Social Design
43 items
The intersection of shrinking society and epistemic justice / Extracting structural patterns via 5-lab integration
Reading the intersection of shrinking society and epistemic justice through the observational axes of ISVD's five labs (agnotology / machikarte / public-asset-ppp / social-design-foundations / traffic-noise). Presents the qualitative dimension of 'whose voice shrinks first' and shows three cross-lab common mechanisms and their link to counter-design.
Comparison of Similar Labs / Research Institutions Abroad — Profiles of 7 Institutions and ISVD's Position
Selecting 7 overseas labs active in the fields of social design, policy design, civic tech, and epistemic justice, we compare them in a unified structure (founding year / methods / outputs / key figures / similarities and differentiators with ISVD). We clarify the reception status in Japan and what ISVD adopts and does not adopt.
Literature Map: The Genealogy of Social Design Evaluation — 14 Years of English-Language Scholarship and the Gap in Japanese
From the 2012 Social Impact Design Summit to the 2026 framework paper for assessing design's social impact, this literature map organizes the English-language genealogy of evaluating and critiquing social design through seven verified sources. It distinguishes two strands, framework-building and critical theory, and shows the gap in Japanese-language reception.
Sixteen Years of MindLab Denmark — Reading a Government Policy Innovation Lab through the Six-Field Integration Model
This note analyzes MindLab, the Danish cross-ministerial policy innovation lab that operated from 2002 to 2018, through the six-field integration model of Social Design Foundations. In contrast with Kamiyama (community-led NPO type), it presents the structure of a top-down, inside-government model and the structural reasons behind its 2018 closure, along with three pitfalls when transferring the model to a Japanese context.
Twenty Years of Kamiyama, Tokushima — Reading Rural Social Innovation through the Six-Field Integration Model
This note analyzes twenty years of practice in Kamiyama, Tokushima (population 5,000) — artist-in-residence programs, satellite office attraction, and the founding of Kamiyama Marugoto College — through the six-field integration model of Social Design Foundations. It presents both the limits of transferability and three or four generalizable principles.
Operationalizing the Six-Field Integration Model — A Four-Stage Mapping from Theory to Practice
This essay presents a four-stage procedure for translating the six-field integration model of social design foundations (social policy, agnotology, epistemology, participatory design, EBPM, civil society theory) into concrete practice. It maps the procedure onto the empirical work of ISVD's four other labs (agnotology, machikarte, public-asset-ppp, traffic-noise) and reports three challenges observed during implementation.
The Genealogy and Critique of Design Justice
Tracing the intellectual genealogy of Design Justice, examining its contributions and limitations, and drawing out implications for social vision design in Japan.
The Lineage of Deliberative Democracy
From Habermas to Fishkin: mapping the major theorists of deliberative democracy and the limits of their reception in the Japanese context.
Institutional Design Theory and the Commons
Tracing the lineage of institutional design theory through Ostrom, North, and Putnam, and examining the development of commons theory. Exploring points of connection to social vision design.
The Limits of Nudge and Behavioral Design
This note surveys the logic and policy applications of nudge theory and behavioral design grounded in behavioral economics, then examines their structural limits as seen from the perspective of social vision design.
The Boundary Between Speculative Design and Social Vision Design
Where do Dunne & Raby's Speculative Design and social vision design overlap, and where do they part ways? Interrogated through the genealogy of critical design.
What Are the Seven Axes of SDI (Social Design Index)? — A Guide to Scoring Logic and Interpretation
ISVD's Social Design Index (SDI) is a diagnostic tool that scores social design projects across seven axes. This article walks through what each axis means, how scoring works, and how to read benchmark cases. SDI is not a ranking tool — it is a frame for visualizing the structural strengths and weaknesses of a project.
Methodology Note: 'Reading the Structure' — The Theoretical Foundations of ISVD's Three-Section Frame
Why does every ISVD article follow the sequence 'What is happening → Context and background → Reading the structure'? Drawing on six scholarly traditions — from critical discourse analysis to structuration theory — this note lays bare the methodological rationale.
