I’m at the library right now, and just got an idea. If we don’t get any contacts to seniors through our more official efforts, this could be a great place to find seniors to interview and such!
(Context: senior citizens will probably be one of our cases in the project, and we were looking for related clients)
The Friday meeting was a good one. Only part of the people were there (the time of the event was a challenge for the rest), but we had a good atmosphere, and discussed quite a bit about what social problems to approach. We also decided to start splitting tasks a bit, especially the getting-in-touch-with-potential-stakeholders part.
Vva (in Finnish, Vailla Vakinaista Asuntoa; in English, No Fixed Abode) is an organization for homeless or ex-homeless people in Helsinki, aiming to find a permanent place to live for everyone, and providing different kinds of assistance and fun activities in the meanwhile.
On Friday I met Sanna, Carole and Keijo from Vva (for the first time). They were very excited about the idea of the project, and decided already then that they wanted in! Now it’s just a matter of deciding the details of their participation.
This is great news, and it was great talking to them and seeing their dedication to what they’re doing! I look forward to seeing them again!
Last Monday I visited the Helsinki HUB for the first time, and got everyone’s support for running the project in the Hub premises. It was a big step for the project!
The ironic part is, the first thing I saw on the Hub walls were materials that had obviously come out of a design process, not unlike what I will be teaching during the workshops. I asked about them and was told that Ideo had run a 2 day workshop there last autumn! I thought it was a nice coincidence, and maybe a sign that our concepts will turn out at least as good as Ideo concepts 
It’s been some time I’ve been thinking about doing this project, and now finally it’s been kicked-off. The School for Social Innovation, how it’s now called. Also, my master thesis project for the Interaction Design program at Malmö University.
Let the show begin!