About the Project

We are designing and testing a tool to involve stakeholders in the complex task of creating healthcare gardens that cater to diverse health needs. Healthcare gardens are unique green spaces that support patients, caregivers, and healthcare staff by offering nature-based interventions proven to improve physical, mental, and social wellbeing. Situated within healthcare settings, these gardens can provide fitness and rehabilitation opportunities, mental restoration, and spaces for social connection. They can also foster innovation, such as growing materials for healthcare products or food for patients.

For two months, we will host our board game at V&A Dundee, inviting the public to participate. Visitors can design their own hospital gardens, contribute new personas, or suggest game pieces to improve the design. By encouraging a holistic approach to healthcare garden planning, the game acts as a practical, educational, and facilitative tool.

The board game uses personas representing various health conditions, prompting empathy and creative problem-solving. Players work together to design gardens that address multiple needs, integrating therapeutic, social, and production spaces. By emphasising cradle-to-cradle design principles, we aim to create sustainable and inclusive healthcare gardens while advancing the design-for-health field and encouraging communities to consider the needs of others.

The process of producing the game