Beyond the Buckets of Support: Designing for Agency and Interaction in Personalised Disability SystemsSocial care systems are increasingly adopting personalisation schemes that empower individuals with disabilities and their families to directly purchase services,from assistive technologies to daily living support. Central to this shift are institutions like the National Disability Insurance Scheme, where annual negotiations shape care delivery and social benefits. Drawing on interviews with parents of children with intellectual disabilities, individuals with intellectual disabilities, service managers -- alongside the use of a technology probe -- this paper examines the communication dynamics within these planning processes, identifying critical design opportunities. We explore the issues of communication control, obscured agency, and tokenistic engagement that arise in bureaucratic support planning. As a contribution, we highlight the barriers and facilitators reshaping these interactions, offering key implications for future design interventions.2025FBFilip Bircanin et al.King's College London , Department of InformaticsEmpowerment of Marginalized GroupsParticipatory DesignCHI
Nature Networks: Designing for nature data collection and sharing from local to globalHuman-nature relations are formed by the social and economic forces underlying local, physical places. Yet, many citizen science platforms are designed for national or global nature data collection. How local knowledge of wildlife can be effectively assembled to support this is an open question. This study explored what a localised nature network might look like and how to design for what people care about, notice, record, and share. We undertook research with 14 participants in an inner-city location, using interviews and a variety of technology probes. We found that participants’ social and physical boundaries, values regarding family and community, and diverse questions impacted human-nature relations and nature data collection. Speculated physical-digital networks indicated novel combinations of platforms and technologies to drive ongoing engagement and learning. This study contributes insight into how nature data is formed by the realities of locality, and how a fractured nature/data landscape might be mended.2024KVKellie Vella et al.Citizen Science & Crowdsourced DataHuman-Nature Relationships (More-than-Human Design)DIS
Phenology Circles: A Method to Deepen Relations in More-Than-Human Design ProcessesWe present phenology circles, a method to deepen relations human and more-than-human in the backstage of participatory design processes. To illustrate the method, we reflect on over two years of activity in an online, global gardening community of practice (our phenology circle) initiated to coordinate and communicate with participants in the backstage of our research. Related to our research aims, the community was initiated to attune ourselves to the rhythms and interrelations of other species and between one another. Through this approach, we better understood interaction and deepened relations between humans and the more-than-human (e.g., plants, animals, spirits). The community (N=42) has shared over 1,200 images and textual posts regarding thoughts about the environment, concerns, and experiences. Reflecting on activity of eight core members, we identified shifts from scientific-natured posts to imbue sentience and storytelling, making possible a variety of cross-cultural and symbiotic encounters to appear in our online site and fostering community to encounter and embrace difference. Phenology circles illuminate more-than-human concerns intertwined with different human values and beliefs. We discuss the value of science, sentience and storytelling, reflect on facilitation, and illustrate a design pathway that links the backstage to frontstage design activities.2024SRShannon Rodgers et al.Technology Ethics & Critical HCIParticipatory DesignHuman-Nature Relationships (More-than-Human Design)DIS
Nature Fictions: Designing for a Sustainable Future Through Nature RelationsThis paper presents nature fictions, a co-design approach that seeks to highlight relations between people and nonhuman stakeholders in the process of imagining sustainable futures. The work was situated in gardens, to explore nature relations in gardeners' immediate surroundings and to imagine ways of combating the adverse effects human activities have on the Earth’s natural systems. Our study involved design workshops with 15 gardeners, who engaged with different prompts (phenology wheel, nature cards, and paper prototypes) to provoke relational thought for creating nature fictions. Through this process, we identified three design spaces that illustrate the relevance of the nature fictions approach: 1) Community building through awareness and collaboration around nature, 2) Multispecies care in the garden, and 3) Creating balance in public spaces – From the garden to society. We discuss key tensions and anxieties, and opportunities for each design space, and we reflect on working with nature fictions and more-than-human thought.2023SRShannon Rodgers et al.Design FictionSustainable HCIHuman-Nature Relationships (More-than-Human Design)DIS
