Playful Living Lab brings research on technology and nature to NordiCHI
Professor Ferran Altarriba from the Bachelor’s Degree in Audiovisual and Multimedia Communication and director of the Playful Living Lab at the ERAM University School of the Arts travelled to Vaasa, Finland, from 5 to 8 October to participate in NordiCHI, one of the leading international conferences in the field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI).
During the conference, the paper How Can We Design Technology for Joyful and Caring Human-Forest Interactions?: Ideas and Reflections from a One-Week Summer School in the Pre-Pyrenees Mountains was presented. The paper was co-authored by members of the Playful Living Lab: Shuxin Zhang, PhD student; Adelina-Laura Bulibasa, ERAM lecturer; Florin Lica, undergraduate student; and the lab’s director.
The paper builds on one of the experiences developed by the Playful Living Lab: the 2023 Blended Intensive Programme (BIP), a one-week summer school held in the Pre-Pyrenees, bringing together students from different parts of the world.
During this experience, participants explored natural environments through observation, conversation and shared reflection, and worked collaboratively to develop ideas about how technology could contribute to establishing more caring, meaningful and joyful relationships with forests.
The research addresses a central question: how can we design technologies that not only help us experience joy when we are in a forest, but also encourage attitudes of care towards these natural environments?
Drawing on the experiences lived during the summer school and the imaginaries collaboratively developed by the participants, the paper reflects on the relationship between joy and care, understanding both dimensions as elements that can reinforce one another in interactions between people and forest ecosystems.
The analysis of the experiences and the outcomes of the co-creation process identifies four design qualities that can inspire future technological projects aimed at fostering these forms of interaction with nature.
Participation in NordiCHI provides an opportunity to share the outcomes of this experience with an international community dedicated to research and practice in the field of Human-Computer Interaction.
For the Playful Living Lab, this participation highlights an approach to research based on co-creation, experimentation and shared learning, connecting students and lecturers with international contexts and with challenges related to technology, society and natural environments.
