Design for San Diego…
seeks to tackle complex civic challenges that affect our region by engaging and coordinating hundreds of innovators in a process of human-centered design.
DISCOVER: What experiences do people have with different civic issues?
To investigate a civic issue, designers should conduct interviews with focus groups, and complete other fieldwork to deeply understand how an issue affects different stakeholders as they engage with the communities of people affected most by an issue. During the discovery phase, innovators listen for stakeholder values, resources, and concerns, which they then translate into design constraints that bound the space of viable solutions as well as questions to explore further. Innovators build empathy with their stakeholders through the process of discovery.
RESOURCES
- How do I identify stakeholder groups?
- Tips on how to learn your stakeholder’s journey
- Google’s approach to design sprints
IDEATE: Can we imagine better ways to address these issues?
D4SD participants generate ideas collaboratively with other people and as teams. Through the process of generating ideas, D4SD participants explore the problem-space of a civic issue by paying careful attention to the design constraints and design questions identified during the Discovery phase. D4SD participants may also reach out to the stakeholder community as collaborators throughout the ideation process.
RESOURCES
- Tips to jump start your ideation
- Examples from 2017
PROTOTYPE: How can we make our ideas concrete and testable?
As D4SD participants identify viable design ideas, they begin to work with physical materials, such as paper, web systems, and other lightweight media to rapidly realize their ideas. By working with materials and engaging with feedback provided by community stakeholders, D4SD participants may recognize new design constraints and questions about the issue.
RESOURCES
- Strategies for service design research
- Consider ways to prototype locally with tactical urbanism
PITCH: How can we convince other people that we have a good concept?
Without a good story, even the best of ideas can fall flat. During this phase, D4SD participants will develop pitch materials, including a poster and a short elevator pitch, to introduce other people to the problem and to their proposed solutions. Read the advice here to refine your team’s concept and create polished pitch materials to help prepare for the D4SD Summit.
RESOURCES
- Advice on making effective posters
- Hints on giving an elevator pitch
ACTIVATE: What are the opportunities and barriers toward deployment?
Many civic proposals will fail to gain traction without community support. After developing a viable prototype, your team will need to reach out to those affected by an issue and build alliances with key community leaders and organizers. D4SD participants will have an opportunity to activate their network and to build alliances through the D4SD Summit.
RESOURCES
- How to build stakeholder relationships
- How to organize a civic campaign