By Farhan Hanis Muhmad Asri & Masitah Ghazali
At the heart of participatory design is the belief that there are more powerful solutions through many voices. We shared our experiences participating in the Participatory Design Conference (PDC) 2024 in Sibu, Sarawak, which was held on the 9th to 10th of August 2024 — from two complementary viewpoints: participant and facilitator.
Through these two perspectives, we explore how the experience went down, what we learned from the Sibu people, and how participatory design (PD) became real — not just as an idea, but as a shared experience.
Lens One: The Participant’s Perspective
We visited Sibu in expectation, not quite knowing what we had in store for us. Ten Malaysian, Australian, British, Egyptian, and Indian HCI research students, we were all interested in PD and excited to immerse ourselves in a real design scenario. In two days, we encountered something deeply human, full, and rewarding.
From the very start, we were divided into two groups, both to work on a real urban issue: the stray dog population and waste management issues. Our group was to work on the stray dog issue. We began by interviewing residents — from pet owners to municipal officials — in an effort to get an understanding of their lived experiences. We discovered acts of kindness, where individuals housed more dogs than allowed, on the basis of empathy in the face of rabies epidemic fears.
These conversations shattered our assumptions. A regulatory issue appeared to be one of profound social values and emotional connections. We realised the solutions were not technical only — they had to be relational, empathetic, and sustainable.
The second group which I was part of, researched Sibu’s waste management systems. They visited recycling facilities, conducted interviews with staff, and discovered the disconnection between machinery available and user practice. There existed a mobile application for reporting recyclables, yet locals did not fully understand how to utilise it. Miscommunication and poor segregation hampered the entire process.
After our research had brought us into the field, we began to translate back into themes. This was not just a design exercise — it was a process of translation, translating lived lives into understanding, and understanding into possibility. We wrote problem statements that were grounded in empathy, and brainstormed interventions that were possible yet provocative.
What we learned was much more than co-design principles. We learned the importance of slowing down, of listening for meaning, and of designing with, not to. This summer school was an experiential classroom — and Sibu, our teacher.
Lens Two: The Facilitator’s Perspective
As one of the facilitators, I witnessed this process from the other side — not as an external observer, but as one actively shaping, supporting, and learning alongside the participants. My co-facilitators and I — Jaydon Farao (South Africa), Naveen Bagalkot (India), Chris Muashakele (Denmark), Shaimaa Lazim (Egypt), Nervo Verdezoto (United Kingdom) and myself (Malaysia) — came into this space with a deep belief in the power of co-design to connect people and ideas in meaningful ways.
Our task was not just to guide students through PD methods but to challenge them to participate actively with new-to-them communities, to develop in them complexity ability, and to return with an enhanced sense of intent.
Most astounding to me was how the participants embraced ambiguity. They did not come trying to “fix” things; they came eager to learn. I saw them becoming more considered with each conversation, more contemplative in their design choices, and more attuned to the tacit politics among communities and systems.
As a facilitator, my role was often quiet — listening, nudging, holding space. But in that space, I witnessed real change. Students began to question the relevance of their tools, re-examining their language, and producing design proposals that were contextually respectful and rooted in creativity.
Facilitation in PD is not domination; it’s about encouraging curiosity and care. And that’s what we witnessed bloom in Sibu.
A Shared Conclusion: Toward Empathetic Design Futures
Even though we came to Sibu with varied roles, what we took away is astonishingly uniform.
This summer school was not merely a workshop — it was also a space where relationships were formed, understanding intensified, and new questions emerged. Whether designing an app to improve responsible pet adoption or redesigning how recycling habits can be made possible, what tied our experience together was the spirit of togetherness.
Participatory design works best when it leaves space for lived experience. In this program, we were reminded that solutions of substance do not issue from labs and lecture halls alone — they emerge in streets, homes, and community centres. And they flourish when we involve people as collaborators, not as users or subjects.
In both facilitation and co-participation, we came together with a shared intention: to collaborate on more inclusive, more earthy, and ultimately more human-focused methods of creating change.
On this note, we extend our heartfelt thanks to Assoc. Prof. Dr Tariq Zaman from the University of Technology Sarawak, in his capacity as Co-Chair of the Participatory Design Conference (PDC) 2024, for the opportunities he has provided.