Chinese CHI Concurrent Workshops | Aging with Empathy

The Chinese CHI 2024 conference, organized by the International Chinese Association of Computer Human Interaction (ICACHI), will be held from November 22 to 25, 2024, at the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) in Shenzhen, China.

On the first day of the conference (November 22), the SUSTech School of Design will host seven parallel workshops.

Workshop Theme

 

Aging with Empathy: Fostering Cross-Generational Insights into the Aging Experience

by Mirna Zordan, Wanlin Zhang, Xueliang Li

with Luhua Chen, Yuruo Zhang, Rui Qi, Xi Zhang

Future Spaces Vision Lab, Design for Resilient Culture Research Group, X-Group

Workshop Duration :

11.22 9:00 am -12:00 pm

Workshop location：

Nanshan Intelligence Park, Building C1, 10th or 11th floor, Room1009

Workshop Language：

Chinese/English

Equipment needed:

No

 

Workshop Description

This workshop is designed to explore younger generations’ attitudes toward the elderly and to foster empathy through a series of interactive activities. The session will begin with an introduction overview, followed by experiential activities aimed at cultivating both physical and emotional empathy for the elderly. Building on these insights, participants will engage in a collaborative brainstorming session to identify key challenges in bridging generational understanding. Finally, participants will break into smaller groups to develop innovative strategies and potential technology-assisted solutions for addressing these challenges effectively.

 

Objectives

1. Explore younger generations’ attitudes toward the elderly through an empathy-driven approach .
2. Discuss current challenges and identify potential technology-assisted solutions for cultivating cross-generational empathy toward the elderly.

 

Target Audience

- Design students and junior researchers with an interest in aging-related topics.

- Young volunteers and social workers with experience in elderly care, as well as practitioners in eldercare services.

- Young people and researchers with an interest in the aging society.

 

Expected Outcomes

Participants will gain a deeper understanding of the physical and emotional challenges faced by the elderly through our experiential sessions. Also, by using the tools and methods provided, participants will learn to identify real challenges within the elder community and develop empathy-driven, context-appropriate, and potentially technology-assisted strategies to address these issues.

 

 

Speakers' Info

Mirna ZORDAN

Mirna ZORDAN is an architect and a design instructor with a specific focus on data-driven spatial psychology and environment-behaviour performances in complex conditions. Her research replies to the SDGs agenda for good health and well-being and her current projects are centered on 1) psycho-physiological responses to high-density space complexities with a specific focus on stress levels, and 2) human-environment interactions for the aging society. She also has an active interest in exploring design responses for urban villages (Villages in the City) through increased dialogues among local communities and authorities, professional practices, scholars, and multidisciplinary experts. Professor ZORDAN received her BA and MA at IUAV The University of Venice together with her license for practicing Architecture. She holds a PhD from City University of Hong Kong awarded with the Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme (HKPFS). After working as an architect in Sydney, she taught and was an invited lecturer in several international institutions including IUAV The University of Venice, Atelier Europe China IUAV/CAUP Tongji University, FAB Fabrica De Ciudad (Mexico City), City University of Hong Kong, The University of Hong Kong, and ARUP Hong Kong. She was also a research fellow in Venice funded by the European Social Funding Scheme replying to the National Industry Plan 4.0, Italy, with IUAV, RE-VEGA Group, The Science and Technology Park of Venice, Regione Veneto, and Universita’ Ca’ Foscari Venezia. Before joining SUSTech, she was working at The University of Hong Kong while being an active ambassador at the International Forum on Urbanism (IFoU).

 

ZHANG Wanlin

Assistant Professor at the School of Design, Southern University of Science and Technology. She is a cross-disciplinary design researcher whose work focuses on culturally significant design, design for sustainability, and digital humanities. She holds a PhD in Design from Lancaster University, UK, and MA degree in Design Science from Hunan University, China, and BA in Industrial Design from Central South University, China. Her previous research contributes to Located Making project, which is a collaborative three-year project funded by the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) Newton Fund. Also, she previously worked as Assistant to the Cultural Exchange project at Lancaster University. Her ongoing projects investigate how computing technologies and data-driven design approaches can facilitate innovation within cultural and creative fields. She has published almost 20 peer-reviewed articles, book chapters and conference papers, and these include The Design Journal, International Journal of Anthropology and Ethnology, IEEE, EAD conference, IASDR conference, and CUMULUS conference. She also serves as a reviewer for several leading international journals and conferences in culture and design fields. In addition, as a designer and design researcher, she was involved in several design projects and funded research projects, and she has research and commercial experience in user experience research, product development and project management. Her previous design works were awarded at the national, provincial, and municipal levels and were granted patents.

 

LI Xueliang (Sean)

Assistant professor at the School of Design, Southern University of Science and Technology. His research interest lies in Human-computer Interaction (HCI), Human-robot Interaction (HRI), emotion-driven design, and design for mental wellbeing. His research takes on a Research-through-Design perspective, seeing design activities as a way of advancing our understanding of innovative applications of technologies in our everyday life and design practice. Through engaging in design practice and research, he aims to extend the boundaries of the intersections of design and other disciplines. Before joining the School of Design, he obtained his PhD from the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.