False Creek Toy Review
Children in North America are massive consumers of toys that normally have a short life-span. How can children help us find alternatives to this paradigm? How do their insights influence or help the design process?
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Vancouver Girl
James Hallam, Jacqueline Quenneville and Janice Wu
Discarded fashion dolls are usually functional, but have lost their visual-tactile appeal.
Insight from research: There is enough waste from fashion dolls and the fashion industry to create a whole new line of products.
With the help of a team of young co-creators, the designers developed a beauty salon/spa destination where fashion dolls could be cleaned, repaired, and revitalized. The spa experience reinforces what young children find enjoyable in fashion dolls: glamour, fashion and beauty.
Insight from research: Fixing and making clothes for fashion dolls is a form of play
The Vancouver Girl Spa would also retail is own line of restored dolls. To publicize the spa recycling approach, the design team solicited fashion designers to design and display high-fashion doll garments.
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Toijoi Toy Repair Kit
Jennie Johansson, Damaris Pederson and Rachel Kroft
Inspired by innovative do-it-yourself services that help people repair their bicycles, the designers identified the point of failure for most plastic toys, and developed a kit of most commonly needed connectors. Children can repair their own toys.
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ZOOP Mobile Toy Co-op
Rachel Simpson, Lorea Sinclair and Rown Liivamagi
System Features:
- RFID tagged toys for tracking and data gathering. Tags also provide user feedback through “animated return units”.
- Portability – the wagon can be hitched to any small vehicle and towed to location
- Expandability – the wagon expands to create shelter when set up on location
- Gift Card program – parents and grandparents are encouraged to buy memberships instead of toys
- Toy Intake Day – quarterly community events when toys are donated to the ZOOP Co-op
System Benefits:
Socio-Ethical
- Provides opportunity for community building, volunteer opportunities, and encourages stewardship
Environmental
- Reduces the amount of toys a family owns, reduces travel to toy stores, encourages toy manufacturers to design and manufacture for longevity, and provides infrastructure for toy repair.
Economic
- Cost of membership is less that cost of toys. Sets up infrastructure to pay for services instead of resources.
Scenario of Use
ZOOP Day – each week, ZOOP spends about 2-3 hours in a neighbourhood, providing an opportunity for neighbours to spend time together while the children exchange their toys.
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