Calming Down in Lockdown: Rethinking Technologies for a Slower Pace of LifeThis study investigated Australian older adults' response to the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, the adjustments they made to their activities, technology use, and social relations, to inform how technology design could be inspired by these adaptations. Online interviews revealed that some sorely missed social interactions, however, most enjoyed having a greater agency to curate their own activities and slowing down as a result of lockdown. These findings prompted us to rethink the design space of temporal design from the perspective of those craving an ongoing impact of slowness in their lives. We suggest that designing for a slower pace of life can be inspired by people's response to life circumstances in lockdown, complementing the original concept of slow technology which seeks to intervene in a fast-paced life to encourage people to slow down and reflect. We conclude by proposing three new design pathways based on this new standpoint.2023YAYasamin Asadi et al.Sustainable HCIEcological Design & Green ComputingHuman-Nature Relationships (More-than-Human Design)DIS
What is Human-Centered about Human-Centered AI? A Map of the Research LandscapeThe application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) across a wide range of domains comes with both high expectations of its benefits and dire predictions of misuse. While AI systems have largely been driven by a technology-centered design approach, the potential societal consequences of AI have mobilized both HCI and AI researchers towards researching human-centered artificial intelligence (HCAI). However, there remains considerable ambiguity about what it means to frame, design and evaluate HCAI. This paper presents a critical review of the large corpus of peer-reviewed literature emerging on HCAI in order to characterize what the community is defining as HCAI. Our review contributes an overview and map of HCAI research based on work that explicitly mentions the terms ‘human-centered artificial intelligence’ or ‘human-centered machine learning’ or their variations, and suggests future challenges and research directions. The map reveals the breadth of research happening in HCAI, established clusters and the emerging areas of Interaction with AI and Ethical AI. The paper contributes a new definition of HCAI, and calls for greater collaboration between AI and HCI research, and new HCAI constructs.2023TCTara Capel et al.Queensland University of TechnologyHuman-LLM CollaborationAI-Assisted Decision-Making & AutomationAI Ethics, Fairness & AccountabilityCHI
The Making of Women: Creating Trajectories for Women’s Participation in MakerspacesThis paper investigates how making activities and participation in makerspaces supports the wellbeing and empowerment of women, particularly in making domains that are typically male-dominated. We spent six months undertaking participant observations in a women-only makerspace that runs workshops aimed at teaching women skills in using power tools and woodwork. We conducted contextual interviews with 12 workshop attendees as well as with the makerspace founder and lead instructor. Through the lens of feminist HCI and legitimate peripheral participation, we present trajectories of participation within a women-only makerspace – from beginning as a peripheral participant to becoming a competent and confident maker. We found that through structured workshops in a women-only space that actively teach making skills, the women-only makerspace works to transform the current makerspace landscape so more women can engage with these spaces and participate within them. We contribute three core qualities to foster participation: women-only but without a ‘feminist’ label, configuring a formal and collaborative learning environment, and reification through artefacts. Collectively these work towards new configurations of makerspaces for women that enable their participation within them, and we detail how such configurations work to create trajectories for women’s participation.2021TCTara Capel et al.Equity, Inclusion, and NarrativesCSCW
Human-Nature Relations in Urban Gardens: Explorations with Camera TrapsAs cities grow, their people become increasingly distanced from nature except within private and public green spaces. Sensing technologies provide a means to harness curiosity about the animals living in these spaces, and possibly also connect interest to care. Yet little is known as to how people may use these technologies, or the implications for human-nature relations. To learn more, we gave commercial camera traps to ten adult participants to understand how they explored their gardens, what they wanted to learn, and what they did with this knowledge. We discovered trade-offs between control and care; the usefulness of different media and mystery; the temporalities of engaging in natural sensing practice; and a prevalence of sharing media within households. We discuss design for convivial cohabitation with the creatures in our garden. This research contributes to better human-nature relations through citizen sensing, as well as HCI for urban biodiversity conservation.2021KVKellie Vella et al.Queensland University of Technology (QUT)Citizen Science & Crowdsourced DataHuman-Nature Relationships (More-than-Human Design)CHI
