Participatory Design (PD) offers a methodological framework for including affected communities in technological design. However, PD does not provide a theoretical model of how to ensure lasting social change with the produced technology. As a result, projects that include PD may not have long-term viability. We propose the use of Transformative Social Innovation (TSI) theory to guide PD-informed machine learning (ML) projects, and specifically “ML for social good” projects, towards technology that has the potential to create sustainable social change. In this position paper, we discuss how TSI, as a theoretical lens, intersects with and extends PD.
