ABSTRACT
Theories of change for public policies can often become overly complex. That, in turn, obscures core assumptions about change mechanisms, alienating citizens from participating in policy co-design. In our essay, we argue that using a set of simple heuristics may be helpful in engaging citizens in the process of policy co-design. We provide a novel framework for articulating the theory of change: framing the policy issue in terms of target behaviours, identifying barriers to compliance, and addressing them with specific change tools. Then we report findings from a pilot application: a group of 143 participants (41 teams) drafted various theories of change for the food waste problem in the Warsaw metropolis. Our case contributes to an ongoing discussion on improving the engagement of citizens in designing change that matters. It also links evaluation practice with an emerging field of applied behavioural sciences.
