DCXPlain Agenda

Public Spaces

Anna Carter, Northumbria University, anna.r.l.carter@northumbria.ac.uk

Civic Care in Place: Exploring Human and Environmental Bonds through Subtle Technologies

This talk explores how people collectively care for their environments through quiet, often overlooked acts.  These everyday gestures of maintenance and attention invite a reimagining of civic engagement as a form of situated care, where technology gently supports, rather than drives, our relationships with the world around us.

Patricia Piedade, ITI/LARSyS & INESC-ID, University of Lisbon, patricia.piedade@tecnico.ulisboa.pt

Towards Neuroqueer Spatial Justice: A Critical Literature Review of Public Space Technologies for Neurodivergent Populations

Access to public spaces is of the utmost importance for social cohesion, inclusion, and civic engagement. Nevertheless, a large majority of public spaces remain incredibly uncomfortable environments for neurodivergent individuals due to, for instance, the unpredictability of such spaces and the sensory stimuli within them. Smart City technologies present an exciting opportunity to improve the accessibility and enjoyment of the spaces where they are deployed by, for instance, offering users the ability to customise a space to their specific sensory needs. However, the research topic of public space technologies for neurodivergent individuals remains scattered and sparsely documented. This critical review analyses the existing domains of inquiry, contributing a theoretical framework based on Spatial Justice and Neuroqueer Technoscience and suggests future research avenues informed by this framework. We advocate for the participatory co-creation of a neurodivergent-affirming landscape of public space technologies that both support neurodivergent needs and promote neurodivergent joy.

Dirk Johannes Theodorus van der Linden, Northumbria University, dirk.vanderlinden@northumbria.ac.uk

Live, Laugh, Love Urban Wildlife

Laughter is the best medicine they say, and perhaps it is also good for co-existence. In this talk I will present recent work where we used a reflexive thematic analysis to explore how living with urban wildlife leads to laughter and humorous reactions to urban wildlife encounters, and how understanding those reactions may help provide insight in how to love the non-human and promote equitable and just multi-species co-existence.

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Small Businesses & AI

Angharad Pitty, Northumbria University, angharad.pitty@northumbria.ac.uk

Amplifying The Voices of Grainger Market: Exploring How Collective Memory-Making with AI Fosters Belonging & Agency

This talk details the use of a probe alongside an interview method to elicit insights into marketgoers experiences of Grainger Market, a traditional retail market in Newcastle, to examine their everyday experiences and how this translated into an AI response. The themes identified: Memories of the Market; Changing Face of the Market and Preservation of the Market, translated into an AI response which automated natural language processing to generate word cloud artwork, ensuring both positive and negative sentiments were heard by the right people.

Brontë Rapps, Northumbria University, bronte2.rapps@northumbria.ac.uk

Exploring Views on Intelligent Interactive Maps in a Traditional Market: A Case Study into Grainger Market

We detail how the use of interactive maps can enhance accessibility in community-focused infrastructures such as Grainger Market. Utilising a two-phase qualitative approach with both market goers and vendors, we identified themes of (1) Improving Accessibility via Interactive Maps, and (2) Technology Resistance. Our AI response responds to concerns around navigation, poor signage and mapping systems, and examines the implications of integrating AI driven solutions in traditional settings.

Chris Corner, Northumbria University, chris.corner@northumbria.ac.uk

The Implementation of an AI ‘Installation’ in Grainger Market

Through utilising an innovative ethnographic qualitative method, including the use of photography and ‘walk around’ discussions with market citizens, we highlight market goers personal connections to Grainger Market through personal stories and experiences they shared with us. Building on our identified insights including: ‘Sense of Community’, ‘Passage of Time’ and ‘Cultural Exchange’, an AI response was designed to capture and reflect these lived experiences through an interactive installation that reflects the diversity of experiences, values and relationships to the market.

Reflection & Engagement

Joseph William Hutchinson, Open Lab, Newcastle University, j.hutchinson4@newcastle.ac.uk

Alt(ernate) CHI: Using Alternate History Artifacts in Research

HCI and CSCW approaches so often look to future horizons as we strive to innovate, neglecting the range of possibilities opened to researchers who embrace the past as a malleable design resource. In this talk I provide an overview of our alt.CHI paper that considers opportunities to facilitate research through design not only using our own histories but so-called alternate histories which run counter to our reality.

