Design for the Real World: Rebuilding Trust by Reimagining Systems

When I left my job at UN Women to pursue a postgraduate degree at Parsons School of Design, a colleague jokingly asked if I was becoming a fashion designer. The comment wasn’t unexpected and reflected a common misconception about design—that it’s primarily about aesthetics. But design goes far beyond that. It’s a method of thinking that solves complex societal problems, one that transcends traditional boundaries. For me, it was like discovering a new language, one that helped me realize how design can reshape not just how we interact with the world but, more importantly, how we build trust within it.

Tackling Wicked Problems

Before this shift into design, I spent years in the public sector tackling challenges such as making policy processes more inclusive and increasing economic opportunities for women. These are "wicked problems"—issues that resist straightforward solutions. Time and again, I saw a gap between those affected by these problems and the people tasked with developing solutions. Too often, approaches lacked the nuance needed to fully respond to the complexities of people’s lives, leading to services that missed the mark.

I don’t want to suggest that design is a magic bullet that will solve everything overnight (if only!). In fact, as design has increasingly been applied to policy and social innovation, it’s had its share of missteps. Yet I remain hopeful about its potential—especially as more UN entities and governments worldwide begin actively recruiting people with design backgrounds. Design’s power lies in its ability to incorporate human behavior, empathy, and trust at the core of problem-solving.

Design as a Tool for Trust

Take, for example, a project in New York that stands out to me. We were tasked with redesigning a public space, but what seemed like an urban planning project on the surface turned out to be much more—it was about rebuilding trust between the city and its residents. People felt alienated from the decisions that shaped their lives, disconnected from the very systems they depended on. That’s when it clicked for me: every interaction with public services is an opportunity to rebuild trust. It’s not just about making things more efficient; it’s about making people feel seen, heard, and respected.

Experiences like this reaffirm why I felt design was the missing piece in my work. Design forces us to confront the complexities of human behavior, moving us beyond quick fixes to engage with deeper, more systemic issues. It shifts the focus from merely finding answers to asking the right questions: “What do people truly need?” and “How can we create systems they trust?”

As Viktor Papanek famously said, “Design is a conscious and intuitive effort to impose meaningful order.” In a world where so many systems feel broken, that order isn’t about control—it’s about creating environments where trust can thrive. Whether it’s redesigning public services in Austria or rethinking policies elsewhere, the goal remains the same: to design with people, not just for them.

It’s encouraging to see design gaining recognition beyond the creative industries. The recent establishment of Austria’s Creative Industries Council, advising the Ministry of Labor and Economy, is a prime example of how creative thinking is being acknowledged as a force for societal transformation.

Design, of course, isn’t a cure-all. But it offers something invaluable: a practical, human-centered approach that helps make complex problems more manageable. It also gives us agency. After all, everything around us has been designed in some way—whether consciously or not. From the chair you’re sitting on, crafted for comfort, to bureaucratic systems designed for stability, everything follows some logic, driven by certain goals. But in today’s fast-paced world, stability alone doesn’t foster the conditions for transformation. That’s when I realized: if something was designed once, it can always be redesigned.

If you are interested to learn more or just want to this discuss this further, feel free to ping me here on LinkedIn!