UNMASKED: Tools to increase awareness about air pollution
An initiative project in bringing an awareness about air pollution in Jakarta. The project has been published in two symposium and more than 1,000 people has seen the prototypes.
Project types:
Context
Team: Marleen Van Bergeijk (Dutch designer)
my contribution: User research, ideation, product design, exhibition.
Client:
Dutch Design Foundation
Year:
2019 (8 months part time)
Tools
Adobe Ae, Physical prototype (Rasberry Pi)
Recognition
Exhibited in Erasmus Huis Jakarta and Dutch Design Week 2019 in Eindhoven
Background
Air pollution is a serious problem in major Indonesian cities, with Jakarta’s air quality being recognised as one of the worst worldwide and the worst in South-East Asia. An ever-growing problem that affects the global climate, the city’s economy and more directly the health of citizens.
Citizens are dependant on other stakeholders for change. Developments in public transportation and the implementation of clean alternatives are so slow. In the meantime, citizens conveniently choose private motorised vehicles to get from A to B.
Whilst commuting people are unaware of their health risks, wearing the wrong type of mask or worse, non at all. Information on pollution levels is scarce, abstract, often not real-time and hidden in apps or platforms.
Approach
1. Empathize
I have successfully engaged my project partner to understand the problem of air pollution in Jakarta by conducting the observations, interviews, and expert meetings.
2. Define
We mapped our insights and choosing our direction: Design to tackle health prevention due to air pollution.
3. Experiment
A low-fi experiment to see if people are aware of the current pollution level.
“Is there a problem with the sky? How can I know this?”
“Whenever I see a tree near me I know I am safe and I don’t need a mask.”
4. Ideate
Ideated and acted out on the street. What if air quality data was visible differently?
5. Design
Visualised our concept in context and building our working prototype.
Insights
City dwellers are dependent on other stakeholders for change. Developments in public transportation and the implementation of clean alternatives are very slow. Residents opt for the convenience of private motorized vehicles, unaware of the accompanying air pollution and risks for their health. People often wear the wrong type of face mask or worse, none at all. There is little information available on pollution levels and the information that is available is abstract, seldom real-time and often hidden in apps or platforms.
Design Challenge
What if air quality data was visible differently?
Solution
UNMASKED takes local sensor data and presents it in a sensible and engaging way. Using the metaphor of particles in the air, real-time pollution levels are brought to the street in public displays. With the interactive AR layers and digital ‘face masks’, information can be visualised everywhere around you using geolocation and shared with others. In this way UNMASKED is making the invisible visible, informing and empowering citizens to take protective action for their own health.
Reflection
(and feedback)
UNMASKED working prototypes (app and installation) were exhibited in the Embassy of the Netherlands in Jakarta and in Dutch Design Week 2019.
Although we run the project in a short period, this could be a nice starting point on how to visualise the pollution. The solution is to focus on ‘awareness’. We suggest moving to the next stage of behaviour change to make people act upon it.