Interaction Design 2 (Spring 2023)
Interaction Design 2 is an advanced undergraduate course for design and combined majors. My Spring 2023 class was themed around local water systems and design for social change.
Class projects explore how community activities, cultural probes, or arts-based data installations may support action on local environmental issues. The first class project connects students with my ongoing community-based research on the health of public water bodies and explores the design of physical artefacts that can help make the negative impacts of excess road salt on freshwater streams publicly visible. In the second project, students design experiential storytelling tools for the New England Aquarium that bridge between digital and physical spaces. Finally, the third project explores how technology and the arts can support community building in green-blue spaces, as inspired by the work of Otto Piene, Krzysztof Wodiczko, and others. This approach introduces students to a number of ways that design can support change—from community partnerships aimed at civic change, to inspirational learning-focused installations, to community building activities that strengthen social ties.
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