Methodology Note: Why Data-Driven Visualization Constitutes an Intervention Against Epistemic Injustice
From Florence Nightingale's coxcomb charts to Data Feminism, tracing the history of data visualization as an epistemological practice that 'makes the invisible visible,' and arguing why ISVD's statistical dashboards can serve as interventions against structural invisibility.
Literature Map: The Lineage of Social Policy — Tachibana, Kenjoh, Miyamoto, and ISVD's Intersection
Tracing the intellectual lineage from pre-war Japan's Social Policy Association through Tachibana's inequality debate, Kenjoh's political economy of redistribution, and Miyamoto's welfare regime theory to ISVD's structural analysis methodology.
Literature Map: Positioning Among Prior Institutions — Graduate School of Social Design, Rikkyo University, and ISVD
A comparative analysis of three Japanese institutions that use 'social design' or 'social vision' in their names — the Graduate School of Social Design, Rikkyo University's Graduate School of Social Design Studies, and ISVD — examining their methodologies, audiences, and intellectual lineages to clarify ISVD's distinctive position.
Literature Map: The Lineage of Participatory Design — Arnstein → Sanders → Manzini → ISVD's Methodology
From the Ladder of Citizen Participation (1969) through Scandinavian workplace democracy, Papanek's moral critique, Sanders's co-creation spectrum, and Manzini's social innovation, to ISVD's methodological departure from 'invisible problems' rather than known needs.
Literature Map: The Genealogy of EBPM — Evidence-Based Policy Making and ISVD's Data-Driven Approach
Tracing the intellectual lineage from EBM (evidence-based medicine) to EBPM (evidence-based policy making), through nudge theory, the RCT revolution, and Japan's EBPM institutionalization, to clarify the difference between ISVD's 'What is the true shape of this problem?' approach and the conventional EBPM paradigm.
Literature Map: Social Design vs Service Design vs Transition Design
Comparing three streams of design research — Service Design, Transition Design, and Speculative Design — with Social Design for Public Imagination. What do they share, and where do they diverge?
Literature Map: The Genealogy of Civil Society Theory — Tocqueville→Habermas→Putnam→Salamon→Japan's NPO Movement and ISVD's Theory of Citizens
Tracing 200 years of civil society theory from Tocqueville's associational life through Habermas's public sphere, Putnam's social capital, Salamon's comparative nonprofit research, and Japan's NPO movement, to clarify the intellectual coordinates of ISVD's model of citizens as epistemic agents.
Literature Map: From Agnotology to 'Structural Invisibility'
Tracing the intellectual lineage from Robert Proctor's production of ignorance, through Miranda Fricker's epistemic injustice and Linsey McGoey's strategic ignorance, to ISVD's 'Reading the Structure' methodology.
The Intellectual Coordinates of Social Design — Six Academic Roots Decoded
Where does the 'social design' at the heart of ISVD's work find its academic roots, and what does it propose that is uniquely its own? Using 977 citations as a guide, we systematically map six intellectual traditions.
What Social Design Is Not — Five Boundary Lines
Defining social design by contrasting it with Service Design, activism, academic research, journalism, and think tanks. Disciplinary legitimacy begins with clear boundaries.
The Open Access Paradox — How to Reach Those Who Cannot Be Reached
Does making information 'open' mean it reaches people? The knowledge gap hypothesis, the Matthew effect, and information poverty theory reveal that equalizing access does not necessarily reduce disparities. This note examines the structural limits of the open access movement and considers intermediary models as 'translation devices.'
The Limits and Self-Referentiality of Agnotology — Is ISVD Itself Producing 'Invisibilities'?
A discipline that analyzes the structure of ignorance cannot escape the risk of producing new ignorance. This note examines three mechanisms — selection-induced blindness, normative tension, and the transparency paradox — and explores structural responses through Bourdieu's reflexive sociology and Fricker's epistemic justice.
