Smart Engagement for Urban Trees and Community Voices
Team: Joel Fredericks, Callum Parker, Martin Tomitsch
Year: 2016
Vegetation management around electricity lines is essential for public safety, but it often causes tension in communities where tree trimming affects the aesthetic outlook. Engaging the public on these practices is critical for building trust and ensuring community voices are heard in decision-making processes.
This project investigated how pop-up installations that combined digital and analogue interactions could enhance community engagement on tree trimming and vegetation management. Conducted in collaboration with Ausgrid, an electricity supplier in New South Wales, Australia, the project involved developing and deploying pop-up installations at multiple sites. Engagement activities included informal meetings, a focus group, and interactive features such as augmented reality experiences, voting interfaces, and paper-based surveys.
The project contributed to the development of middle-out design approaches for community engagement, integrating perspectives from local government, community groups, and other stakeholders. It offered preliminary heuristics for blending digital and analogue media in temporary, situated interventions, enabling more inclusive conversations about city-making. This hybrid approach demonstrated how community placemaking can draw on local knowledge to inform the design and maintenance of urban infrastructure, contributing to smarter and more collaborative cities.