The Lost Year
Summary
The pandemic made it painfully clear that the failure of critical public services causes real harm, both physical and financial. Our healthcare system is being overwhelmed, millions are pouring onto unemployment, and we’ve seen an unprecedented number of people trying to access government programs. It has never been more important for government services to be simple, effective, and accessible to all, yet we're far from that vision today. In this talk, Sha Hwang, co-founder and chief operating officer of Nava Public Benefit Corporation, will discuss the opportunities designers have to build government services that prioritize equity and resiliency—and the responsibility that comes with designing systems that serve millions of people.
Key Insights
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Public sector design challenges operate on slow-changing infrastructure layers that hold the most power despite less visibility.
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Removing outdated government processes, like the VA’s Form 8 dropout, can save decades of manual labor annually.
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Design efforts that integrate multiple state benefit programs can drastically reduce enrollment time, as seen in Vermont's document uploader pilot.
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Civic tech is a 50-year project; meaningful progress requires patience and understanding systemic legacies from groups like Helsinki Design Lab and Code for America.
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Government employees are often passionate and aware of problems but lack the tools and paths to realize solutions.
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Coalition-building and respect for existing institutional experience are crucial for sustainable change in public sector design.
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Design systems and accessible tooling empower policy-adjacent roles, enabling more inclusive contribution in government projects.
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Nava, founded during a crisis, aims for equity and inclusion with majority women staff and expanding apprenticeship programs to break traditional access barriers.
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The scale of public sector problems can be overwhelming; focusing on what is within your control helps maintain motivation and effectiveness.
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Repairing public institutions is foundational to addressing broader societal crises like racial injustice, climate change, and democratic decline.
Notable Quotes
"The fast layers get all the attention, but the slow layers have all the power."
"None of this was inevitable, none of this had to be this way."
"Any sufficiently advanced neglect is indistinguishable from Alice."
"Every thousand people enrolled in healthcare on healthcare.gov was roughly equivalent to a life that might have been saved down the line."
"Progress takes work. Progress takes work. It doesn’t come for free."
"We cannot give our best work if we’re not taking care of ourselves. Don’t let the fire that brought you here be the fire that burns you out."
"Government civil servants often know the problems and want to change, but don’t know how to get there and can use help."
"The infrastructure of civilization was someone else’s problem. What a lie that was. It was my problem this whole time."
"If our public institutions cannot keep the promises they make to the most vulnerable, we might not deserve to solve some of the more existential crises."
"There are many paths in and through and towards work in the public sphere. It’s not just a heroic narrative but coalitions that win progress."
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