Abstract
This paper describes a project exploring design research practices and empathic design to produce context-specific knowledge to inform and facilitate visual storytelling, in collaboration with the Women’s Association of Chira Island, a rural ecotourism association from the Pacific of Costa Rica. While their pioneering ecotourism projects have gained national recognition, its members have faced multiple challenges, including reassessing gender and social roles and furthering their capacity to support development in the community. Their experiences and stories became their most valuable asset, triggering the need to communicate them to benefit similar populations. The contents of this project were developed during three field research visits and two years of collaborative design work, employing “ time,” “space,” and “voice” to contextualize the stories. This investigation resulted in printed materials and videos designed for mobility and easy reproduction to be used by the association as tools to inspire women in similar rural areas.
Keywords
visual storytelling; rural ecotourism; design research; empathic design
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2016.417
Citation
Hernandez, M. (2016) Design Research, Storytelling, and Entrepreneur Women in Rural Costa Rica: a case study, in Lloyd, P. and Bohemia, E. (eds.), Future Focused Thinking - DRS International Conference 2016, 27 - 30 June, Brighton, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2016.417
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Design Research, Storytelling, and Entrepreneur Women in Rural Costa Rica: a case study
This paper describes a project exploring design research practices and empathic design to produce context-specific knowledge to inform and facilitate visual storytelling, in collaboration with the Women’s Association of Chira Island, a rural ecotourism association from the Pacific of Costa Rica. While their pioneering ecotourism projects have gained national recognition, its members have faced multiple challenges, including reassessing gender and social roles and furthering their capacity to support development in the community. Their experiences and stories became their most valuable asset, triggering the need to communicate them to benefit similar populations. The contents of this project were developed during three field research visits and two years of collaborative design work, employing “ time,” “space,” and “voice” to contextualize the stories. This investigation resulted in printed materials and videos designed for mobility and easy reproduction to be used by the association as tools to inspire women in similar rural areas.