to their needs that the manual came into being.”

 The exhibition conceived beneath the double wall between Tijuana and San Diego. “On the border between Mexico and the United States, between Tijuana and San Diego, there is a double wall built to hinder illegal immigration. We decided to work right here on the history and geography of immigration, telling its story through abandoned or lost objects left behind by migrants: in 2024, we organised an exhibition entitled Archaeology in Transit. We thus come to narrate another function of design: that of being a catalyst for change, an agent for improving social aspects as well. We launched a multidisciplinary research project, involving the various campuses of the Tecnológico de Monterrey, a Mexican university with branches in various cities across the country, where I spent a period in 2024 as a Visiting Professor: each researcher had to identify at least one object used by migrants. These objects narrate the suffering endured by people crossing the border in search of better living conditions, while also being particularly interesting from a design perspective. On one hand, these objects highlight the relationship between form and function. On the other hand, they demonstrate how items can be adapted into tools that influence behavior. More broadly, design can help transform both individual and collective actions, impacting not only the daily practices of migrants but also the decisions made by entrepreneurs, manufacturers, and other economic participants. For example, the first object is a nearly four-liter water bottle used by migrants crossing the Sonoran Desert, located on the border between Mexico and the United States. The bottle was originally made of white plastic, but this created a problem; during border police checks, it reflected light from torches. This led – and this is the extraordinary aspect of the story – to the creation of versions blackened with shoe polish, culminating, in 2009, in bottles produced by a Mexican entrepreneur directly from black plastic. We have also collected ropes, shoes modified with soles attached to prevent identifiable footprints, bracelets certifying payment of the fee owed to the traffickers, toys, holy images, blankets, and numerous items for women’s use. This is a significant finding, reflecting a shift in migration flows: today, it is mainly women and children who are migrating.”

Working with a typical Piedmontese waste product. “Rice production, historically very important in Piedmont, generates a key by-product: rice husks, the outer shell of the grain that is separated during processing. Although it already has some applications, a significant proportion of this material is still used for low-value-added purposes. Following one of the principles of Systemic Design, which involves transforming waste and by-products into new resources, we have chosen to experiment with the use of rice husks in the construction sector. Rice husks are a lightweight, durable and very bulky material, which makes them an interesting candidate as a partial substitute for the fine aggregates normally used in mortars. In collaboration with structural engineers, we have launched a series of experiments to assess its technical performance. The results obtained show that, in specific applications, this material can contribute to the development of lightweight mortars and new bio-based building materials, opening up interesting prospects from both an environmental and a design perspective.”

We asked Chiara Lorenza Remondino, head of the Multimedia Lab and lecturer in Innovation on the Systemic Design degree course, a seemingly simple question right away: how do you teach innovation?
“By teaching students to understand and respond to people’s real needs,” was her reply. “Innovation isn’t a sudden flash of genius,” Remondino continues, “but a process that starts with a deep understanding of local areas and people. This method requires tools, languages, and the energy of multidisciplinary teams where design interacts with sociology and project management. Sometimes innovation is something we may have seen before, but which, in that specific context, brings about significant improvement.”

Systemic innovation, therefore, does not pursue novelty at any cost, but rather what is best for a specific ecosystem. To truly understand a region, however, we cannot limit ourselves to institutional datasets. Systemic design, applied to the themes of innovation and communicating complexity, aims to bring to light the ‘geographies of the invisible’: those qualitative and perceptual aspects — such as a sense of security or liveability — that elude official statistics. These include, for example, the ‘geographies of waiting’, analysed by Remondino in urban suburbs and rural contexts, from Chiomonte to Cuba. Waiting is experienced across multiple dimensions: both physically (delays in services, such as buses that don’t arrive and lack of Wi-Fi) and as a life perspective, encompassing the long-term desires, aspirations, and expectations of students, women, and working individuals.

Using counter-data (counter-narratives), the research team captures these different nuances. Focus groups and co-design workshops help create visual maps that overlay real-life experiences onto the cold, hard figures produced by institutions, thereby restoring dignity to the human perspective. The results, translated into visual form, serve as the starting point for developing guidelines, then a concept, and finally the project itself.

The Avenida Italia international cooperation project in Cuba is a tangible case of how design can make a difference in times of crisis. In a collapsing economy, Remondino highlights the emergence of new local entrepreneurs engaged in 'mipimes' (small and medium-sized enterprises that focus on sustainability and creativity) as genuine sources of hope.

The project is supported by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) and Unioncamere Piemonte, in collaboration with ONDi (Oficina Nacional de Diseño), the Cuban state body responsible for the management, promotion and development of design in Cuba. It employed a “multi-layered” mapping approach across Havana and the rural area of Pinar del Río. The team worked in the field, involving university students, entrepreneurs, shopkeepers and residents: the output is not a simple static report, but exploratory tools such as ‘dynamic databooks’, which allow users to overlay information and navigate between correlations.

The need to strike a balance between accuracy and simplification is often discussed in scientific communication. Remondino’s systemic design rejects this dichotomy. Complexity should not be ‘simplified’ (at the risk of distorting it), but made accessible.

As Remondino explains: “We also work on highly complex projects, which risk being understood only by experts in the same field. We study the project, we study the language, we find the right tool to convey the content, and we design the communication strategy. This applies both to experts addressing other experts, but above all to specialists addressing the general public.”

An example of a graphical representation of complexity is to visualize and correlate datasets containing large amounts of information from a telecommunications company, making them accessible to management.

The aim is to create allocentric (altruistic) communication centred on the user, which does not withhold information but constructs pathways of meaning that make it accessible. To achieve this, the design draws on multimedia tools: photo-viz, video-mapping, documentaries and relational diagrams. “A method that is also particularly useful in schools, given how much visual communication can help young students: just think of Charles Joseph Minard’s famous 1969 infographic on Napoleon’s Russian campaign, which visually illustrates the dwindling size of the army due to the ever-increasing number of casualties. Consider how tools of this kind can aid learning.”

Remondino concludes: “The true human value of this approach became evident during a presentation at the ADI Design Museum in Milan. A student expressed her gratitude, saying that for the first time, she didn’t feel 'different' despite her dyslexia, thanks to the visual method I used for organizing information. In this context, design goes beyond mere communication; it serves as a tool for inclusion, enabling every individual to explore knowledge at their own pace.”