Ana Henriques, University of Lisbon, ana.gfo.henriques@campus.ul.pt

A Feminist Care Ethics Toolkit for Community-Based Design: Bridging Theory and Practice

Existing ethics frameworks for participatory engagement in HCI often overlook the nuanced ethical challenges of dynamic community-based contexts given the latter’s relational nature. We hope to bridge this gap by grounding feminist care ethics in actionable tools for community-based projects to enhance ethical engagement in these settings. Prior research advocates for adaptable, context-sensitive ethics in participatory research, informed by feminist care ethics. To address this need, we developed and iteratively refined a toolkit embodying the underlying principles of feminist care ethics through workshops with participants working in academic and non-academic community-based settings. Our findings suggest that the toolkit fosters ethical reflection aligned with the feminist care ethics ethos while facilitating meaningful experiences for participants. This work contributes to the field by offering a practical design artefact that not only embodies feminist care ethics but also supports researchers and communities in navigating complex ethical landscapes in participatory engagements, together or independently.

Laura Maye, University College Cork, Laura.maye@ucc.ie

Involvement of Autistic Adults in the Participatory Design of Technology

HCI research has seen a growth in work involving autistic adults in the design of technology that impacts their lives. In this lightening talk, Laura Maye will provide some brief insights into their scoping review, discussing works from 11 projects spanning 18 papers recently published at CHI2025.

Young People

Jing Zhao, Interactive Technologies Institute, jing.zhao@tecnico.ulisboa.pt

Digital Technologies for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children: a Systematic Review, Critical Reflections, and Future Research Directions

Digital technologies in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) have the potential to support the development and well-being of Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) children. Yet, there has yet to be a systematic review of the field. A shared understanding of current research is needed to develop a future vision. In this review, we analyzed 42 papers from the ACM Digital Library and the top 20 HCI Conferences and Journals, spanning the past 24 years, to investigate the trends, methods, and the level of inclusion of DHH children. Our review reveals that sign language learning platforms dominate the current technological effort. Moreover, children are not yet fully involved in the design process of these technologies and are mostly considered users and testers. We also capture a gap in integrating Deaf culture and child development in prior research. We conclude by critically examining literature gaps and offering guidance for future research.

Filipa Rocha, University of Lisbon, filipa.rocha@tecnico.ulisboa.pt

Mixed-Visual Ability Collaboration for Children in Computational Thinking

Schools are moving toward an inclusive education model by integrating children with different visual abilities into the same classrooms. However, many assistive technologies are designed for individual use lacking collaborative features. On the other hand, in computational thinking, most tools designed for children are highly visual and exclude children with blindness or visual impairments. Together with the teachers and the children, we are exploring how educational tools can be made both inclusive and collaborative. Through multimodal design with tangible, robots and sound we aim to create an inclusive environment for all children to develop their digital literacy.

William Imoukhuede, Northumbria University, william.imoukhuede@northumbria.ac.uk

Young Refugees’ and Asylum-Seekers’ Uses and Perceptions of AI: A Qualitative Study

As AI becomes more ubiquitous there is a need to ensure that those on the margins of society, such as refugees and asylum-seekers, are not left behind. As such, this paper presents research conducted with 29 YRAS in Newcastle exploring their usage, awareness and perceptions of AI technologies. Our findings provide groundwork for the design and development of  humanitarian AIs and AI literacy programmes for this population.

Public & The Third Sector

David Clark, Northumbria University, david3.clark@northumbria.ac.uk

Between Promise and Practice: How the UK VCSE Sector Adopts Generative AI

Generative AI (genAI) is transforming workflows across sectors, but adoption remains uneven. Corporate and well-funded public organisations often have the resources to integrate these tools, while the Voluntary, Community, and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector—especially in economically disadvantaged areas—faces distinct challenges. In Northeast England, where socioeconomic inequalities meet growing demand for support, VCSEs deliver vital services typically with minimal staffing and precarious funding streams. As demand grows amid economic pressures, many in this sector turn to genAI to manage workloads and extend impact. While these tools offer promise, their adoption without recognised guidance presents risks.

Sabine Junginger, Northumbria University, sabine.junginger@northumbria.ac.uk

Why Digital Inclusion Has a Limited Shelf-Life - and what this means for lifelong public service provision

Providing people with the tools, devices and skills to access and use online services has become the core of digital inclusion efforts. This talk argues that digital inclusion will remain a temporary experience for an individual. Changes in technology and/or personal circumstances see their inclusion expire. This has great implications for lifelong public service provision, especially when taking into account aging populations. How we approach this from a design, policy and AI perspective can strengthen public institutions, foster trust in government and with that in democracy. 