Diagramming Working Field Theories for Design in the HCI ClassroomHCI has historically provided little support for moving from fieldwork insights or theories to design outcomes. Having witnessed many students struggle and then justify their designs with a form of marketing hype, we developed a supporting approach of “field theories”. A field theory is a working theory about salient interactions in a particular domain and sensitizing concepts in order to frame design investigations. It is presented visually in a field theory diagram to support succinct communication and critique. Studying use of design prototypes that have been informed by a field theory helps to reflect upon and refine the theory. In this paper we present examples from our HCI classes and reflections based on interviews with students. We discuss how field theories offer an orientation in the spirit of a ‘bricoleur’ who harnesses elements of theory and practice to produce deeper understandings and more fitting outcomes for the task at hand.2021BPBernd Ploderer et al.Queensland University of Technology (QUT)User Research Methods (Interviews, Surveys, Observation)CHI
Including Adults with Severe Intellectual Disabilities in Co-Design through Active SupportIn recent work, design researchers have sought to ensure that people with disabilities are engaged as competent and valued contributors to co-design. Yet, little is known about how to achieve this with adults with severe intellectual disabilities. Navigating design in the context of complex care practices is challenging, charged with uncertainty, and requires sustained effort of methodological and affective adjustments. To establish a respectful co-design relationship and enrich participation, we turn to Active Support (AS), an evidence-based strategy for engaging adults with severe intellectual disabilities. We present a reflective account of long-term field work that utilized the four aspects of AS, a) every moment has potential; b) graded assistance; c) little and often; d) maximizing choice and control. We discuss how these principles contribute to deepening HCI methods by ensuring interactional turns for adults with severe disabilities, revealing their unique competences, thereby shaping design direction and providing design insight.2021FBFilip Bircanin et al.QUTCognitive Impairment & Neurodiversity (Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia)Participatory DesignCHI
Engaging with Nature Sounds & Citizen Science by Designing for Creative & Contextual Audio EncountersWildlife calls are the best witnesses to the health of ecosystems, if only we know how to listen to them. Efforts to understand and inform restoration of healthy ecosystems with environmental audio recordings languish from insufficient tools to learn and identify sounds in recordings. To address this problem, we designed and playtested the Bristle Whistle Challenge prototype with ten players. We explored how to design delightful interactions with audio for gaining awareness of nature sounds and supporting wildlife conservation through citizen science. We found that rather than presenting audio alone, it was necessary to connect sounds to other senses and experiences in creative ways to impart meaning and enhance engagement. We offer recommendations to design creative and contextual interactions with media to build awareness of nature’s wonders. We call for greater efforts in interaction design to engage people with nature, which is the key to turning around our environmental crisis.2021JOJessica L Oliver et al.Queensland University of TechnologyCitizen Science & Crowdsourced DataSmart Cities & Urban SensingCHI
Exploration of Aural & Visual Media About Birds Informs Lessons for Citizen Science DesignAcoustic sensing has been hailed as a game-changer for detecting furtive wildlife, but uptake has been constrained by the laborious process of reviewing resultant torrents of audio data. To inform the design of interactive interfaces for reviewing audio recordings, we explored how people interact with aural and visual media about birds. We observed how twelve participants with different levels of interest in birds engaged with vocalization recordings, visualizations of bird calls, photographs, and range maps of three species. By conducting thematic analysis, we identified a variety of Challenges of Exploration and Benefits of a Media Assortment. We contribute lessons for designing to Bridge Knowledge & Context and to Facilitate Long-term Engagement with audio in ways that are fun, accessible, and informative. We provide explicit guidance for designers to diversify how citizen scientists interact with nature through audio as they move from engagement to conservation action.2020JOJessica L. Oliver et al.Citizen Science & Crowdsourced DataComputational Methods in HCIHuman-Nature Relationships (More-than-Human Design)DIS
