Designing Cities Where Elders Thrive: Exploring How Service Design Methods Can Be Used In Urban Planning
Authors
Hurtová, Adéla Terezie ; Landberg, Lucas Grattan
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2026
Abstract
An ageing population and rapid urbanization are straining urban planning’s capacity to ensure social equity and inclusive public spaces. This thesis examines how service design methods can be used in urban planning to better accommodate older adults’ needs. Using a research-by-design approach, we collected data through nine semi-structured interviews, a survey with 36 respondents, two co-creation sessions, and two validation sessions. In collaboration with urban planners and related experts, we co-developed an Urban Experience Toolkit that adapts core service design methods to planning: the Urban Journey Map, Urban Experience Walkthrough, and Urban Planning Blueprint. These tools make older residents’ experiences visible across urban settings and processes to inform more human-centered decisions. The toolkit is an initial contribution and is accompanied by recommendations for further testing and refinement to advance this line of inquiry.
En aldrende befolkning og tiltagende urbanisering udfordrer byplanlægningens evne til at sikre social lighed og inkluderende byrum. Dette speciale undersøger, hvordan servicedesignmetoder kan anvendes i byplanlægning for bedre at imødekomme ældres behov. Med en research-by-design-tilgang indsamlede vi data gennem ni semistrukturerede interviews, en spørgeskemaundersøgelse med 36 deltagere, to medskabelsessessioner og to valideringssessioner. Sammen med byplanlæggere og fagpersoner medudviklede vi et værktøjssæt – Urban Experience Toolkit – der tilpasser centrale servicedesigntilgange til planlægningskonteksten: Urban Journey Map, Urban Experience Walkthrough og Urban Planning Blueprint. Værktøjerne er designet til at synliggøre ældres oplevelser på tværs af byens rum og processer og derved understøtte mere menneskecentrerede beslutninger. Resultatet repræsenterer et første skridt og peger på behovet for videre afprøvning og videreudvikling, som skitseres i anbefalingerne.
[This abstract has been generated with the help of AI directly from the project full text]