Design perspectives on safety issues in society : an exploration of key elements of design practice

Our current society is confronted with a variety of safety related issues in the public domain that affect personal and/or public well-being. Most of these social safety problems have existed for ages. Relatively new in this field is the designer. Only recently, designers with their unique design approach are involved in many social safety related projects. But what exactly is this design perspective on social safety problems? What makes the approach of these designers different from the earlier approaches of their colleague criminologists and urban planners? This paper explores these questions based on three recent case studies in the area of social safety.