The Wooden Quilt: Carving Out Personal Narratives in a Women-Only MakerspaceWomen can face barriers to participation in universal makerspace environments and are consequently underrepresented within them. Further, women have historically been excluded from learning and working with particular types of materials, such as wood. To explore how we might address these inequalities in regards to both access to makerspaces and to diverse materials, we present the wooden quilt probe. Through this probe we aimed to 1) create a makerspace environment specifically for women where they could engage with materials and tools traditionally found in more male-dominated craft environments, and 2) facilitate the sharing of stories and experiences with other women within the community center where this work took place. We contribute a rich understanding of the stories and experiences of women from the community center, and discuss the implications of the work for Interaction Design: how designers can contribute towards diversifying makerspace environments that enable women’s participation within them, the benefits of intertwining storytelling and making, and the boundaries around sharing personal narratives.2020TCTara Capel et al.Makerspace CultureEmpowerment of Marginalized GroupsDIS
Self-Expression by Design: Co-Designing the ExpressiBall with Minimally-Verbal Children on the Autism SpectrumExpressing one's thoughts and feelings is a fundamental human need - the basis for communication and social interaction. We ask, how do minimally-verbal children on the autism spectrum express themselves? How can we better recognise instances of self-expression? And how might technologies support and encourage self-expression? To address these questions, we undertook co-design research at an autism-specific primary school with 20 children over one school year. This paper contributes six Modalities of Self-Expression, through which children self-express and convey their design insights. Each modality of self-expression can occur across two different dimensions (socio-expressive and auto-expressive) and can be of a fundamental or an integrative nature. Further, we contribute the design trajectory of a tangible ball prototype, the ExpressiBall, which - through voice, sounds, lights, and motion sensors - explores how tangible technologies can support this range of expressive modalities. Finally, we discuss the concept of Self-Expression by Design.2020CWCara Wilson et al.Queensland University of TechnologyCognitive Impairment & Neurodiversity (Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia)Augmentative & Alternative Communication (AAC)Special Education TechnologyCHI
Guess the Data: Data Work to Understand How People Make Sense of and Use Simple Sensor Data from HomesSimple smart home sensors, e.g. for temperature or light, increasingly collect seemingly inconspicuous data. Prior work has shown that human sensemaking of such sensor data can reveal domestic activities. Such sensemaking presents an opportunity to empower people to understand the implications of simple smart home sensors. To investigate, we developed and field-tested the Guess the Data method, which enabled people to use and make sense of live data from their homes and to collectively interpret and reflect on anonymized data from the homes in our study. Our findings show how participants reconstruct behavior, both individually and collectively, expose the sensitive personal data of others, and use sensor data as evidence and for lateral surveillance within the household. We discuss the potential of our method as a participatory HCI method for investigating design of the IoT and implications created by doing data work on home sensors.2020AKAlbrecht Kurze et al.Chemnitz University of TechnologyIoT Device PrivacySmart Home Privacy & SecurityCHI
Designing in the Network of Relations for Species Conservation: The Playful Tingtibi Community BirdhouseThis paper investigates connecting people in remote communities through nature in order to foster stewardship and conservation of endangered species. Global citizen science technologies have found success in urban, developed countries, but they typically rely on large distributed populations to gather or analyze data and do not suit sparsely populated and remote contexts. We undertook a long-term field study to iteratively co-design a tangible and playful nature engagement prototype in a remote World Heritage Area community. The prototype design fosters learning through ambient sounds as well as exploration and discovery of species through nature soundscape recordings. We found that the prototypes amplified locals' interest, became embedded in community relations and gradually led to placemaking of new engagement 'spaces' and of newer forms. We contribute lessons learned on how design can foster nature engagement and stewardship of endangered species by heeding Suchman's call for design to "enter networks of relations that make technology possible". We contribute design implications and new design foci HCI/Citizen science engagement for species conservation.2020TDTshering Dema et al.Queensland University of TechnologyDeveloping Countries & HCI for Development (HCI4D)Human-Nature Relationships (More-than-Human Design)CHI
