design-us-in:
making (public) space for and with teens in Aotearoa New Zealand, through an activist and advocacy led social-design practice
This research-through-design thesis project is currently being finished at Te Herenga Waka | Victoria University of Wellington in Aotearoa New Zealand. This page will be updated when at the conclusion of the project in July 2024.
The design-us-in research is situated within the context of design for social innovation to engage with and visually amplify the voices of the community, working together to co-design and collaborate on tactical ideas that focus on their presence in public space. My community of practice is primarily social design, and also borrows approaches and techniques from design disciplines such as: tactical urbanism, communication design and user experience.
How might design practice enable teens to say
“let’s design-us-in to this city?”
“let’s design-us-in to this city?”
The methodology used in this research portfolio is designing with people, also known as research-through-design, meaning knowledge is produced through the design practice itself (rather than research about or for design). This practice of creating knowledge through the design process, creates a space in which many things are unknown until they are in progress or have already happened.
PARK(ing) Day 2024 — community members over the age of 16 filled out postcards answering the question 'how would you like to be designed-in to this city?' that were then sent to Wellington City Council.
Co-design workshops with teenagers from various Wellington High Schools to map their journeys throughout the city and design what their ideal city and public spaces would look like.
