Autonomous Mobility as a Social Service
Ongoing project: Designing a community-rooted planning space to reimagine mobility as a social service
Client
Duration
Roles
Product Designer & UX Researcher
Team
Tools
In collaboration with the Toyota Mobility Foundation and South East Community Services, this project reimagines autonomous vehicles (AVs) as social infrastructure.
Through participatory research and co-design, we developed low-barrier engagement tools and a speculative mobility ecosystem grounded in dignity, access, and lived experience.
Reimagine mobility as a bridge between immediate relief and long-term support.
SECS provides food access and wraparound services, yet many neighbors engage only at pantry pickup and remain disconnected from broader support. Transportation gaps, time poverty, and unclear pathways limit participation.
In parallel, Toyota Mobility Foundation sought to explore how autonomous vehicles could function as tools for equity and access, not just transportation.
Here's what we did
Centering Community Voices to uncover Barriers, Needs, and Mobility Opportunities
We adopted a qualitative participatory design approach focused on the UNDERSTAND stage of the design process, prioritizing lived experiences over quantitative metrics. By combining rapid inputs, group-level patterns, and deep narratives, we surfaced recurring themes that were credible, actionable, and grounded in community realities.
Centering Community Voices to uncover Barriers, Needs, and Mobility Opportunities
We adopted a qualitative participatory design approach focused on the UNDERSTAND stage of the design process, prioritizing lived experiences over quantitative metrics. By combining rapid inputs, group-level patterns, and deep narratives, we surfaced recurring themes that were credible, actionable, and grounded in community realities.
1
Grounded Realities
current pantry experiences and access barriers
2
Transitional Insights
aspirations and readiness to seek support
3
Future Envisioning
design opportunities for mobility as a social service
AI-Moderated Rapid Interviews
Users: Neighbors waiting in cars
Tool: Genway AI (customized for pantry context)
Format: Conversational, semi-structured with adaptive AI branching
How it worked: Conducted on-site with clients in their cars during online order pickup. Clients scanned a QR code and completed a self-guided interview on their phone.
Participants: 27 total interviews
18 full interviews (~9 min)
9 partial interviews (~5 min)
5 Spanish, 22 English
On-Site Public Interviews (Sticker Wall)
Users: Walk-in clients (inside/outside pantry)
Tool: Quick-response prompt posters
Approach: Friendly, low-pressure visuals to encourage casual participation
How it worked: Placed outside the pantry during wait times. Neighbors shared quick responses in under a minute, turning idle time into insight without the formality of an interview.
Participants: 50+ participants
2 sessions
Focus Groups (Insight Box)
Users: PantrySoft registered online clients
Tool: Guided, hands-on activity centered on the “ideal meal”
Approach: Physical objects used to spark reflection and storytelling
How it worked: Facilitated structured group sessions where everyday conversation surfaced deeper insights about dignity, comfort, and belonging.
Participants: 10 participants
3 sessions
Turning Community Inputs into cohesive, actionable insights
We conducted a structured qualitative analysis to translate stories, artifacts, and observations into meaningful themes.
All data were coded in Dedoose and collaboratively synthesized into system maps that highlight key breakdowns and design opportunities.
We’re now moving from research to realization.
To bring these insights to life, we’re facilitating 3+ co-design workshops to test and refine speculative mobility concepts with community partners.
Work in progress — stay tuned!
This project challenged me to move beyond digital platforms and mobile design by engaging community members as co-creators and designing both service and speculative systems. I learned to conduct robust, participatory research while balancing future-oriented thinking with real-world constraints. The experience deepened my understanding of how design can shape systems and reinforced the value of building with communities, not just for them.
