Digital Zine
Designed by: Ken Fukutomi
Tools: Figma, Illustrator, Miro
Skills:
When navigating urban systems, we often overlook subtle user behaviors and unspoken needs. Using techniques like affinity diagramming and archetype analysis, the goal of this project was to uncover hidden insights that inform more user-centric design decisions. Bringing these findings together allowed us to present them in an accessible way, supported by thoughtful design choices.
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Initial Design
Our initial design was rough. We participated in a Figma DesignJam to recreate an entire platform that felt overly “realistic.” One piece of feedback from our mentor, Lisa, suggested moving toward a digital magazine that would appeal to people in our age group. That insight clarified why we were building this tool, and I chose to explore a new direction.
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Design Shift and Understanding Archetypes
I realized I had been approaching this project with a narrow mindset, focusing less on user experience and more on jumping straight to a solution. After receiving feedback—and reflecting on it myself—I saw that I was brute-forcing the process. I decided to step back and redesign.
Through a multidisciplinary approach rooted in the STEEP framework, our foresight report analyzes social, technological, and policy trends influencing the Ann Arbor bus system, focusing on TheRide and the University of Michigan’s MBus. By identifying commuter archetypes such as the time-sensitive student, the sustainability-focused resident, and the accessibility-dependent rider, the analysis reveals how transit design can adapt to the needs of a diverse ridership. These archetypes help show how local bus systems can support inclusive, responsive public infrastructure in a mid-sized city like Ann Arbor.
However. At the same time, we recognize this space as transient, thus it's truly hard to redesign this entire limited space given the constraints in many variables.
Read the Report ➤April 6th, 2025 by @kfukutom