ABSTRACT
Through the lens of design and ingenuity, evidence was gathered on many important topics around ageing – from coping strategies by creative citizens to end-of-life, dementia and productive ageing – with the goal of investigating which new services, tools and solutions will best serve our future super ageing society. This chapter is a reflection by a design researcher referring to Participatory Action Research (PAR) Methodology.
The program co-designed design actions based on the ingenuity of ageing within a diverse community. It does not conform to the medical model based on ageing as a disease to be cured by experts. Neither does it conform entirely to the social model of ageing, even though social connectivity with others is recognized as very important. By focusing on design as a creative practice/discipline and more importantly design as a citizen’s right, the Social Innovation Design Lab (SI.DLab) encouraged every aspect of daily life to become a holistic celebration of autonomy. The SI.DLab exemplifies the cultural model of ageing through three tactics (articulation, culture and tool-making), in which boundaries are moved and new perspectives for change are opened up.
The SI.DLab, a cross-generation program which put together over 1000 students to work together with more than 400 senior citizens on topics of end-of-life, dementia and productive ageing for ageing innovative ideas for our future super aged society. This chapter focuses on how to encourage more efficient PAR projects with older adults as partners with real design research projects funded by government on capacity building between the years 2017 and 2019 in the city of Hong Kong, China.
