Circular Futures: How can design nurture more sustainable production and delivery systems for social micro enterprises?

In the face of environmental degradation, increasing economic volatility, and societal inequalities, transitioning to a more sustainable future—environmentally and socially—is a pressing demand. European Union policy aims to be at the forefront of this transition, placing the circular economy and social innovation at the center of policymaking. While the need for social micro-SMEs to uptake environmental measures arises, institutions still struggle in providing direction and tools for a systemic transition that considers both environmental and social innovation. This paper presents an ongoing framework to investigate how designers can inspire product, process, and business model changes in micro-enterprises to sensitively intervene in local urban production and consumption systems. The framework emphasizes the use of designerly thinking and crafting to promote practices that create social and environmental value alongside the economic one. Specifically, the paper reflects on the framework's first application in a studio course of the Master in Product-Service System Design at the Politecnico di Milano. The studio partnered with La Scuola dei Quartieri (SdQ), a social innovation program from Milan’s Municipality, prompting students to twin the challenges of some of its projects in a parallel innovation journey. The in-progress framework is a starting point for understanding how design for social innovation can help social micro-SMEs consider their environmental impact and create environmental value alongside the social one. Here, designers become activists, sharing and cultivating visions while strategizing how to weave initiatives together to favor the consideration and possible introduction of these new business practices.