“Future Builders”: Magical Devices and Start-ups by Syrian Youth at the UNHCR Za’atari Refugee Camp

Google Tech Talk February 24, 2016 (click "show more" for abstract and speaker bio) Presented by Karen E. Fisher and Katya Yefimova ABSTRACT In 2016 the world faces the worst humanitarian crisis since WWII: over 60M people are forcibly displaced, half of whom are youth. Building on our work with teens from East Africa, Myanmar and Latin America about how they hack technology to support ICT wayfaring, we focus in this talk on how technology can help young Syrian refugees reimagine their lives and build their futures. From fieldwork at the UNHCR Za’atari Syrian Refugee Camp in Jordan, we report on youth’s creativity, desires to help others via ICT wayfaring, and how universal design archetypes occur across cultures but differ in affordances. We share sample design specs for glasses that detect disease, magic roads, wish making, and more. As we return to Za’atari on March 4 for our second, year-long engagement, we ask Googlers to brainstorm on how to bring these designs to life. Shukran ("thank you"). About the Speakers Karen E. Fisher, Professor, Information School, University of Washington. An advocate of humanitarian research, her passion is how HCI can improve lives around the world and create futures. Karen is working with Syrian refugees in Jordan and Arab migrants in Europe, understanding their information behavior and the economic impacts of migration. Her InfoMe group are rocks stars at conducting in situ, co-design labs with teens. Websites: Syria.ischool.uw.edu and InfoMe.uw.edu Katya Yefimova is a first-year PhD student at the University of Washington Information School. She works with underrepresented communities, exploring how information technology could be used to improve people’s lives. Before pursuing her doctoral studies, she worked as a newspaper reporter and online content editor.