Design for knowledge co-creation. Reflections on universities, society, and interdependence.

The article explores the complex interrelations between universities, society, and design in the context of knowledge co-creation and it discusses design’s potential role as an ally in fostering collaborative, inclusive, and pluriversal approaches. Building on the concept of the Third Stream and its recent interpretations, the central hypothesis suggests that current forms of university engagement and civicness are insufficient to address contemporary global challenges adequately. In the first part, the article contextualises the evolution of universities’ civic engagements within the framework of the Third Mission, presenting models such as the Civic, Entrepreneurial, Relational, and Engaged Universities. While these models highlight the growing societal role of academia, the discussion underscores their limitations in addressing coloniality and epistemic violence in academia and its knowledge production processes. Failing to rethink their role and embrace a more relational and situated understanding of knowledge, universities are missing the opportunity to support community autonomy and self-determination, as shared experiences of knowledge production, interpretation, and dissemination are essential for this purpose. Like academia, design, especially participatory design, is undergoing critical reflection, moving beyond simplistic visions of being intrinsically democratic or “good-doer.” The discussion of positionality and privilege in design aligns with broader shifts towards context-sensitive approaches rooted in interconnection and mutual responsibility. Although design has not yet fully integrated critical thinking into its discourse or comprehensively addressed its colonial responsibilities, the paper suggests that its ongoing transformation represents an intriguing opportunity to support the redefinition of collaborative dimensions promoted by academia towards external communities. This potential is also rooted in design's intrinsic emphasis on making and its inclination toward transformation and change. Also, the discussion defines its capacity for a pluriversal understanding of the world and its predisposition towards collaborative and community-based processes as crucial to the task. The second part of the article examines the fitness of design in addressing knowledge-creation processes. Three key strengths of design in supporting knowledge co-creation are identified: its ability to enable metaphors, its role as a boundary object, and its tacit nature. Finally, while acknowledging the study’s limits and inherent complexities and contradictions, the preliminary results of the research point out that, with the support of design, academia could embrace a pluriversal vision of knowledge, conceptualising reality as an interconnected and diverse kaleidoscope of perspectives. Moreover, while engaging in these processes, design gathers insights that can enrich the discipline itself and reflect on which skills and/or attitudes designers should cultivate to effectively support processes related to the co-creation of knowledge, fostering ethical and more inclusive knowledge systems.