Eline Degenaar,
Maya de Groot,
Melchior Huijts
Content
2.1 Literature study - 3
2.2 Description of daily life in the current system - 5
2.3 Description of daily life in the future system - 8
2.4 What needs to change? - 11
2.5 Bibliography - 13
2.1 Literature study
Designing for presence: Introduce and discuss ideas and concepts from literature, in order to apply in the following sections.
This week started with a discussion about the new literatures concepts. In order to understand the concepts we started with defining them separately from each other:
|
Maya |
Melchior |
Eline |
Milan |
|
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Pro Environmental Behaviour |
Pro Environmental Behaviour means behaving in such way that one does not do any harm to the environment for the people to come. Translating this to the topic of food, this could mean growing your own food, supporting local produced products. |
A way in which Texelaars perform their actions in daily life, that is better for the environment on Texel with respect to their previous way of performing it or with respect to the average behaviour of the people. |
Organizing your daily life in such a way that it does not harm the environment. For the Food topic this could mean following a specific diet that does not harm the environment. |
Behaviour in daily life that does not harm the environment. For food production and consumption on Texel, it means their socio-technical system does not change Texel in a negative way. |
|
Presence |
Presence being present at a certain place, for the topic of food this could mean actively participating in the production of food. |
Making yourself be present and noticed in a physical and emotional way. So this can be by physically being present somewhere, but also by having your name/role and ideas/influences mentioned somewhere else. The food producers and Texelaars need to get actively involved in the food production and change of their diets and engage in discussion on this. |
Presence is being there in a physical but also in an emotional way. For the food topic this means that the farmer, the tourist and the Texelaar all should be physical but also emotional present to assure that a shift to a more pro environmental behaviour can work out. |
The distinction between being there and being here. Presence plays a big role in the involvement of parties. |
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Trustful System |
With food this could mean forming a community in which one is dependent on the production of the other; f.e. Person A grows his own tomatoes, while Person B grows his own grapes; in this system they could trade their goods. |
A system where all the farmers, fishermen, livestock-holders and the Texelaars themselves perform their actions alongside and with each other in good faith. One depends on and expects good intentions from one another. |
A trustful system is the system in which the farmer, the tourist and the Texelaar are present and can interact with each other. How more trust in the sytem and each oter, how more chance of succeeding of the system. |
A system where parties can act without worrying if other parties react. For Texel this could mean that a farmer produces food for local consumers (inhabitants and tourists) trusting that those consumers will buy his food. |
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Hedonic Well-being |
Hedonic Well-being subjective experience of pleasure; how one feels. This could refer to the feeling one gets after eating something. |
The well-being created by feeling well from an external perspective, so this can come from buying solar panels, eating seaweed, or high quality lamb meat, but also lowering the energy bill from better isolation. The latter one might not seem so external, but is driven by external factors. |
This is a subjective, personal way to describe the well-being of a person. |
“Feeling pleasure”. This is a (subjective) way to describe the well-being of a person. Both physical and cognitive events can contribute to hedonic well-being. |
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Eudaimonic Well-being |
Eudaimonic Well-being living well, pursuing the right ends. Doing the right thing, or doing something for the right reasons, but these actions do not have to result in good feelings. Eudaimonic Well-being could be refer to one being vegetarian or vegan, or growing owns food, because it’s the right thing to do, but it doesn’t mean these activities result in feeling good as one might actually really like meat. |
The well-being created by feeling well from an internal perspective, so this can come from the willingness to incorporate more locally produced products in your diet, from being honest and helpful towards the farmer. |
The eudaimonic well-being is also giving the person a pleasant feeling, but it comes from feeling meaningful, and not just from eating a nice piece of meat. |
“Feeling meaningful”. Aristoteles view on well-being is defined as: doing the right thing or living a good life. This can be translated into the willingness to cooperate with “good” initiatives in the food cycle on Texel. |
Table 1. Our interpretations of the concepts of this week.
Most of the concepts we understood in the same way though were formulated differently. Pro Environmental Behaviour we understood all in the same way as behaviour in daily life that does not harm the environment. Maya and Milan formulated the concept of Presence in the same way, but Eline and Melichor added the concept of the emotional presence to the concept of the physical. It is important to understand that the participants in the techno-social system must also feel emotionally connected to the system in order to achieve enough trust in the system. This trustful system we understood as ‘a system in which people can interact with one another honestly, without having to worry about each other’s motives being harmful.’ Hedonic and Eudaimonic Well-being we all understood in the same way expect Melchior. Melchior talks about Hedonic Well-being as something that is created by a feeling from the external perspective and Eudaimonic well-being as something created by a feeling from the internal perspective. Eline, Milan and Maya described Hedonic well-being as feeling pleasure and Eudaimonic well-being as feeling meaningful.
