1. Make the on-going research at the Abisko Research Station more visible to the tourists visiting the area. 

Storytelling Structure

In order to communicate the global warming research, we interviewed scientists in Abisko and studied the research by CIRC and some pop science magazines (e.g. Science, Nature) . Eventually we were able to categories some most interesting facts for tourists into three layers. 

1. Air: Related to weather and the atmosphere (temperature increase, precipitation, rapid temperature changes)

2. Land: Related to flora & fauna (rising tree lines in Abisko, change in vegetation, caterpillar infestations, plant species invasion)

3. Soil: Related to permafrost & bacteria: (melting permafrost, installations on the mire, Methane deposit, greenhouse gases, oldest living bacteria)

1. MULTI-SENSORY LEARNING: VIRTUAL ELEVATOR

GOAL: to give the tourists a quick 3-minute introduction in an entertaining way and spark their interest for further learning session.

Visitors are firstly introduced to a virtual elevator metaphorically takes them on a tour through the different layers of research. In each layer, they can experience short but interesting story through visual, audio and haptic channels. Finally, they are also informed other part of the service,  in-context and in-depth learning.

2. IN-CONTEXT LEARNING: SIGNAGE & APP

GOAL: to point the tourists to some research-related locations so they can experience the climate change research done by CIRC’s in the real context.

Users are encouraged to find interesting research-related spots when they hike outdoors with the app. On each spot, there is a transparent signpost with see-through visuals overlapping the real environment behind it, which helps visitors make sense of the context. In addition to that, more interactive information related to the spot will pop up on the app.

3. IN-DEPTH LEARNING: TABLET & PHONE APP

GOAL: to provides visitors with an opportunity to know more about the details of the climate impact research stories and findings conducted in Abisko.

In depth-learning is facilitated through the mobile and tablet apps, where more context are introduced to the users,  such as expedition stories, documentary videos and new research findings. 

4. Sharing Experience: Inside Abisko

GOAL: to trigger conversations among visitors by reminding them of the “Abisko Layers” experience in a subtle way. We believe that reinforcing those learning memories by sharing what one learned is also important for reaching more tourists in Abisko.

We designed the phone charing station visually resemble of the Abisko-layer concept, and placed them stratigically across the tourists-gathered location. When people are sit inddor by the fireplace, enjoy coffee and chat, their conversation can be direct towards our service.

5. Sharing Experience: Outside Abisko

GOAL: to encourage visitors share information and experience outside of Abisko.

Therefore, we designed the both visually attractive and informative postcards to provide further information of researches at the back of the card. They will be possibly sent out to family and friends or kept as personal souvenirs. 

Ethnography research

Throughout the project we had the opportunity to visit Abisko four times. Throughout these visits we interviewed and observe nearly two dozen of tourists, a couple of researchers and locals – some of them even multiple times. 

Empathy Exercise: Persona, User Journey & Role Play

First we looked into our research stories and observation to create a persona to ensure we were all agreeing on whom we were designing our service for. Second, we created an elaborate user journey (covering pre-travel, booking, travel, arrival, stay and return) for our persona. We also used an elaborate role-play to validate our user journey and uncover critical pain points. 

Service Design Approach

Stakeholder's map: bring together the potential stakeholders in the service scope and prepare a workshop to understand their point of view and concerns.

Service journey map: map out the activities, quotes and emotional level of the persona and the visible & invisible service providers that included in the journey to get a holistic understanding of what could happen and what are the potential opportunity areas.