Abstract
Human-Centred Design proposes the method of In-context Immersion or meeting people where they live, work
and socialise as a method to gain new insights and opportunities for the designer (IDEO, 2013). This method as per
the majority of empirical research tends to simplify complex situations in order to provide a set of criteria that can
then guide a design intervention to such problems. This paper explores how it is important to not only understand
the contextual situation of a problem, but also a much broader range of contexts and in uences which constitute
the ecology of the problem. Ecology Immersion can be de ned over and above the designers’ immersion into a
speci c context by the further discovery and exploration of other connected contexts. The designer is able to map
a broader system by immersing her/himself in these interconnected contexts and hence foreseeing how a
proposed intervention could interact in the greater ecology of the problem. An example could be the e ect the
seemingly independent biological system and economic system could have on a small-scale agricultural project.
This improved understanding then allows for the design intervention to have a better foundation in terms of the
systems it relies on, which potentially aids the nal intervention’s resilience. This paper explores and criticises the
design process of a household farming kit as an example of such a method. This critique will o er potential insight
into future applications of this method in the eld of Industrial Design and its potential application in other design
disciplines to encourage greater resilience.