 -Questions-

Grace Handley, Northumbria University, grace.handley@northumbria.ac.uk

Inclusive and Accessible design in designing for District Heat Networks

In response to Gateshead Council’s initiative to implement a District Heat Network, we detail a citizen centred design process which emphasised inclusivity and accessibility in translating key messages from the council around the implementation of this initiative. Our design response through an information booklet and event was simple, emphasising the importance of providing clarity of message alongside prioritising community buy in for council led initiatives.

Joella Lynch, Northumbria University, joella.lynch@northumbria.ac.uk

Using AI in the Design Process for District Heat Networks

This talk highlights the opportunities of using AI in citizen centred design processes, in particular through the use of personas, which we used in our 4-week design process around District Heat Networks. We used persona design in order to redesign the existing website, with an emphasis on building trust and brand awareness. AI personas helped critique the existing website, compare other websites, and evaluate our various design iterations as we iterated through a time-limited design ‘sprint’.

Faye Doughty, Northumbria University, faye.doughty@northumbria.ac.uk

Co-Designing Resources with Residents to Support District Heat Network Connection

Interventions are required in order to increase the social acceptance of District Heat Networks, which play a key role in the UK’s net zero strategy. After our previous work and the design school projects, we have received funding from the Northern Net Zero Accelerator to conduct four co-design workshops using the Double Diamond. These workshops aim to allow recently connected residents to share experiences, identify support gaps, and define ideal support and resource needs. We will co-create and refine prototypes with residents, evaluating these as co-created resources.

Michal Cholerzynski, Northumbria University, m.cholerzynski@northumbria.ac.uk

Zero Carbon - District Heat Toolkit (GEC Project)

The talk will present a toolkit designed to support Gateshead Energy Company in achieving its marketing objectives, focusing on minimising customer acquisition costs (CAC) and enhancing overall campaign effectiveness. Developed through collaborative efforts, the toolkit includes various practical and creative components, such as targeted visualisations, engaging invitation materials, and branded promotional gadgets, that will be demonstrated. Moreover, the talk will explore the rationale behind the toolkit's development, explaining how it could contribute to more efficient customer engagement and marketing performance improvements for the partnering company.

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Online Spaces

Zuzanna Warchała, Julia Englender, SWPS University, zwarchala@st.swps.edu.pl ; jenglender@st.swps.edu.pl

Accessing illegal drugs on the Internet - buyers, sellers and the infrastructures that supports it

Based on the qualitative research we want to present the study of the online drug market phenomenon. We have followed online groups and documented the drug selling process on Telegram and Abacus Market. Conducting IDI’s with drug buyers gave us a deeper understanding of this phenomenon: helped portrait the complex environment that drug users are entangled within and how technological infrastructures influence their experience of drug use and abuse. Coming from the Psychology and Computer Science we have analyzed this phenomenon in an interdisciplinary way. 

Viana Nijia Zhang, Newcastle University, nnz12@newcastle.ac.uk

Beyond the Screen: Exploring the Emotional and Social Impact of Otome Games on Global Players

Following the growing popularity of online Otome games, this short study provides an initial understanding of the gaming experiences and reflections of six Otome players. We investigate parasocial interactions between players and in-game characters, examining how these interactions influence offline relationships, and explore the motivations and emotional needs of Otome game players. The paper also investigates how Otome game settings impact players’ emotional and mental wellbeing. Based on these insights, the study proposes implications for game design, encouraging developers to consider inclusivity, player agency, and player-disengagement in creating Otome games that foster player empowerment and personal growth. The study concludes with suggestions for future research directions to further explore these issues, including raising concerns about potential vulnerabilities of teenage players.  

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Fintech & AI

John Robson, Northumbria University, john5.robson@northumbria.ac.uk

REDI Cares: AI-powered conversations to navigate Financial Decisions

Managing money can be stressful, especially in the light of unexpected expenses and feeling lost when borrowing. In this four-week design sprint brief for Virgin Money, we developed the design of an integrated AI assistant that helped users navigate financial decisions clearly and ethically. In response to identified user concerns around competing priorities, we developed ‘REDI CARES’ a proposed app which helps users navigate financial decisions through AI-powered conversations.

Yve Smith, Northumbria University, yve.a.smith@northumbria.ac.uk

The Legacy Builder: AI for “Baby Boomers’” Everyday Banking

We examine how banking services can integrate with everyday needs through the lens of ‘Baby Boomers’ resulting in a design which focuses on legacy building. Our ‘Legacy Builder’ responded to users’ needs including financial management, inheritance and charitable donations. We propose user-centred opportunities for AI assistance in Digital Banking, with the potential to reduce complexity, support empowered decision making, and adapt to users’ needs.

