Design with Dialogue held an inquiry into the systems of power we face in modern civilization, and the structures and forms it takes. Pre-reads included Off-Guardian’s “Left and Lockdown“, Charles Eisenstein’s The Coronation, or something (anything) from Matt Taibbi’s recent substacks. We proposed a few discovery questions to shape the inquiry: In a complex society with heterogeneous forms of power, are we each subject to different structures and forms of power we experience?Or is there a sense in which we are all subject to the same powers, whether we accept them or not? How do you hold agency? Do our unique histories and commitments determine the boundaries of our personal power to alter policies, events, outcomes, and eventually our society? What structures are now available, or foreclosed, for acting on a commitment to collective power, e.g. democratic power of a people? How might we better shape our societies while sustaining …
