Stacking Complexities: Reframing Uncertainty through Hybrid Literacies

Abstract

In a context increasingly defined by post-normal science (Funtowicz and Ravetz 1993), it is acknowledged that complex world problems cannot be addressed by one discipline in isolation. To face increasingly uncertain futures, it is therefore crucial to develop approaches that work with uncertainty. Because of its future-facing nature and current drive to tackle complex world challenges, design has a leading role to play in this endeavor. The article proposes a research framework informed by the development of hybrid literacies – transversal toolkits across design, technologies, and futures studies – that can furnish learners with transdisciplinary skills. These are deemed necessary to address uncertainty and complexity by deploying speculative-pragmatic, imaginative practices that foster modes of working, learning, and unlearning together. To illustrate this approach, the article draws on the ongoing collaboration between two academic institutions renowned, respectively, in the field of Art and Design (Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London) and Science and Technology (Tokyo Institute of Technology) to offer a personal reflection and insights around transdisciplinarity and hybrid literacies in action.