2.2 Description of daily life in the current system
How do people live and work in the system?
- The local consumer
The locals of Texel don’t really play a significant role in the sub system of ‘Feed Texel’. Their life pattern isn’t completely interwoven with the sub system; not yet. This of course differs from person to person, but generally they do not play a big role.
Take for example a high school student from Den Burg. This person wakes up in the morning, has his or hers breakfast. A breakfast that most likely consists of products coming from the mainland, after which this person has to go to school. Since there aren’t any high schools located on the island itself, the student has to go to the mainland to do so. Only after school is finished for the day, the student returns to the island. Simply said this person only spends certain hours on the island, from five o'clock in the afternoon till seven in the morning, the other hours are spent off the island. Even simpler said the hours spent on the island are the ‘consuming hours’, the hours people have dinner, go to a restaurant, etc. while the hours these people don’t spend on the island are simply said the ‘producing hours’, the hours in which people work on the land, people work in the shops. Maybe we can even conclude that the, in this case, the student only participates in the consuming part of the ‘Feed Texel’ sub system.
The hours spent on the island for another local might not even be really different for other locals that work on the mainland, or locals that work in another sector than the food- sector. For these people, their only relation to the sub system of ‘Feed Texel’ is being part of the consumption side. Their role regarding food is minimal; this also relates to their engagement level.
On top of that the locals don’t have a positive effect on the environment either; the products they consume are often imported to the island.
D) The tourist
Relation
Role 3
Reputation 6
Engagement 4
Communion 1
The Tourists on Texel does not have an important relation to the food which is consumed. They have a relatively good reputation because these people are an important sources of income for the inhabitants of Texel. The restaurants will be full on many days in summer. Furthermore, they have a small direct role in the socio-technical system since they are only consumers and do not see where the food comes from. But as mentioned before, their interest is very important to the tourist industry. There is some engagement to food because Texel is an island that live closer to nature and food than most areas, so as a tourist one has to pick up something Texel is trying to raise awareness about the food cycle. Think of local food which is popular for tourist like the Texel beers. Tourist stand far from food producers and inhabitants of Texel, due to the duration of presence and the goal why they are on the island. Tourist come for holidays, so they do not have any responsibility or social impact.
Time
Making moments to signify 5
Synchronizing performance 8
Integrating rhythm 9
Duration of engagement 3
Every summer tourists come to the island. As food producers, you can react on this. The certainty that tourists will come is very high so trust can be built on this. On the other hand, tourists are only on Texel in summer for two or maximal three weeks. After they went away, others takes their place. The duration of the stay is very limited compared to food producers of inhabitants of the island. But still, if tourists start to appreciate the food, they are likely to come back to a certain producer or seller next time, to ensure that their short stay is of high quality again.
Place
Situated agency 2
Environmental impact 1
Emotional space 3
Body sense 8
Tourists will probably eat more luxurious than regular inhabitants, so their body sense for food is relatively high. They will enjoy food more than at home. For this fact is space for improvement. When local food is presented it can have more value for tourists and they will enjoy it. Now the environmental impact is very negative from the tourists. Mostly tourists eat in restaurants, where relatively al lot meat is served. Lamb meat, which locally is produced, is imported since the local lamb has too much quality and therefore is too expensive, which is really a shame of course, it being one of the main Texel products.
Action
Tuning 2
Reciprocity 1
Negotiation 7
Quality of deeds 2
Tourists do not tune their behaviour to needs from the local food industry. Also, reciprocity is not present. The tourist pays, and wants it to happen. As a tourist you do not add value without personal gain. The only actions tourist do is spending money for food consumption.
Overall one can say that the duration of stay and the goal why tourists are on the island contribute the most to why this group is limitedly engaged with sustainable food consumption.
B) The local producer
Relation
Role 7
Reputation 5
Engagement 7
Communion 8
At this moment, the role of the farmer is important for the system, but it is not vital or crucial in the food system, since a lot of food is still imported (such as the lamb meat being imported from New-Zealand). They are of course still very important for the sub-system at this moment, but since so much is imported, they are not all that Texel has. The reputation is not that high either, as can be seen from the fact that the farmers have started a PR-campaign to create a larger understanding for the farmers from the people. Engagement is quite high, since the farmer does provide high quality food and still sells much of its products to the Texel people. Lastly, the farmers seem to bond and communicate well with each other so this gives a high score for communion.
