Designing for Multispecies Cities: Envisioning Coexistence Experiences Between Humans and Plants

often seen as toxic environments for both humans and other lifeforms. This issue – also framed by the 11th (Sustainable Cities and Communities) and the 15th (Life on Land) United Nations Sustainable Development Goals - arises mainly from human-centred design, which has created contexts that are often extremely hard to tackle, particularly in terms of health and well-being. Cities are generally considered as places made by and for people, “artificial” environments that, since the creation of the Greek polis, have deliberately excluded plants, animals, and other non-humans from the social and political realm (Escobar, 2019). However, over the past few years, designers, city planners, as well as policymakers, have been working to incorporate nature-based solutions into urban design, reintroducing trees and other non-human lifeforms to promote ecological sustainability. Concepts such as the “Multispecies city” (Houston, 2019) – or the “More-than-human city” (Heitlinger et al., 2024; Franklin, 2017) - are offering new perspectives for cohabitation and coexistence, prioritizing the needs and well-being of non-human entities, both organic and inorganic. At the same time, emerging knowledge in Critical Plant Studies and empirical research into plant intelligence are reshaping our understanding of plant behaviour, interaction, and communication. These findings challenge the traditional view of plants as passive and silent, instead highlighting their active and political roles in ecosystems. In this framework, “Multispecies Design” (Wakkary, 2021; Westerlaken, 2021; Roudavski, 2020) acknowledges that plants – along with other non-human agents – have agency, and their inclusion in design processes is vital for addressing today’s environmental crises. This shift requires a new approach to design that fosters collaboration between multiple species as part of the solution to sustainability challenges. The paper presents insights from "Designing in a Multispecies World", a brand-new elective course launched at the School of Design of Politecnico di Milano University, which places the relationship between humans and plants in urban environments at the heart of this evolving design paradigm. The course encouraged students to rethink urban environments as “assemblages” of different entities, rather than solely human-made spaces. Through the development of 35 projects, each exploring a specific multispecies relationship, students designed everyday experiences involving humans, plants, and other non-humans within the city of Milan (Italy). They were challenged to shift their perspective as designers, moving beyond the Cartesian mindset that divides the world into the “artificial” and the “natural” realm. Over three phases, students engaged in: 1. multispecies ethnography (using practices of decentering and attuning to connect with non-human actors), 2. active reflections on the need for legal and political recognition of plants (through a speculative/performative design activity), and 3. future relationships between plants and humans in the city (designing a terrestrial experience). Students not only explored new design paradigms but also envisioned urban-life scenarios where humans and non-humans can continuously interact, forecasting experiences of multispecies care for inclusive futures.