Ecological Citizenship is a means for anyone to enable place-based transition(s) to more sustainable and preferable futures. In isolation, Design cannot, and will not, solve climate challenges. Design (as a practice) does, however, offer opportunities to; leverage economies, unite communities and/or cross-disciplinary propositions, present preferable futures, provide strategic leverage points or interventions and most importantly… create conditions for citizens and/or civic organisations to enact sustainable changes. In contemporary times, there is a constant tension between ‘designing’ or ‘creating solutions’ as opposed to honing the skills that catalyse or uplift others. ‘Design Futures’ can play a role in this, as a powerful pillar of the ‘not yet’, but also by presenting tangible possibilities for others to comprehend and contribute to – more specifically “Preferable Futures” ie. those that we would choose, and also positively engage with, rather than, eg. speculative ‘science-fiction’ (Voros, J., 2008). Designing the Conditions for Ecological Citizens presents a series of cases to; borrow from, expand on, or critique. Authors are humble and see this as a set of learnings/methods to build-on, crossing design practices and theory. Furthermore, these strategic perspectives unpack ‘where’ to intervene and ‘what’ leverage points to support. These are not easy ways to ‘design’, but open opportunities beyond traditional capitalist models seeking profit over planet. Notably Ezio Manzini comments on the importance of “designing the conditions”, as we are in a new age of materiality including; communities, policy, social innovations, place-based scenarios, regeneration and the realms of the ‘not yet’ that Design Futures offers (2020; Fry, 2009). This particular work has a UK-specific focus, due to its UKRI funding remit but delivers parallel lessons worthy of scale, cascade or scaffolding. We do not know the readers' culture, origins, processes or situations (nor assume to do so) but we believe there is fertile soil within this design space that can be appropriated. Ecological Citizen(s) | Ecological Citizen(s) (EC), is an approach (and network) to create agency and foster sustainable actions within contemporary times (Phillips, et al., 2023). Ecological Citizenship is a design-led approach intent on catalysing/inspiring/invoking a ‘citizen relationship’ with our natural world. We focus on citizenship as a practice ie. something that is “claimed, enacted and performed” (Arruda, et.al., 2020). It concerns the agency to mutually benefit others and the planet through sustainable means. The definition of Ecological Citizenship is “accessible activities and skills which establish sustainable practice(s) and/or address ecological inequalities. Unsustainable practices (and consequences) are not constrained to individual countries, single industries, or discrete societies” (Phillips, et al., 2025). Examples are often altruistic in approach and execution, but are financially viable, often scalable, presenting citizen(s) with sustainable alternatives, choices and autonomy. EC values build conditions for others and the planet, intent on creating a digitally sustainable society. Authors foreground that sustainable practices are the duty of brands and corporations, but are often differed solely to the general population. For many of this population, volunteering or ‘altruistic acts’ are out of reach due to their financial circumstances. Authors also emphasise that this approach is not a silver bullet, that not everything has to be scaleable, that some propositions work just in one setting, and that this is completely acceptable. We should not need to wait for top-down interventions and can instead look at more distributed means, nor should we replace basic rights that municipalities should create. We have long become disconnected from our natural worlds and our efforts must be to; preserve, cultivate, regenerate and protect them. Designer as Social Entrepreneur | The Design Council (UK) identified the developing roles in designers; as Designer and Maker, Systems Thinker, Leader & Storyteller, Connector and Convener (2021). The role that slips through the frame is the designer as Social Entrepreneur ie. someone who establishes an enterprise with the aim of solving social problems or effecting social change. Ecological Citizen(s) must work “with” people and not design “for” them. The role of the designer as Social Entrepreneur builds on a cross-disciplinary space that nurtures transition over time (but not as a bolt-on), often by leading the place-based / culture-based actions of ourselves. Designers can be ‘catalysts’, creating the conditions for ecological citizenship, sustainable design, and also social-or research-design-led entrepreneurs. Noted father of ‘transition towns’, Rob Hopkins, leverages Design Futures through ‘What if?’ provocations, as they “help us to unlock the imagination. The question simply begins to open the door, creating a crack through which we might push and rush to the other side. It is an invitation” (Hopkins, 2019). Hopkins does not speak of lone discipline design practices identifying ‘product, digital and service design’ and being connected through the materiality of ‘social entrepreneurship’, ie. uplifting the communities and society around us. It has also long been contested how to initiate these activities – the Authors believe it is cultural/contextual and can start with; funding, collaboration(s), or some other… but it must start with; the alignment of mutual benefits, the intention of more sustainable worlds, be non-exploitative and ‘designing for exit’ before the work has begun. Designer as Chef Designers can create conditions of change, from stock materials, menus to working with what grows within our surrounding natural environment. These elements shape the scales of things we make… their intent is to nurture people. And he came to me one day and he asked me, he said, “Thomas, do you know why cooks cook?” And I’m like okay, I’m trying to think. He said, “We cook to nurture people.” I know people call me a chef, but our trade is cooking… You’re nurturing yourself. You’re nurturing the team you’re cooking for. You’re gonna be nurturing our guests. We’re even nurturing our farmers, our fishermen, our foragers, our gardeners, who are bringing us all these wonderful ingredients (Storer, C., et al., 2022). Design Futures offers the space for propositions of the ‘not yet’. Authors see a parallel practice with the role of a ‘chef’, in seeking to work with local materials, learn about produce, create speciality dishes, learn novel techniques and always be searching for new (sustainable) flavours. Chefs rely on teams with varied expertise, all culminating in a parallel objective. Chefs might even be courageous and publish their recipes for others to build-off or prepare, akin to Enzo Mari’s Autoprogettazione (1974). This bravery to navigate conventional systems and Intellectual Property gives propositions a life of their own, outside of the designer’s (or researcher’s) control. Finally, chefs align with Meadow’s intervention points (2015) as they are constantly looking for new places, tools, and perspectives through which to intervene and have impact. Examples (included in the chapter) overarch; education schemes in UK prisons, novel mental health/social venues, communal garden creation (in respite care), new businesses, approaches to research and contemporary examples from the territory. This embodies the perfect mix of; leveraging social entrepreneurship, citizen(s) and treating new opportunities with a ‘materiality’, to create conditions for Ecological Citizen(s). In summary, authors cover; What is Ecological Citizenship?, Designer as Social Entrepreneur, Design Futures, Designer as Chef, and territory coalescence. We unpack how to look for, collect and make use of signals as a material in Design Futures, testing and trying combinations that nurture the abductive reasoning process. Share project examples, strategic insights and methods for their conception, sustainment and deployment. We openly navigate how we ‘can’ design instances, conditions and perspectives enabling citizen(s) to build proposals.