concept developer / design researcher
User Experience Design & Mātauranga Design
Academic Exchange - 2023
During this exchange, I refreshed my UX design competencies which were quite rusty after the many research and philosophy focused courses. These included the full double-diamond process, and UI prototyping using Figma. A user-centred project focusing on reconnecting with nature in urban areas allowed me to explore ecological themes in pragmatic design practices.
The course Mātauranga Design introduced me to the Māori culture. This included making a visual pepeha, reinforcing the importance of integrating personal beliefs and values into design. Additionally, the course highlighted the relevance of traditional knowledge in contemporary design through learning about Indigenous practices such as woodworking, bone carving, and weaving, connecting with Tim Ingold’s theories of making.
This exchange afforded my commitment towards integrating posthuman thinking in my design, acknowledging both the beauty of our natural world and biodiversity, as well as the valuable knowledge of the Māori worldview.
Discovering and defining the design space
In this project I investigated the human-nature relationship within urban Wellington through a mixed-methods research approach. I began with extensive desk research to frame the inquiry, focusing on the mental and physical wellbeing benefits of nature as well as the ecological dynamics of human-nature coexistence in cities. This foundational knowledge informed the design of semi-structured interviews. The interviews explored personal experiences with nature, participants’ perceived value of it, and their emotional or ethical relationships to the natural environment.
I transcribed and anonymised these interviews and applied affinity mapping to identify key patterns and insights. This process surfaced recurring themes, such as a preference for “natural” over designed green spaces, a sense of nature being taken for granted, and a desire to reconnect and give back to nature. These insights informed a set of six actionable design principles aimed at fostering stronger, more mindful connections between urban dwellers and the natural world around them. The methods I used combined human-centered and post-human design thinking, providing both empathetic and ecological perspectives to guide potential interventions
Develop and deliver the concept
I introduced Floradex, a UX concept designed to transform the human-nature relationship in urban environments like Wellington. Grounded in ecological philosophy, architecture theory, and user research, the project began with a clear design challenge: how to reconnect city dwellers with nature in meaningful, lasting ways. Drawing on insights from Māori philosophy, thinkers like Donna Haraway, and vernacular design principles, I developed a three-part interaction journey that encourages users to explore nearby green spaces, adopt local flora by scanning and learning about them through the app, and then build a relationship with those plants through personalized care routines.
Throughout the development process, I moved through iterative phases of ideation, prototyping, and evaluation. I created and tested multiple design concepts, ultimately refining the experience based on user feedback gathered through usability tasks and heuristic evaluations. Key insights from user testing influenced the app’s mechanics, such as simplifying navigation, emphasizing swiping over buttons, improving plant localization features, and enhancing personalization. The final concept leverages familiar mobile interactions to make nature connection feel accessible and rewarding, while also embedding opportunities for reflection and responsibility.
Final Concept
Engaging with the indigenous Maori culture through design
