The dialogue-labs method: process, space and materials as structuring elements to spark dialogue in co-design events

Abstract: Facilitating participation has become one of the cornerstones of co-design, and a number of methods, techniques and events intended to inspire design participants and scaffold collaborative ideation and concept development have been developed. However, an aspect that is yet relatively unexplored in co-design literature is how different methods and techniques can be productively combined. This paper presents and discusses the dialogue-labs method, which provides a structured way of generating ideas through a sequence of co-design activities. The analysis of the method during 18 sessions, based on iterative reflection, focuses on its three key structuring aspects: the process of how dialogue-labs sessions are orchestrated, the space in which the sessions unfold and the materials that are employed. In addition to understanding the specific dialogue-labs method, this discussion of process, space and materials may yield insights into how other co-design methods are analysed and further developed or combined.