The Transfo, Champagne-Ardenne Region

After having tried the residency experience and repeated it twice, the Champagne-Ardenne region again called in the Transfo in 2011 to focus on youth during the new mandate. Although a specific regional public agency devoted to young people existed, governance was shared among administrative departments. As is often the case, the need to work across organizational boundaries sometimes collides with official instructions and customary ways of doing and is impeded by a lack of time.

How should the need to satisfy the hierarchal structure, the requirements of civil servants and the needs of youth be handled? More broadly, how can civil servants be inspired to work together differently and account for the actual practices of users? To achieve this, 13 reference persons from the various departments concerned were designated to participate in the program. After having successfully completed several projects (the re-design of Region Youth encounters, finding ways to increase the use of the Lycéo card), the team then tackled questions relating to setting up an in-house innovation lab: values, operating principles, organizational structure, budget, decision-making circuit, etc. Their proposal was submitted for approval to executive management in February 2014 to allow for recruiting a project manager, and the doors of the lab officially opened in February 2015.

When?

October 2011 - May 2014


Where?

Region council of Champagne-Ardenne, Châlons-en-Champagne


Initiated by whom?

Champagne-Ardenne

With whom?

Denis Pellerin, designer, cofounder of User Studio


Asma Bennani, Intern with User Studio (2012)


Eva Ruaut, student in the learning sciences


Axel Félicité, project manager, Essonne Département


Fabienne Brugel, artistic director of NAJE, writer and stage director


Léonie Ferry, Designer


Florence Massin, designer, User Studio