Germfree DFW
What if antibiotics no longer work?
ROLE: Research and design individual contributor
PROJECT TYPE: Futurecasting
RESEARCH: Qualitative, Generative
Project Summary
GermFree DFW was a collaborative futurecasting project created by the Design Research department at the University of North Texas to develop a public health initiative in response to the prompt “What if antibiotics no longer work?”
Our multidisciplinary team was tasked with formulating a proposal in response to the prompt, “What if antibiotics no longer work?”. Our solution had to be viable considering STEEP factors (social, technological, educational, economic, political), leverage existing networks and systems, and be executable via collaboration with governmental agencies such as the CDC.
Approach
Because this was a futurecasting activity, we didn’t have access to real people experiencing this issue that we could talk to and learn from, so instead we had to make sure our work was informed by a deep understanding of as many closely related fields and issues as we could uncover through secondary research and speaking with subject matter experts.
Given the potential scope of the project, we agreed to divide the secondary research into rough areas of focus with each researcher concentrating on one of the following areas: local demographics, local culture, historic diseases, infrastructure, and current medical technology. We then set up a project timeline with deadlines and milestones to work from and scheduled regular synthesis meetings to compile our collective findings and review design work.
Research Questions
• What are the key areas and issues?
• What level of compliance will our program require?
• What is the smallest size group needed to effect change?
• How to classify areas of influence for hygienic behavior?
• What existing networks can be leveraged?
Project Breakdown
• 7 Research team members
• 6 Months of research and design activity
• 4 Advising subject matter experts
• 1 Advising professor
Final deliverables for the project included educational materials, a two-phase implementation plan targeting behavioral changes in targeted populations, corporate collaborations, and an executive summary booklet.
Group Methods
• Secondary research in identified focus areas
• Scenario and persona development
• Secondary research synthesis and ideation
• Design and print final deliverables
Individual Responsibilities
• Regional demographic research and analysis
• Concept mapping
• Persona development
• Campaign materials design
• Executive summary booklet design
Outcomes
After compiling our data from the different secondary research areas, it became clear that given the STEEP factors involved and based on historical disease trends, a simple but comprehensive hygiene campaign emphasizing hand washing as the primary method of prevention would be the most successful path forward in this scenario.
Key Project Takeaways
Futurecasting can be an invaluable tool for innovation. Through the process of futurecasting we were able build enough domain knowledge in our given problem area to effectively ideate on genuinely novel ways to use existing medical technology. We also learned a lot about the disproportionately negative impact of disease on vulnerable populations, gaining not only greater understanding and empathy for those who fall into this category, but also spurring additional ideas of novel public programs beyond GermFree DFW.
It’s especially powerful to consider that this research took place in 2015 - five years before COVID-19 - and yet our team came up with a plan very similar to what the CDC mandated for U.S. residents in March 2020. I find this to be confirmation that futurecasting as an activity has the potential to create real, workable solutions to both existing and future problems.