Zoe Linh Tran
she/her
Policy Vending Machine
How might we bring policy to the public, and engage the public in policymaking? The 'Policy Vending Machine' is an interactive public installation driven by this central question.
Research shows that policy is often perceived as abstract and detached from life. People are reluctant to talk about it, out of anxiety, anger, or ambivalence. Trust is dwindling and the gap is widening.
To bridge this gap, the project combines knowledge from civil servants at DPENDR with the real voices, and lived experience, of people from The Liberties, to embed policy into the general discourse of everyday life—meeting people where they are, where the conversations are taking place.
As a public intervention, it invites diverse citizen perspectives through discussions with simple prompts, and nudges them to reflect on how these issues relate to their own life, using tangible takeaways and educational materials, thus creating a novel approach to grass-root civic engagement.
Installation placed in Red Square, NCAD Campus
Tangible takeaways include contribution receipt and educational booklet
Early prototype with printed screens and wizard-of-Oz functionalities
Passersby interact with printed screens (early prototype)
Installation placed on Francis Street, The Liberties
The installation attracts attention and interest from passersby, out of curiosity and intrigue
Citizens develop a special bond with their own contribution receipt as a token of acknowledgement
Mock-up of finished product place in high-traffic areas such as train stations, shopping malls, university campuses
Concept by Zoe Linh Tran and Samuel Connolly, MA Interaction Design
Research
Props for initial street interviews
Semi-structured interview questionnaire
User personas
Affinity mapping
Concept sketching