Project Mozambique: A pictorial approach to geodesign: a case study for the Lower Zambezi valley
In a recent project the SPINlab Geodesign team has applied it’s experience with geodesign in data rich environments such as the Netherlands and the UK to design an approach for interactive workshops in the Lower Zambezi valley, Mozambique. Instead of a model based application that provides real time response to proposed changes, we designed a tool that facilitated open discussion and relied heavily on visualization. This approach required no calculation steps (the local stakeholders provided the input) and relied heavily on drawing and icons. This appealed to the participants and the absence of a quantitative model was not seen as a problem. Despite the simple strategy, the tool served its purpose well. It was interesting to observe that we were able to use the principles of our more sophisticated tools in an approach that was simpler, but also much more graphical in order to promote discussion and understanding.