The Dogs of Bull Island
1-week Research Sprint, Dublin City Council - Dublin, Ireland
The Problem: North Bull Island has the MOST WILDLIFE DESIGNATIONS
of any site in Ireland. It is also cherished spot for locals and their dogs to go for walks, often LEADING TO WILDLIFE DISTURBANCE and reduction in breeding. In conjunction with Dublin City Council Beta, we looked at ways that dogs owners might be BETTER INFORMED which areas of the island dogs needed to be on lead and, in turn, to explore how they might be SELF-MOTIVATED to follow these regulations. |
The Solution: Through extensive "man on the street" interviews, and rapid prototype testing, we found the most promise in signage and way-finding that promoted
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The Process
Interviews and Observation
To start, I and the team visited the island to get the lay of the land, see what signage was already there, and talk to visitors about their experiences and habits related to the island.
Analysis and Ideation
Taking this research back to the studio, we mapped some of themes of what we had heard and potential points of intervention.
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Combining those, we brainstormed and sketched some potential ideas.
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Finally, we built some chosen prototypes to bring back to the island.
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Rapid Prototyping
We picked three areas of intervention...
We picked three areas of intervention...
...the entry points to paths through the dunes, where owners were supposed to leash their dogs...
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... the entry to the beach that branches off into off-leash and on-leash area...
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and the tip of the island that serves as a seal-breeding area, and where neither dogs nor their owners are permitted.
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At each point we installed a prototype, watched people interact with it, and asked them a few questions about their thoughts and reactions.
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Recommendations and Outcome
Our final recommendations focused on signs that not only emphasized the natural resources of the island and potential visitor impact, but also sought to incorporate the nature itself. After an observation that one of the best ways to see birds on the island was when they landed on existing sign, I was able to added birds to our signs as well to catch visitors' eyes.
To date, Dublin City Council Beta has taken our recommendations into consideration, and drafted their own signs which their are currently testing on Bull Island.