project report 65 2011 Asian Smart Living Summer School64

Taiwan is a gourmet heaven; exotic cuisines and upscale chain restaurants from all over the world fill our palates. However, the flavor dearest to us is that from our homeland and that from our mothers’ kitchens. In a Neverland, not only our stomachs but also our souls get filled by the precious ingredients and the devotion of the people preparing the food. At a special place called Granny’s Kitchen, the devotion and the wisdom of the elders bring exhausted travelers plate after plate of local organic food that enriches the mind and soul.

1. How to connect the elders with the youth?2. How to help the elders do more so they could feel satisfied?

Granny's Kitchen

Mentor / Tuija Hirvikoski (Finland)Coach / Suzanne Ho (Taiwan)Mentoring Assistant / Griffin Hung (Taiwan)Team members / PhanTh Di m Hương (Vietnam), Yi-He Li (Taiwan), Nyman Päeivi (Finland), Ah-Lim Son (Korea), Tzu-Wei Zick Wei (Taiwan)

TEAM62011 ASIAN SMART LIVING SUMMER SCHOOL

project report 67 2011 Asian Smart Living Summer School66

After finishing these three days of field experiences, our team returned to the workshop site and shared our observations and what we learned. Through brainstorming, we wrote down keywords on post-its and slowly unfolded our fantastical imaginations of what exactly a Neverland is and who might actually inhabit a Neverland? What would people in the Neverland need?

Since members of our team were very much interested in topics related to food, and since we all remembered fondly the energetic, multi-talented grandmother in Yishanli, we decided design our service around the obstacles faced by the elders in combining their traditional techniques with the current trends of healthy diets and nutritional development.

Toward defining our design direction, we began with a POV (Point of View) discussion concerning the elders and possible target groups (e.g., travelers), and utilized an empathy map to attempt extracting the life experience of each group. Based on the fieldtrip experience of the first three days and the resulting discussions, we decided to create a restaurant in our Neverland that used only fresh, organic and healthy ingredients produced locally and staffed by the community elders. Their cooking and warm service could provide travelers with a homey feeling, while at the same time allowing them to be able to enjoy the authentic “tastes from home”.

DEFINE

DISCOVERIn the previous three days, our groups went to Dharma Drum Mountain, Yishanli in Tamsui, and Xinpu in Hsinchu for in-depth experiences. The first day at Dharma Drum Mountain, we not only learned the Chan (Zen) culture of Buddhism bringing peace to our minds, but we also witnessed a model for

combining culture and technology. On the second day, we met many energetic elders in Yishanli and saw them cooperate and contribute to the development of the entire village. On the last day we visited the persimmon workshop in Xinpu. People in the workshop not only preserved the traditional techniques, they also developed many innovative activities (such as persimmon dye) to elevate the value of the persimmon. These experiences truly opened our eyes.

project report 69 2011 Asian Smart Living Summer School68

The final stage of our design workshop was to compile the above concepts and convey them to others. By using a service blueprint to describe in detail the flow of the restaurant and the competition, as well as the stakeholders involved, we were able to confirm the feasibility of the service. In order to present the situation, we used role-playing to visualize the interaction during service and to examine the experience.

When the design direction and goal were finalized, we began to think about how to realize this concept. In our thought process, we kept looking at it from different perspectives, such as social, economic, technical, and most importantly, the users’ perspectives. How would the travelers learn about the restaurant on their journey, and how could their needs be satisfied by the style of service provided by the elders in the restaurant.

Ultimately, we developed a concept that involved not only organic healthy food, but also the service personnel of the restaurant would be given special name tags so the customers could address them in a more intimate way; for example, addressing the server as “Mama Hu”. Further, when a

customer likes a particular dish, they would be free to inquire on how to prepare the dish and further discuss its background. This will not only foster a close relationship between the customer and server, but will also allow the elders to gain sense of achievement and importance. After running the restaurant for a while, there could be culinary competitions among different communities. This could not only increase the interaction between communities, but also promote regional specialties.

DEVELOP

DELIVER

PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION

SERVICE CONCEPT GENERATION

INNOVATION SERVICE

BUSINESS MODEL

ROLE PLAY

BLUEPRINT

ELDERSSTATUS: Live alone, Have wisdomNEEDS: Need accomplishment, need people to talk with, need community

Sustaining their local traditions by sharing and promoting them + Building a new dining experience

COMMUNITYPreserve traditions

TOUCHPOINTPosterRecipe

Feedback System

Food boxMenu

Name Card

SERVICE PROVIDERSElders, Government

SERVICE RECEIVERSElders, Travelers

ELDERSAccomplishment

connectionlearning

TRAVELERSLocal culturehealthy

Granny’s knowledge lets travelers gain more Information about the local community + Bonding with technology brings interaction between younger and older generations.

Introduces an elder with a name card, which will give elders more opportunities to interact with others

Interaction with elders + Explore local cuisines

GRANNY’S KITCHEN

COMPETITION

PROMOTION QR-CODE

healthy

learningspecial

experience

connect with others

FINAL PRESENTATION