10 Systems Ready for Radical Reimagining in 2025
Sometimes the most radical act is to look at something utterly familiar and ask, "Does this really have to be this way?" As we move through 2025, surrounded by accelerating climate impacts, technological change, and social transformation, this question becomes more urgent – and more exciting.
As a design studio focused on transformative futures, we spend our days imagining how things could be different. Not just slight improvements or iterative fixes, but fundamental reimaginings of the systems and spaces that shape our daily lives. We're not interested in making broken systems slightly less broken. We're interested in asking: What if we started over? What if we designed these systems for the world we actually want to live in?
The following list emerged from conversations with community members, designers, and dreamers about what's possible when we let ourselves think beyond current constraints. Some of these reimaginings might seem ambitious. Good. Others might seem obvious – changes that are long overdue. Even better. All of them invite us to think differently about what we consider "normal" or "possible."
Here are 10 systems we believe are ready for radical reimagining in 2025:
Community Emergency Response In an era of increasing climate disruptions, our current emergency response systems still rely heavily on centralized, top-down approaches. What if we designed community-based disaster response networks that combine local knowledge with emerging technologies? Imagine neighborhood resilience hubs that function year-round as community spaces but can transform into emergency centers when needed.
Urban Food Systems Our current food distribution system wastes nearly 40% of all food produced while food insecurity grows. We need to reimagine how cities feed themselves - from vertical farming integrated into architecture to community food forests to zero-waste distribution networks that connect local producers directly with consumers.
Collective Care Networks The pandemic showed us how vulnerable our individual-focused care systems are. What if we designed care networks that blend professional and community support, where childcare, elder care, and healthcare are woven into the fabric of neighborhoods rather than siloed into separate institutions?
Public Rest Spaces In our constantly moving world, we've designed out spaces for genuine rest and recovery. We're dreaming of reimagining public space to include sanctuaries for pause - not commercial spaces where you need to buy something to sit, but truly public spaces designed for rest, reflection, and restoration. What if cities were required to provide quiet zones with the same priority as they provide parking spaces?
Time & Work The 40-hour workweek was designed for factory schedules, not human flourishing. We're ready to reimagine how we structure time, work, and rest. Could we design schedules that follow natural rhythms? What would work look like if we optimized for wellbeing instead of productivity?
Digital Commons As our lives become increasingly digital, we need to reimagine online spaces that serve public good rather than private profit. What would social platforms look like if they were designed for collective benefit rather than engagement metrics? How might we create digital infrastructure that's truly owned and governed by communities?
Intergenerational Housing Our current housing models often isolate different age groups from each other. We're excited to design living spaces that naturally bring together elders, families, and young people in ways that support mutual aid and knowledge sharing across generations.
Repair Culture In a world of planned obsolescence, we need to reimagine our relationship with objects and materials. What if repair was beautiful, celebrated, and designed into products from the start? How might we create systems that make fixing and maintaining things as convenient as replacing them?
Joy Infrastructure Cities are often designed for efficiency and control rather than delight and connection. We're dreaming of infrastructure that prioritizes joy - streets that become playgrounds, transit stops that double as mini-libraries, utility boxes that house community art projects.
Waste-to-Wonder Systems We need to move beyond recycling to completely reimagine our relationship with "waste." What if our waste management systems were redesigned as resource activation networks? Picture neighborhood material libraries where discarded items become community assets, waste processing centers that double as educational museums and maker spaces, and circular economy hubs that transform "trash" into raw materials for local manufacturing.
These aren't just design challenges - they're invitations to imagine different ways of living together. What would you add to this list? What future are you dying to reimagine?
Want to explore how speculative design can help reimagine your community's future? Contact us to learn more about our practice.