The design team works with members of the Highland community (N. Central Austin) as they strive to center their community around sustaining native plantings at Reilly Community Garden (RCG). The team will determine specific challenges experienced at RCG, then develop an engagement framework to enable community participation in the development of a series of design proposals aimed at supporting the community in their mission. The design team will develop 10-15 prototypes, for objects that will intuitively guide actions in the garden, helping the community and students at the adjacent elementary school, to learn the native gardening skills necessary to nurture and sustain their environment even as the climate changes in Central Texas. A participatory design process will be used to develop this series of unique object-based, interactive educational tools. The tools developed will guide all community members, including preliterate, aging and immigrant neighbors, as they engage in essential acts of care at RCG; forging stronger community connections around a common mission, while supporting individual and collective well-being.
