Towards A Post-Anthropocentric Creative Framework To Support Designers In Envisioning More-Than-Human Futures

Climate change and rapid technological advancements are shaping an unstable and uncertain scenario, posing new questions for design (Mortati, 2022). These transformations challenge Western dualisms that separate humans from nature introducing the notion of nonhuman agency which fosters the development of new design frameworks (Forlano, 2017). Acknowledging human-nonhuman interdependencies (Quadflieg, 2021; Tironi et al., 2023) and a broader conception of life (zoe) that reconnects humans to nonhuman species (Braidotti, 2013) is crucial to make design the mediator between humans and nature. Post-anthropocentrism decenters the human subject to focus on ecologies and relationships (Yoo et al., 2023 as cited in Nicenboim et al., 2023), considers more-than-human perspectives to address planetary needs (Talgorn & Ullerup, 2023) and inevitably triggers reflections about designers’ creativity. Creativity, a fluctuating concept shaped by the socio-cultural context (Runco, 2017; Bruno & Canina, 2019), is explored through a posthuman lens to identify the abilities that a new post-anthropocentric type of creativity would entail (Roudavski & McCormack, 2016). Theoretical notions belonging to posthuman philosophy that intersect creativity research were critically reviewed and synthesized into the Post-anthropocentric Creative (PaC) Framework proposed in the paper. The PaC framework, indeed, systematizes existing knowledge, translating it into an actionable tool to help designers challenge the current anthropocentric paradigm by creating new narratives that promote careful action towards life on the planet. The framework will serve as a foundation for further research to investigate whether and how the employment of the PaC framework might enhance the design futures approach for envisioning preferable and more-than-human futures.