Transmedia project showcase
Featuring WPI Student Projects that Use Transmedia Storytelling Strategies for Community Engagement and Action Research
Storytelling and Community
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Featured Project
Mitigating the Climate Crisis Through Lakota Teachings
Advisors: Thomas Balistrieri
Isabelle Cordova, Avery Smith, Maureen Ye
This team focused on investigating Lakota philosophies of living and applying what we learned to the climate crisis. By conducted ar-chival research and semi-structured interviews with Lakota elders, they came to understand that the Lakota people perceive their relationship with nature differently than those who live in the dominant culture. Lakota people perceive ev-erything as a sacred relative. The team believed this philosophy of inter-relationship would help miti-gate the climate crisis, and shared what they learned through short videos and an audio landscape.
Archiving a Museum with an Interactive Exhibit
Advisors: Ingrid Shockey and Fred Looft
Emma Lowry, Lauren Herchenroder, Lewis Guy, and Nathan Jackson
This team worked with The Hönnunarsafn Íslands Museum of Design and Applied Art to design and develop an interactive VR exhibit that could showcase museum artifacts not physically on display. Students researched digital interactive exhibits in other museums, identified the best practices for developing them, and used this information to develop a user-friendly VR exhibit prototype.
Perceptions of Climate Change in Iceland
Advisors: Melissa Belz
Benjamin Merritt Seibert, James P. McClung, Matthew Robert Jalbert, and Pheobe Yeung
This team produced a documentary to share the stories of environmental changes from lifelong residents of Iceland. The students conducted in-depth interviews with residents in four locations. Overall, Icelanders did not feel vulnerable to environmental changes but did worry for future generations, since the stories supported the climate change indicators researched by experts.
Creating Methods for SINGA Lyon to Determine and Demonstrate their Impact
Advisors: Fabienne Miller and Peter Hansen
Ellen Clarrissimeaux, Sawnaz Shaidani,Emily Louise Staknis, and Jeremiah Wesley Valero Araujo
Ethnographic Film Study of Indonesian Culture & Climate
Advisors: Althea Marie Danielski and Susan M. Jarvis
Jarod Romankiw Michelle Zhang, Molly Kate O'Connor, and Tahvorn George
Growing a Promising Future
Advisors: Fabio Carrera, Stephen McCauley
Ryan Keller, Daniel Ribaudo, Jordan Grotz, Brittany Goldstein
Outdoor interactive education is an important aspect of childhood growth and development. This group wanted to provide Collingwood Children’s Farm with a repository of interactive, multimedia resources, including online games and hands-on activities, that convey the farm’s lessons of sustainability. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, these resources will also assist children in connecting with the farm while it is temporarily closed. They organized the resources in the form of an online interactive map.
Exhibiting Simple Machines at the Old Mill
Advisors: J. Scott Jiusto, Fred Looft
Mackenzie Phillips, Benjamin Thornton, Mitch Read, Bailey Joseph
The goal of this project was to research and design methods to enhance the visibility of – Nantucket’s Old Mill. The project team worked with the Nantucket Historical Association to – evaluate the engineering principles that could be conveyed through interactive, age appropriate – museum exhibits at the site. They also developed recommendations for signage around the mill, as – well as social media graphics that can be used to promote the Old Mill online. Their final – deliverables include this final report, four interactive museum exhibits focusing on simple – machines in the Old Mill, final recommendations, and supplemental resources to aid in the use of – the interactive exhibits such as instructional panels, teacher’s guides, and an interactive booklet.
Stories of Climate Change in Himachal Pradesh
Advisors: Ingrid Shockey, Gbetonmasse Somasse
David Santamaria, Emma Edwardson, Brant William, Kevin Baptista
Climate change research has focused on scientific data as the driving force in building awareness of climate change. Less has been done to collect climate data from the perspectives of ordinary people. Ethnographic approaches enable citizen science participation in climate change research. The team conducted and recorded semi-structured interviews and collected stories of lifelong residents in Himachal Pradesh to assess the perspectives of climate change. These findings communicate subtle perspectives on the experience and indicators of climate change through the stories.
The Next Step for Public Transit in Melbourne
Advisors: Fabio Carrera, Stephen McCauley
Chin Mike Lam, Eric Scholz, John Bulman, Jameel Gammal
The goal of this project was to produce analyses and data visualizations, in order to advocate for the Melbourne Metro 2 (MM2) rail plan. The team researched a multitude of benefits of the MM2 including conducting spatial analyses on population growth, job distribution, method of travel to work, and traffic volume. Additional analyses addressed real estate prices, cost and time savings, job creation as well as environmental and health benefits. Findings from their analyses were shared through a website, video and booklet to support Friend of the Earth’s Sustainable Cities campaign, where they are constructing a case for the funding of the MM2.