Amy McCerery, Northumbria University, amy.mccerery@northumbria.ac.uk

The Holographic Banking Assistant: Using Speculative Design to imagine the future of AI in Banking

Examining banking and money management through the guise of ‘Gen X’, we proposed the use of design fiction and speculative design with Virgin Money to explore the potential of ‘The Holographic Banking Assistant’ as an AI response that went beyond chatbots, which users felt were impersonal and compromised security. Our speculative design response: RediCoach aims to figuratively bring banking to life, addressing perceived limitations of AI in the financial management space.

Rochelle Campbell-Esen, Northumbria University, rochelle.campbell-esen@northumbria.ac.uk

Verdi App: “Gen Z” and banking alongside promoting sustainable behaviour

We used a range of ideation techniques, including: ‘Crazy 8’, ‘What-if’ and ‘Worst Possible ideas’ to examine AI solutions suitable for Gen Z customers of Virgin Money. Building on identified concerns for this population group about adopting sustainable behaviour, we propose an AI ‘solution’ concept around a Smart Speaker entitled ‘Verdi’. Our response addresses the financial needs of these customers while addressing sustainable development goals, controlling energy usage and featuring a round-up carbon offset feature.

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Law & Harms

Katherine Jones, Northumbria University, katherine.jones@northumbria.ac.uk

Probablistic AI Systems in Law Enforcement Futures

Probabilistic artificial intelligence (AI) systems in law enforcement futures is a four-year multi-disciplinary research project. Researchers from Law, Engineering and HCI alongside the Government, Media, Industry, Police constabularies and the Public. Explore the past, present and future of probabilistic AI use within the law context. Aims to deliver evidence-based, future-oriented frameworks for AI design and deployment in law enforcement and criminal justice.

Dr Angela Paul, Northumbria University, a.paul@northumbria.ac.uk

Lessons for Probabilistic AI in Law Enforcement

The criminal justice system is deploying numerous probabilistic systems, including predictive tools and large language models. In the PROBabLE Futures project, we examine what 'responsible' means for probabilistic AI across the law enforcement landscape, focusing on the legal, ethical, and societal implications. In this lightning talk, I discuss one of our approaches to achieving this— a comparative analysis of similar technologies, such as those used in healthcare, DNA analysis, and other relevant contexts. Understanding what happened before, during, and after the use of probabilistic technologies in other contexts can help us identify lessons for their use in law enforcement.

Cathy O’Brien, UCL, catherine.obrien@ucl.ac.uk

Online dating platform safeguards and self-protections: how dating platforms characterise, respond to, and safeguard against harms

Through a platform-based policy document review we examine how the five most popular dating platforms in the UK characterise, address, and safeguard against harms. Our findings reveal the challenges of balancing platform accountability and user responsibility for safety, particularly as the goal of these platforms is for users to meet in person. Platforms utilise proactive moderation tools and educational resources to enhance safety, yet many of these resources shift the burden of safety onto users. Moreover, we highlight the paradox of self-protection tools that both mitigate and enable harm, as well as identify inconsistencies in safeguarding provisions, for different geographic regions and marginalised groups.

James Nicholson, Northumbria University, james.nicholson@northumbria.ac.uk

Using Anonymous Discussion Platforms to Support Open Conversations about Cybersecurity in Organisations

People-centred security is critical for the security of an organisation, but we know that it comes at a cost. Recently the academic literature base has started to focus on how security might be understood and promoted as a facet of the overall culture of an organisation. This work sets out to understand the experiences of employees and management when using an anonymous online discussion platform to discuss cybersecurity policies. Following a 2-week deployment in a large UK educational institution, we found that anonymity helped individuals share their experiences, and that these experiences helped others understand more about the rationale for security policies. However, we also found that anonymity negatively impacted on individuals’ ability to discuss specific problems and follow up on incidents. We discuss the opportunities and challenges of using anonymous discussion platforms in organisations for improving the security culture through social participation and a more transparent listening culture.

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Karaoke Science and Networking

Continue the research discussions and networking and a spot of Karaoke Science over light-bites and drinks. Guests will have the opportunity to sing their research – set to classic karaoke tracks - on our new KaraokAI platform. 

📍The Holy Hobo, Jesmond, Newcastle