Process Documentation: Socratic Dialogue as Prototype

2024-06-30

Where listening became design – and a podcast remained a possibility

This project didn’t begin with objects or blueprints.

It began with questions. With tensions. With people.

And ultimately – with conversations.

What started as spontaneous chats across garden fences evolved into something more deliberate: Socratic dialogues. These weren’t interviews with fixed questions and goals. They were open spaces – for reflection, contradiction, memory, and curiosity.

Many of these dialogues were recorded (with consent) and later became the raw material for a private podcast mock-up. I used these recordings as a playground – not for publishing, but for exploring what it might mean to turn listening into design.

I imagined a travelling podcast – one that would journey through Switzerland by campervan, visiting allotment communities, and giving voice to gardeners, board members, and municipalities. A mobile storytelling platform that explored how everyday spaces reflect the deeper eco-social dynamics of our time.

That vision never fully materialised. The resources weren’t there. The campervan didn’t come.

But the idea – and its potential – remains.

Maybe someone else will carry it forward one day.

What did materialise was something just as valuable: These dialogues became the foundation for in-depth persona profiles. Each one reflected real people – their hopes, fears, frustrations, and dreams. They weren’t abstractions. They were relational portraits, grounded in trust and shaped over time.

Through them, I realised something essential: Design doesn’t always begin with drawing. Sometimes, it begins with presence. With listening.

And with the courage to be changed by what you hear.