Time
Making moments to signify 8
Synchronizing performance 6
Integrating rhythm 8
Duration of engagement 9
We believe that the farmers will have their moments to signify related to seasons and harvesting times. This is very important since it bonds the group and gives a feeling of communion as well as shared achievements. However, this might not yet be done together with the whole Texel society and therefore does not score really high. Synchronizing performance is give a moderate score, since although it is most likely a little present, farmers will probably still very much go for their own profit. Rather than adapting to each other. Due to the high dependency of all the farmers to the seasons, they will most likely have the same rhythms. Lastly, the duration of engagement scores rather high, because the farmers spend a lot of time on their action with a very high degree of engagement, since this is their core business.
Place
Situated agency 8
Environmental impact 8
Emotional space 3
Body sense 7
The farmer is a very active agent in the field of food production, since this is his main goal and is therefore given a high score on this. How it is impacted by the context that it is put in (environmental impact) is high, since the performance of the farmer is very much affected by external factors, such as the weather, regulations etc. It scores very low on emotional space, since there is not much emotional and social action going on for the farmers with respect to food production. The body sense is quite high, since the topic is on food and this is of course a major influence on the body physically.
Action
Tuning 6
Reciprocity 2
Negotiation 7
Quality of deeds 8
Tuning is set to be moderate, since the farmers will most likely not come into contact to much with each other during their work and will therefore not need to tune their actions too much to the other farmers. Since farmers run a commercial business, the will not easily give away any of their products for free, and therefore reciprocity is low. Negotiation is high, since most of the goods will actually be exchanged for other goods at this moment, usually money. The quality of the food produced by the farmers is said to be quite high and is therefore given a high mark.
2.3 Description of daily life in the future system
Describe daily life in the future sub-system comparably.
1. The local consumer
To make the sub system ‘Feed Texel’ self-sufficient or closed loped a change needs to be made in the daily life of the locals of the islands. Right now their role and engagement is very low, a first step would be making sure these people are part of the system.
This could be done by creating more jobs in the sector; for example smalls scale food production on public buildings. In these places other types of food could be produced than the island already provides, the more luxury products. Maybe this could be in the form of green houses, by producing more foods on the island itself by the locals (on their roofs, facades, gardens) import of products can be reduced.
Another option is organizing more food related events; by focussing on the significant moment in the sub system more awareness can be created for the cycle. This could be done in the form of events when a harvest has been brought in or around the time lambs are born on the islands.
Creating events and raising awareness for the local food production should both increase the trust the locals have in the farmers as well as their reputation and increase the role of the locals themselves. By making sure the locals become an active part in this system it’s possible to make that much needed change in the system. If the locals aren’t willing to change their diet and focus on locally produced foods, it’s a lost cause in our opinion.
In order to make the locals want to change their diet, the cuisine of Texel should be highlighted. Maybe when turning it into something special and exclusive, people will want to join. Combine this with certain events, such as a farmer’s market where the locals can directly by the products from the farmer, and this transition should become easier.
This change should take place in different steps. The first stage, raising awareness wouldn’t affect the day to day life rhythm much, people still have their work or their school on the mainland, but by making them aware of what’s produced on the island itself they could adapt their consumption habits. A second step would be when the locals start participating in the food production system too; in forms of joining these events and maybe in the end even producing their own foods.
2. The tourist
Relation
Role 3
Reputation 6
Engagement 9
Communion 1
Time
Making moments to signify 8
Synchronizing performance 8
Integrating rhythm 9
Duration of engagement 3
Place
Situated agency 2
Environmental impact 7
Emotional space 3
Body sense 8
Action
Tuning 8
Reciprocity 1
Negotiation 7
Quality of deeds 2
This biggest change tourists have to make in the subsystem ‘Feed Texel’ is the little engagement they have. Also this can relatively easy be achieved. When Texel becomes known for its closed chain for food, tourists know when they go to Texel, what they can expect, and are probably more willing to cooperate. Perhaps Texel will attract different tourists with awareness for sustainability.
