In the midst of civilizational and ecological turmoil, we must create livable worlds. For Haraway, livable worlds require us to turn away from the rationality and autopoiesis of anthropocentrism, towards the idea that “human beings are with and of the earth” and the “...powers of this earth are the main story;” rethinking ourselves as holobionts [2].
Humans only live through collaborations, relying upon each other to make the planet livable. As opposed to extracting from organisms in and around us, we must de-estrange ourselves in collaborations for survival with our neighbors (non-human and more), or sympoiesis.
Material practices for de-estrangement means becoming familiars with the non-human: microbiomes, birds, weeds, and so on. Sympoesis means we can only survive with (often unusual) partners; we “become-with each other”—or, “not at all” [2] We must discover collaborations with organisms, non-human and more; we must make kin to survive.
Interaction designers, through creating interfaces, can catalyze relationships between person and place to emerge. Interfaces can serve as "playgrounds," which philosopher Ian Bogost defines as guides, rules, or frames for interacting in a certain way. Playgrounds, such as plant walks or games, can help us develop an embodied intimacy with place and its organisms because they offer prosthetics for noticing tacit layers of ecology and history otherwise unseen and unnoticed.
Designers can help craft livable worlds through creating interfaces, playgrounds offering us help for making kin with our surrounding ecologies.
You will create an interface (print or app) that, through its use, assists people in developing a relationship with an aspect of the immediate area around UT Austin.
Focus on cultivating relationships in the tune of:
The aspect of place must include some form of ecology (the plant, soil, and/or fungal residents) and (optionally) history.
Examples include: A guide to natural areas, a set of practices to notice local ecology, a guide to tree canopy cover, a plant "walk," a scavenger hunt, a collection of noteworthy plants, places that flood, shade guide, etc.