Intervening in Existing Arrangements

Introduction

Once we have a sense of the many overlapping arrangements at play in a situation, we can begin to shape interventions to instigate change.

(By intervention, we mean the act of interfering with a condition to modify it or with a process to change its course.)

When we intervene at the scale of arrangements, we can create a more transformative change than if we just intervene in effects.

Projects that intervene in existing arrangements

Lighting the Bridge

Our 2014 intervention, “Lighting the Bridge” was an example of intervening in a hard arrangement, in this case a commuter rail bridge underpass on a busy street that was poorly lit and felt unsafe to passers-by. Without sufficient lighting, the bridge created a break between neighborhoods: keeping residents on one side from using the rec center on the other side, and residents on the other side from accessing the shopping district after dark. We intervened in this arrangement with a temporary, guerilla-style bridge lighting.

By intervening in an arrangement of placebreaking, we moved at least one step closer to an arrangement that transformed the bridge into a gateway rather than a barrier between neighborhoods.

Let’s Flip It

“Let’s Flip It” is a communication system developed by and for young people most affected by social violence in Boston. It is a way for them to say “it’s time to stop” without saying it directly. Addressing the current block-vs-block structure of violence in Boston, youth decided to intervene in the symbol of the fitted baseball hat, which is frequently used to denote someone’s block or gang affiliation, often causing friction that escalates to violence.

Since the hat is an important way for youth to rep their blocks, it becomes a powerful symbol that youth can literally work to change the meaning of. Using the symbolic within a horizontal strategy can address cultural norms in ways that legislation and policing can not.

Listen to more stories about intervening in existing arrangements

Start this video at the 14:43 mark.

Practice: Connecting

I-A-E with Design

We want those of us who care about social justice to see ourselves as designers of everyday life, rather than simply participants in a world we didn’t create or consent to. By using design to intervene in existing arrangements and imagine new ones, we can produce new effects—ones that make a society more just and vibrant.