The Book

What this Toolbox is for

This Toolbox is a guide for transforming remote places into more liveable spaces by involving residents and stakeholders in developing cultural and creative activities. It results from a design process: SMOTIES partners supported co-creative activities in public spaces through this shared methodological framework that guaranteed a baseline process for engaging local communities, reinforcing the identity of small places, showcasing their unique creativity, preserving their material and immaterial culture, and using design to build long-term development strategies.

The main aim of this work is to act as a guide in exploring remote places, understanding their needs, defining future scenarios and impacts, and identifying a specific public space for tangible intervention. It should be positioned at the beginning of the design process, in the analytical phases of design research.

The Toolbox is thought to guide a creative group in analysing the local reality, mapping its actors, engaging with locals to envision future scenarios of the place, identifying a public space, and defining a project plan for short- and long-term impacts. Once this has been achieved, the creative team will be able to address the final concept development and execution of the project to experts according to their skills. 

Who is it for

This is a guide for project leaders who are familiar with creative processes and participative techniques; however, it should also be integrated with other methods and tools you may be familiar with. It has been designed to be flexible and to allow adaptation of tools and methods to contextual conditions. Suggestions on how to do this will be given through case studies and examples of the tools’ application.

Explore the Kit