Design Explorations
Conclusion
What compass is needed for socioecological transition in Brussels?
The purpose of the Designing Brussels Ecosystems MasterClass was to think about the notion of ecosystem in its relationship with public policies. The MasterClass offered about thirty researchers an opportunity to conduct a collective survey on different urban transformation processes underway in Brussels. The aim was to describe them from an ecosystem perspective. Applying the notion of ecosystem to Brussels is a theoretical, methodological and political challenge. Theoretically, it is a question of testing the potential of a notion that has now been adopted by many disciplinary fields. In what way is it really a resource for public policies? How can the ecosystem approach help us ensure the conditions for a public action of ‘socio-ecological transition’? How can it help us take into account both the local and global scale of the issues? How can it help us integrate the system of interdependence between human and non-human agents mobilised by public policies? In this article, we seek to contribute to a deeper understanding of certain transversal lessons to be drawn from this experience.