Except they call “Mzungu!” meaning “white person.”

Background. During an ethnographic venture in Uganda, I traveled to One Village, a small development and public health-focused organization, to see some toilets.

Problem. The ecosystem around water allows rural citizens to poison their supply.

Solution. A business super-charged to organize community boards.

As Urban mobile-money users (providers) are sold on supporting circular business sets, providers shift from sending home financial support to providing for their rural families by giving them work, experience and income.

FIND

Mind Map

Problem. Management around water allows citizens to poison their supplies.

Insights.

a “copy your neighbor” behavior
building codes encode behaviors into environments
elevated social status for those who have waterborne toilets.

SENSE-MAKE

Ecosystem map (1)

Illustrated here are a few of the cross-world problems statement above in the mind map that reveal a systems level issue.

Insight. Living expectations drive costs up. Making such increased expectations sustainable requires denser living. It’s not environmentally, economically or culturally sustainable for everyone to live a city lifestyle. We must raise up what sustainable living looks like in rural areas.

Ecosystem Map (2)

Insight. There is a systems level pinching influence on the developing world from the developed world.

Strategy. To make this solution more user-centered and perhaps less imperious an overarching systems change objective - social power balance - was identified.

Graphic showing a pinching influence on the developing world

FRAME

COM-B change model

The goal is to develop a growth opportunity for rural villagers at their capability level that empowers and motivates them.

In the first loop between design research and strategy, I unearthed a handful of dichotomies. Then, to fulfill the identified overarching systems change objective I pushed the solution space to where power was low.

Achieving Power Balance

In the first loop between design research and strategy, I unearthed a handful of dichotomies (noted in framework below). Then, to fulfill the identified overarching systems change objective I pushed the solution space to where power was low.

An Epigenetic Landscape as a Change Framework

Epigenetic landscapes define entry into as well as strategy and tactics within ambiguious and complex design spaces. Each ‘How Might We’ goal and it’s aligned modifiers, shift the landscape and help a snowballing solution build for impact. These modifiers narrow the strategic field as we create a solution and solve for the behavioral pathway.

At a higher fidelity, one must find control points, ★, that influence key actors’ behavioral paths.

Like a recurrent road map, epigenetic landscapes both define entry into complex design spaces and refine tactics. Every aligned decision toward the ‘How Might We’ has gravity as a snowballing solution builds for impact. Here’s an former snowball …po…

RE-FRAME

How might we facilitate sustainable rural economies that keep families medically, socially, and financially resilient?

Behavioral Pathway

A. Current Ecosystem - money is sent homeB. Transitioned Ecosystem - money circulates locally — A. Current Ecosystem - money is sent home
B. Transitioned Ecosystem - money circulates locally

Circular Economy Framework

SOLVE

How it works

A business network and their circularly generated resources grow to create a support system larger than 2 to 3 businesses.

Interest and location testing narrowed through banner ad campaign and MVP website.