“People who ... know what it's like to be in the ‘real world’ ... they're dreamers that are addicted to reality as opposed to realists that are addicted to dreams, meaning they have that innocence in them.”

 

—Neri Oxman

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Overview
Transitioning from week 13 to 14, building on systemic mapping, students now explore how design ethnography guides ethical, technology-driven urban transformation. In the real world, design challenges are often complex, interconnected, and multifaceted. Cross-disciplinary and interdisciplinary collaboration has become not just beneficial but essential (Papanek, 1985). The key lies in synthesizing learning across the peoplescape, servicescape, and cityscape. 
 

Grounded in the intersection of design ethnography and Urban Technology (UT), students reflect on their development as emerging design anthropologists and consider how ethnographic inquiry can shape and inspire urban innovation (Hollander & Sussman, 2021). This reflection encourages critical engagement with questions of ethics, agency, and responsibility in envisioning technological futures.

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*Note: Week 14 is also reserved for final presentation rehearsal and for reflecting on the six guiding questions.
 

Reflections

• How might design ethnography envision and guide the ethical futures of emerging urban technologies—such as AI, sensors, and automation—before they shape the fabric of city life?

• What does it mean to design with technology ethnographically, not only to refine what exists, but to speculate on alternative futures where technology deepens, rather than diminishes, our social and civic connections?

• How might incorporating interview-based research enhance the development of archetypes in UT 230?

• How can the methods introduced in UT 210 directly support the analytical goals and deliverables of UT 230?

• In what ways could interviews provide insight into behaviors, routines, or motivations that are not visible through observation alone?

• How do Design Ethnography and UT intersect—and where do productive tensions arise?

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References

• Hollander, J., & Sussman, A. (2021). Urban Experience and Design. Routledge.

• Papanek, V. (1985). Design for the Real World: Human Ecology and Social Change. Academy Chicago Publishers.