Unexpected Collaborations and Impossible Projects

Today’s most pressing challenges—climate, social inequality, systemic transitions—can’t be solved in silos. They demand transdisciplinary collaboration where relationships and processes take centre stage. But current funding and commissioning structures often don’t leave space for that kind of openness. Across the cultural and scientific sectors, however, new programs are beginning to push back—experimenting with funding models that support the unpredictable, the relational, and the bold.

How can designers and researchers truly strengthen each other in addressing complex societal issues?

At SDS#22, we explore the dynamics of unexpected collaborations: how radically different ways of thinking can align, what tensions emerge, and what makes open-ended partnerships not only possible, but powerful.

Our point of departure is Collaborations for Future, part of the Innovatielabs program. Collaborations for Future brought together 10 climate scientists and 10 designers in 1-on-1 partnerships—no predefined brief, no fixed roles, no expected outcomes. In today’s funding climate, such collaborations are practically impossible. And yet, by prioritising relationship-building over deliverables, this program uncovered what makes collaboration truly sustainable—and what kind of support systems are needed to make it work.

Drawing on insights from Collaborations for Future and the broader research on transdisciplinary work, SDS 22 offers a deep dive into what it really takes to collaborate across disciplines, across sectors—and across expectations. In a set of curated breakout-sessions, we'll dive into the kinds of collaborations we want to have more of. If you could work with any citizen or professional, with whom would you work and how?

This event is powered by CLICKNL and is made possible by Foundation We Are.