Embassy of Safety at DDW24
Creative lead Tabo Goudswaard on creating fair safety together.
‘New safety. Create it together, make it fair.’ This is the core message of the Embassy of Safety, which will take center stage at Dutch Design Week 2024 (DDW24). “Create, together, and fair are the three key words we’ll focus on in that order,” says creative lead Tabo Goudswaard. “Consciously in that order. The word ‘fair’ comes last because it’s the most challenging.”
In the lead-up to DDW24, Tabo Goudswaard often reflects on the Embassy of Safety’s conference during DDW23. At that time, one of the guests was Dick Schoof, who, in his role as a top civil servant at the Ministry of Justice & Security, advocated for more space for design thinking within government. The fact that this same person now leads the cabinet is, according to the creative lead of the Embassy, a hopeful sign. “Perhaps Schoof’s vision, expressed at last year’s DDW, will inspire greater creative capacity in how we shape policy in the Netherlands,” says Goudswaard.
Goudswaard sees 2024 as a new foundation for the Embassy. ‘New safety. Create it together, make it fair’ is the core of what the Embassy will work on over the next three years, Tabo explains. “The key words create, together, and fair are the most important, and we will consciously focus on them in that order. First, we want to unite people who are working with creative capacity on safety issues. The word ‘fair’ comes last because it’s the most challenging.”
Create
In the coming years, the Embassy of Safety plans to inventory what is happening in the safety domain with a design-driven approach. “At the Embassy of Safety, we aim to connect makers — often civil servants — who work together with various stakeholders on the societal problems they face. We want to be a place where all of this can come together, where we help grow creative capacity within organizations in the safety domain. Those who have already embraced creative capacity in an organization are often supported when, for example, an inspiring lecture is given to help their colleagues better understand what it’s about.”
Together: whole of society
This focus on creative capacity immediately reveals an important second value: the power of bringing people together and working collaboratively on new safety. “The word ‘together’ is a logical foundation of a design-driven approach: co-creation and empathizing with stakeholders are crucial.”
Tabo highlights a term that encapsulates this perspective: the whole of society approach. “Last year, we collaborated with KPMG from the Embassy, which is not a system player in the safety domain but wanted to promote design thinking to address personnel shortages in this sector. The whole of society approach, a term from the defense world, came up. It’s about how to mobilize society in times of urgency, such as when an enemy army is at the border. Non-military parties like bus companies, caterers, and suppliers are needed to support the infrastructure. Agreements can be made in advance so they know what’s expected when needed.”
"How are we doing as a whole? How do we ensure we are strong together? How do we learn from our mistakes and prevent repeating them?"— Tabo Goudswaard
Ownership
Such a whole of society approach doesn’t have to apply only in emergencies. It can be used continuously in society. “It’s an interesting view that stimulates and facilitates ownership within society. Think of safety challenges like online crime or undermining. The holy grail is igniting ownership across society: what concrete things can citizens and businesses do to address these problems before they become urgent? It’s about making society resilient in rapidly changing times. This represents a fundamental shift in mindset, focusing not on the individual but on collective well-being. We move away from neoliberal thinking, where if I’m doing well, the whole society must be doing well. Instead, we take a more collective view: how are we doing as a whole? How do we ensure we are strong together? How do we learn from our mistakes and prevent repeating them? These are questions asked from a human perspective, as opposed to a machine-like perspective that prioritizes systems over people.”
Fair?!
These themes also touch on another key area the Embassy of Safety will focus on from DDW24: fairness. “In the safety domain, there is a strong tendency to control and measure safety and hold people accountable for results,” Tabo explains. “But some things can’t be measured or controlled so factually. For instance, you never know exactly what you’ve prevented. I think it’s important that we prioritize fairness over numbers. This can build trust and create shared responsibility.”
“The trust in government has taken quite a hit in recent years,” continues the creative lead. “Think of obvious examples like Groningen and the child benefits scandal. Fairness was also an issue there. But what exactly is fairness? It’s a flexible concept that means something different to everyone. That’s why it’s exciting to tackle this. Designers are particularly good at dealing with subjective values like fairness.”
Rijksmakerstaat
Tabo mentions the ‘Rijksmakerstaat’ (National Maker State) program, which explored social safety at Rijkswaterstaat. This program will also be featured at DDW24. “In this program, we explore how to create space for vulnerability, working from the idea that together we need to listen to other voices. If we do this well, we’ll become stronger. It’s not about relying on rules or systems, like justice, the economy, or democracy, but more on people. After all, these systems are constructs we’ve agreed upon as a society. Dick Schoof said it last year too: even the law is ultimately a design. Once you realize that, you see that things can be different. And that’s a very liberating thought.”