Designing With, For, and Without Communities

In this chapter, I present three case studies which I explored within the context of Lebanon, as a part of my doctoral research journey, revolving around social innovation within spaces of contestation. These case studies entail participatory research engagements within three distinct spaces: (1) an international humanitarian and development organisation, (2) two local organisations in Lebanon and (3) the social movement of 2019 in Lebanon. Drawing upon the analysis of these case studies, I propose a potential design framework examining four dimensions: power, co-creation of value, enactment of agency, and sustainable pathways of collective agency and action. Additionally, I discuss how within such spaces of contestation, a researcher has to constantly shift roles in order to navigate inherent complexities while being truthful to their own research and its embedded values.