Ecology Meets Computer Science: Designing Tools to Reconcile People, Data, and PracticesEcoacoustics draws together computer scientists and ecologists to achieve an understanding of ecosystems and wildlife using acoustic recordings of the environment. Computer scientists are challenged to manage increasingly large datasets while developing analytic and visualisation tools. Ecologists struggle to find and use tools that answer highly heterogeneous research questions. These two fields are naturally drawn together at the tool interface, however, less attention has been paid to how their practices influence tool design and use. We interviewed and collected email correspondence from four computer scientists and eight ecologists to learn how their practices indicate opportunities for reconciling difference through design. We found that different temporal rhythms, relationships to data, and data-driven questions demand tool configuration, data integration, and standardisation. This research outlines interfacing opportunities for new ecological research utilising large acoustic datasets, and also contributes to evolving HCI approaches in areas making use of big data and human-in-the-loop processes.2020KVKellie Vella et al.Queensland University of TechnologyCitizen Science & Crowdsourced DataSustainable HCIEcological Design & Green ComputingCHI
Designing Participatory Sensing with Remote Communities to Conserve Endangered SpeciesThe increasing loss of species globally calls for effective monitoring tools and strategies to inform conservation action. The dominant approach to citizens engagement has been smart phone and platform-centric, tasking crowds to collect and analyze data. However, many critically endangered species inhabit remote areas, characterized by sparsely populated communities with poor internet connectivity. Approaches need to garner high engagement relative to population size, with data collection and knowledge synthesis suited to the local context. We conducted a field study in remote communities to understand how to enhance conservation of Bhutan's critically endangered White-bellied heron by exploring existing monitoring practices and trialing acoustic sensing technologies. We found that knowledge about the species is partial, heterogeneous, situated within and across communities and rooted in cultural beliefs. Sensors, acoustic interfaces, and playful probes provided new ways for the community to 'see' and discuss their local environment fostering them to share and grow their knowledge together. We contribute a synthesis of key considerations for designing effective participatory sensing to conserve species in remote communities.2019TDTshering Dema et al.Queensland University of TechnologyCitizen Science & Crowdsourced DataDeveloping Countries & HCI for Development (HCI4D)Human-Nature Relationships (More-than-Human Design)CHI
Position Exchange Workshops: A Method to Design for Each Other in FamiliesExisting methods for researching and designing to support relationships between parents and their adult children tend to lead to designs that respect the differences between them. We conducted 14 Position Exchange Workshops with parents and their adult children, where the child has left home in recent years, aiming to explicate and confront their positions in creative and supportive ways. We designed three co-design methods (Card Sort for Me & You, Would I Lie to You? and A Magic Machine for You) to support participants to explore, understand, empathize, and design for each other. The findings show that the methods facilitated understanding, renegotiating, and reimagining their current positions. We discuss how positions can help consider both perspectives in the design process. This paper seeks to contribute (1) how the notion of positions enables generating understandings of the relationship, and (2) a set of methods influenced by position exchange, empathy, and playful engagement that help explore human relationships.2019DMDiego Muñoz et al.Queensland University of TechnologyFitness Tracking & Physical Activity MonitoringCommunity Engagement & Civic TechnologyParticipatory DesignCHI
The Adventures of Older Authors: Exploring Futures through Co-Design FictionsThis paper presents co-design fiction as an approach to engaging users in imagining, envisioning and speculating not just on future technology but future life through co-created fictional works. Design fiction in research is often created or written by researchers. There is relatively little critical discussion of how to co-create design fictions with end-users, with the concomitant opportunities and challenges this poses. To fill this gap in knowledge, we conducted co-design fiction workshops with nine older creative writers, utilising prompts to inspire discussion and engage their imaginative writing about the trend towards tracking and monitoring older people. Their stories revealed futures of neither dystopia nor utopia but of social and moral dilemmas narrating their wish not just to "maintain their independence", but a palpable desire for adventure and very nuanced senses of how they wish to take control. We discuss inherent tensions in the control of the co-design fiction process; balancing the author's need for freedom and creativity with the researcher's desire to guide the process toward the design investigation at hand.2019AAAloha Hufana Ambe et al.Queensland University of TechnologyAging-Friendly Technology DesignParticipatory DesignDesign FictionCHI