Citation Network Analysis — The Intellectual Map Drawn by 938 References
A bibliometric analysis of 938 citations across 235 articles on the ISVD website, visualizing author, source, temporal, and disciplinary distribution patterns to reveal the intellectual structure of social design. What citations include — and what they exclude — outlines the contours of ISVD's knowledge project.
Six-Field Integration Model — How Social Policy, Agnotology, Epistemology, Participatory Design, EBPM, and Civil Society Theory Intersect
The six academic fields constituting social design each pose distinct questions, yet they can be integrated through three conceptual devices: wicked problems, Mode 2 knowledge production, and boundary objects. This note presents the integration architecture.
Social Design Manifesto — Democratizing Vision So Everyone Can Shape the Future
A declaration of seven principles for social design. Read invisible structures, place data in citizens' hands, translate academic knowledge, entrust judgment to the people, commit to openness, stand at the intersection of disciplines, and refuse to monopolize vision.
The Common Structure of 'Unreached Populations' — What a 20% Take-up Rate Reveals About Policy Design
Japan's public assistance take-up rate is an estimated 22.9%—80% of eligible households receive no benefits. Analyzing three reinforcing barriers.
Can Vocational Training Be Measured? — EBPM and the Evaluation Design of Workforce Development Policy
Japan invests billions in vocational training yet lacks rigorous impact measurement. An EBPM-based evaluation design guide with international comparisons.
Designing Collective Impact — How to Move Intractable Problems Through Cross-Sector Collaboration
What does it take for multiple organizations to tackle structural challenges no single entity can solve? An introduction to designing collaboration as a system.
Introduction to EBPM — What Evidence-Based Policymaking Asks of Nonprofits
As governments demand evidence from nonprofits, what competencies are expected? This guide explains EBPM basics and the path forward for organizations.
Writing a Grant Application — A Practical Checklist to Improve Your Approval Rate
Writing each grant application by trial and error, never understanding why the last was rejected? Rebuild your proposals from the reviewer's perspective.
Cash Flow Design for Nonprofits — A Practical Guide to Solving Funding Gaps Through Structure
Your grant was approved, yet you still cannot cover expenses. The cause may not be a lack of effort but a structural flaw in your cash flow.
Introduction to Data Utilization for NPOs — Practical Steps for Small Organizations to Get Started
Many NPOs write annual reports but struggle to show impact. A four-stage guide to data utilization—from collection to analysis and practical application.
Organizational Assessment Frameworks for Nonprofits — Turning Good Programs into Strong Organizations
Your programs may be excellent, yet the organization itself remains fragile. A seven-domain framework for identifying weaknesses and prioritizing improvements.
Social Enterprise vs. NPO — How Legal Structure Shapes Organizational Design
NPO, general incorporated association, or stock company? Your choice of legal entity determines revenue structure, governance, and funding options.
Structural Analysis of Social Issues — Using Systems Thinking to Visualize Why Problems Persist
Why do problems persist despite our best efforts? A guide to reading the structure of issues through systems thinking, with three practical tools.
A Practical Workshop Guide to Theory of Change — How to Map Your Hypothesis of Change as a Team
Has your team articulated why your activities produce change? A guide to collaboratively mapping your assumptions about social change pathways.
What Is a Logic Model? A Practical Guide to Structuring Social Issues
When asked to explain the outcomes of your work, where do you begin? A foundational guide to logic models for articulating your impact pathway.
Designing Outcome Indicators — Evaluation Thinking for Social Projects Beyond KPIs and KGIs
Participation counts and event tallies fill the report, yet no one can answer 'So what changed?' A guide to designing meaningful outcome indicators.
Introduction to Social Impact Evaluation Design — Practical Steps Nonprofits Can Take Today
The will to evaluate is there, but the staff and time are not. This guide charts the first actionable steps for organizations ready to begin.
How to Create a Stakeholder Map — Relationship-Building Techniques from 3 NPO Case Studies
Are you overlooking key stakeholders? Learn how to map the people and power structures surrounding your organization and prioritize engagement.