MIDTOWN SUSTAINISTS
Mid town Savannah, to bring about a social innovation that brings people closer with in a community
Group Project - 12 people
Project Duration: Spring 2018
My Role: Project Manager, User Research, UX Design, Prototype, Concept Development, Product Design Development.
OVERVIEW
PROJECT GOALS
- To act as a catalyst that aids in the development of a more resilient midtown community.
- To build on what exists and amplify the best of what is already underway.
- To empower existing actors, with a focus on awareness of the opportunity to develop community participation.
- To develop solutions where repercussions of any action ripple positively through the connected systems of Savannah.
- Having our clear understanding of the limitations of resources, we will develop solutions that are not only actionable but also can be taken forward.
DESIGN PROMPT
How might we foster an environment within the Midtown community to bring people together due to the effects of gentrification and poverty?
PROBLEM STATEMENT
Midtown in Savannah, Georgia is currently facing gentrification. Few effects of gentrification can be seen as a lack of interaction between community members and level of acceptance of new members coming into the community to live.
OPPORTUNITY STATEMENT
By fostering a more well-connected, friendly and resilient community in the midtown neighborhoods of Savannah, Georgia, there is an opportunity to encourage community members to not just overcome emerging urban complexities such as gentrification and poverty, but to also thrive in the face of them.
SOLUTION/ PROTOTYPE OFFERING
1. NEIGHBORHOOD CLEAN UP
2. POP-UP PARK
3. COMMUNITY BOARDS: VOICES OF MIDTOWN SAVANNAH
All revealed to the community at a Community Block Party
BLOG POSTS
Click here to read our Blog posts
Besides having solutions the process was documented in the blog through articles that explained some of the frameworks and case studies, important key leaders from Midtown community and our approach to design thinking in favor of social innovation. This blog contains also the work of former sustainability practices classes which is creating a valuable consultation resource for Savannah and southeast communities interested in social innovation and resilience.
All of the projects have had as the main objective, to experiment together with the community and the result of those interventions. It also becomes a tool to connect with external sources that have been nurturing our processes in many ways. We invite you to visit, consult and interact with the blog, this is a living tool that gets live every time it has a collaboration very similar to community work.
PROCESS
Our process was followed using the framework of the double diamond. The first phase of the double diamond included the discover and define phases in which our opportunity statement, secondary & primary research, analysis and defining our spaces for concept development has taken place.
This first phase has helped us to arrive at concept develop through thorough research (both secondary and primary; applying various methods like observations, case studies, ethnographic interviews) to understand the midtown community in Savannah.
We developed insights from all the research through the process of affinization which helped us to focus our concept ideations phases.
The second phase of the double diamond consisted of developing and deliver which focused on developing our final concepts after multiple feedback sessions from stakeholders and re-iteration of the concepts to deliver for the midtown community through planning, prototyping, and implementation of our concepts.
LEARNINGS
INSIGHTS:
By analyzing the data points which we collected from the primary and secondary research, we came up with these few insights.
LEADERSHIP AND ORGANIZATION:
Through the study, we realized that the community had the capability and intention of bringing about a change but lacked organization and leadership.
IDENTITY:
People here feel strongly that Midtown is losing its identity because the city is invested heavily in new and transient population.
PHYSICAL SPACE:
To feel more connected with the neighborhood and meet the people with similar interest, a physical space is necessary. This physical space with encouraging the habit of sharing creative ideas and interest which is vital for midtown.
COMMUNICATION:
Communication is key for individual and community growth.
TRUST:
People in Savannah have a huge trust issue due to their rough history. A lot of people admitted that they had difficulty in trusting neighbors, outsiders, and the city. Keeping all of these points in mind, we came up with 10 concepts which were categorized underplay together, work together and learn together.