Co-creation in practice I: Co-creating a digital neighbourhood guide (Bremen Osterholz)

Abstract

This chapter reports on a co-creation project that was conducted in the city district Bremen Osterholz. A core group of 11 older residents co-created a digital district guide over the duration of ten months. In a first step, the group identified an information gap between existing neighbourhood resources to support older residents and older residents’ awareness about them. The solution proposed was to better inform older adults in order to facilitate social participation in their everyday lives (ranging from consulting services to social encounters and outdoor activities). Members of the core group defined the specific information needs (including relevant attributes for each information category) and collected data for all categories. In addition, focus groups with 80 older residents were conducted with the support of local social care service providers. The focus groups were used partly for collecting information about the district, but also for testing the first prototype. The chapter describes co-creation methods such as cultural probes and data tables. It concludes with lessons learned.