Empathize & Define

Starting with human-centered design often means getting to know clients (or end users) in meaningful ways. By using empathetic and participatory approaches to research, Aging By Design participants build nuanced insight into the lives of older adults and caregivers.

Here is where problems, needs, and barriers are distilled into opportunity statements and questions. In Aging By Design, we used “How Might We…” questions to redefine our understanding of aging.

Ideate

Ideation is a process of creative thinking. We use it to develop a lot of ideas and then narrow down to the good ones. Older adults and caregivers are often best-placed to let us know what makes ‘good’ and ‘better’ ideas.

In 2017, ten Aging By Design grantees were selected to receive $25,000 planning grants. Refugee resettlement agency, a local Meals on Wheels, and a rural county Office for the Aging were among the organizations selected. Grantees built collaborative design teams of older adults, staff, leadership, and volunteers to develop potential solutions.

Prototype, Test, & Iterate

Ideas come to life through prototypes - sketches, models, and walk-throughs of a few of the ‘best’ concepts generated through ideation. Even more, testing prototypes with the people who will use them is a crucial design step. It inspires fresh thinking and makes good ideas even better. Prepare to collect a lot of feedback and continuously adjust program design details during these stages.

In 2018, the ten Aging By Design grantees shared in over $650,000 worth of implementation grants from the Health Foundation for Western and Central New York. The 18-month implementation phase features 6 rounds of testing and feedback of ideas with older adults and caregivers.

Start your own project by using the Aging By Design Toolkit.

Explore the ten Aging By Design projects by exploring the map below.