Furthermore, tourists on their vacation eat a lot in restaurants, in comparison to locals. Food distributors like restaurant owners can somehow force people to eat for local, sustainable sources. They can tune their menu to what is available on than moment. When they do not sell food from the mainland, it is hard for a tourist to consume not local. Maybe in the beginning this will work negatively to income from tourists, but if this is something Texel will be known for, it can become a characteristic and attract tourists.
Concluding, engaging marketing from government will help the engagement of the tourists. Also food distributors can play a big role in tuning consumption behaviour. Local food can be ‘branded’ so people want this local food.
3. The farmers
From the analysis of the current system, it becomes apparent that some scores are already high (8-9) and some others very low (<5), which will therefore not be addressed. Why the high ones are not addressed is obvious of course, but the reason for not addressing the really low ones could be less apparent. When scores are that low, a basic level of trust is not present and this will require a very large amount of energy and time in order to be tackled. Therefore factors are sought that can be addressed more easily and for which it is believed that much can still be gained. Therefore the two points ‘Making moments to signify’ and ‘Synchronizing performance’ have been chosen. The reason for this being that they are intensify the contact between farmers themselves and the farmers and the people.
The first factor will allow for coming up with celebrations for the people as well as the farmers, which brings the two groups more together. This lets them communicate with each other and understand each other’s needs and possibilities. We believe that when working on this, it will also help with increasing factors such as communion and reputation in between the farmers and the Texelaars.
The latter factor help with the farmers to get the most out of all their actions, it will be a stimulus to work together. By synchronising performance, working together becomes more pleasant and as such will increase the effectiveness of the actions. When they work together, this will be more involved in what every farmer is doing and what they should be doing themselves, which in turn could help them to increase their role as well.
2.4 What needs to change?
In the previous chapter we defined ourselves a research question: How to make the current food system a closed loop one, which focuses on local production and consumption, but can still answer the peak demands caused by tourists? We formulated several topics to achieve this closed loop of local production and consumption. Along these topics were:
- A food route for tourists to show them how the Texelaar produces their food in a totally autarkic way.
- Find new places for food production
- Find new techniques to produce multiple crops on one piece of land, to assure a varied diet for the Texelaar, when nothing can be imported.
- To make the residents enthusiastic for customizing their diet.
Chapter 1 only addressed the problem we found at Texel on the topic ‘food’. Chapter 2 researched the daily life of the people. What needs to change in their daily rituals in order to achieve or design challenge?
Since there are many actors involved in the process, it is necessary to understand their role in the trust system in order to find out what changes has to be made and how these changes influence the positions of the different actors involved. We mapped three very important actors in our process: the farmer (as producer of the food), the Local (as main consumer of the food) and the Tourist (as peak consumer of the food). These three main actors determine our approach to achieve the design challenge.
1. Redefined design challenge
The Local
The locals of Texel don’t really play a significant role in the sub system of ‘Feed Texel’ yet. Their life pattern isn’t completely interwoven with the sub system. Since the locals don’t have a positive effect on the environment, the products they consume are often imported to the island, this is where we can make big changes to make Texel more sustainable. This could be done by:
- Creating more jobs in the sector
- Organizing more food related events
- The cuisine of Texel should be highlighted, by marketing, cookbooks, restaurant menu’s ect.
The Tourist
The Tourists on Texel does not have an important relation to the food that is consumed. They have a relatively good reputation because these people are important sources of income for the inhabitants of Texel. Strategies we invented to enthuse the tourist for different diets are:
- A food route for tourists to show them how the Texelaar produces their food in a totally autarkic way.
- Engaging marketing from government will help the engagement of the tourists.
- Food distributors can play a big role in tuning consumption behaviour. Local food can be ‘branded’ so people want this local food.
The farmer
At this moment, the role of the farmer is important for the system, but it is not vital or crucial in the food system, since a lot of food is still imported (such as the lamb meat being imported from New-Zealand). Our design challenge is to fully 100% be self-sufficient so a big change needs to be made in the farmers sector. As we addressed earlier the food production market at Texel should increase in order to feed every Texelaar. Therefore new jobs will arise. The challenge lies in the fact that the Locals should feel the need to work in this business in order to have a proper diet. Strategies we invented to enthuse the farmer for changing his production are:
- Find new places for food production
- Find new techniques to produce multiple crops on one piece of land, to assure a varied diet for the Texelaar, when nothing can be imported.
- In order to let the farmer, tourist and local communicate better, celebrations that are related to food production could be celebrated together, which brings the two groups more together.
2.5 Bibliography
No references being used.
