When I landed in this project as a human-centred designer working for ëatnovation,  I received the briefing of designing a methodology that facilitates the valorization of the local product.

The valorisation of local products brings multiple benefits to the community: it contributes to the local economy, protects biodiversity, and activates the economy in rural areas. In a territory as the Canary Islands, with such an important traditional legacy, it is so necessary to preserve it and support it in its growth. So, for me, being involved in this project was really meaningful.

This is a part of a more significant project, so what I present here is what I developed about the project. The entire project also had an extensive phase of diagnosis, and some gastronomic training was designed.

The timeframe I had to develop this project was one month.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

          Despite the development of tourism on the island of El Hierro,

          the primary sector continues to decline and the local product is devalued.

In the territory of Canary Island, the primary sector is confronting hard times, regardless of the practice of farming, fishing and agriculture. Each day, fewer people are working in this artisanal industry and with more difficulties. Because of the abrupt landscape in Canary Island, especially in the smallest island, El Hierro, machines to optimise the work done in this area are not really useful. This, plus a non-understanding of the value of the local product by many suppliers, tourism companies and restaurants, led to the problem that local product is not being valued or used in local businesses. Furthermore is costing much effort to the primary sector workers and the Government, which is aware of the potential and benefits of increasing local production.

GOALS

The broad objective of this project was to “associate local products with the image of the Canary Islands as a tourist destination of high landscape and environmental value, promoting a range of products that drive sustainable development”.

So I conducted some deck research and reflected on how to approach that objective.

It is inherited for me to talk about communication and relationships when we are talking about sustainable models, and think about local people when we talk about the valorisation of local products. I took two conclusions from there; communication and relationships are key to the success of this project and, we must put the people at the centre of the process.

Keeping this in mind, and because the original goal was quite broad and abstract, I broke it down into specific objectives for the project:

UNDERSTAND THE CONTEXT – People and territory

TERRITORY

Understand the territory, and its unique characteristic was essential for the development of this project.

PEOPLE

It is evident to me, that if we want to value the local product, we need to also appreciate also local people. So it is a fact that people-centred design should be the approach for this project. Aiming for inclusion, we analyse the primary and tourism sector from El Hierro. It is necessary to ensure that people from each product area are included in the conversation since they would have different perspectives around the same issue.

We wanted to develop this project collaboratively, so we had to understand who should be invited to this process.

To better understand all stakeholders, we conducted the user research that was possible with time and budget constraints. We conduct interviews and surveys in the primary sector, tourist sector, gastronomy, and some Subject Matter Expert interviews and collaborative sessions.

After analyse and synthesise the information collected from interviews, surveys and focus groups, we draft some conclusions:

There is a clear disconnection between sectors.

Restaurants owners and chefs don’t know the production processes of local products.

Lack of standards is associated with a local product, but it is not necessarily true.

Seasonal products are many times considered a disadvantage (insecure and inconsistent production)

The primary sector doesn’t trust institution initiatives because they had causes disappointment.

The tourism industry is growing around the concept of sustainability.

Authenticity and importance of the local product for touristic experiences.

Risk of extinction of autochthonous products.

Exist interest from public institutions to support initiatives to valorise local products.

Local producers consider there are not enough efforts addressed to the commercialisation of their production.

FROM VALORISE LOCAL PRODUCT TO EMPOWER RELATIONSHIPS

With all those new insights and information, I looked back at my briefing:

DESIGN A METHODOLOGY THAT FACILITATES THE VALORISATION OF THE LOCAL PRODUCT.

So I started to think about how could I articulate such a methodology.

A methodology is a system of ways of doing, teaching, or studying something [Cambridge Dictionary]. It is also described by Wikipedia as a system of methods used in a particular area of study or activity. 

Translating this concept to the project, I conceptualise it as a system of ways of doing, and specifically about communicating.  I think a way of implementing a methodology must be a process and must be designed, at least, with the people we are designing for. For this, I didn’t develop a methodology to implement directly, but a process that allowed the people involved to create a tailored methodology.

I rethought the problem and the initial statement, and I reframed it with my learnings from the research. It was not an easy task because the first conceptualisation of this project was about creating solutions before really understanding the problem. I thought this approach wouldn’t be sustainable, and being this island an example of sustainability for the environment, it must also be in a way that creates synergies and opportunities. So I stepped back and thought on something that was clear from me since the beginning; communication. Research proves that there is a disconnection between sectors, and this should be addressed.

So I reframed the problem opening the opportunity space and focusing on relationships.

Designing an itinerary to build trust and relationships

When I think about the first step to bring together two main worlds –  one more traditional and rural as the primary sector is in Canary Island, and other more modern and technological as the tourist sector- I think is essential to share the language and align with a common vision before move forward. So I decided to focus on connections and relationships between these sectors and their inclusivity, cohesion and empathic understanding as a solid base for the success of any synergy.

I also think that should be a process, an iterative process and with some time for reflection. So the way I approached it was creating an itinerary that provides to all the participants the mindset, tools and knowledge to build relationships, overcome barriers and generate spaces for opportunities. Later, they would also have the opportunity to evaluate the progress of the taken actions.

I divided the itinerary into four stages:

1.- Build a shared vision

2.- Approach the territory

3.- Making the strategy tangible

4.- Relationships and iterative commitment

THE ITINERARY

I. BUILDING A SHARED VISION

The first step is to generate a safe space where the different sectors could meet and build a shared vision and a strategy for effective communication. The three sectors  -primary, tourism and restoration- would work collaboratively through democratic dynamics to define those strategies and determine the commitments. The collaborative process is essential in order to bring all the voices into the room.

II. APPROACHING THE TERRITORY, THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE ISLANDERS AND THE RESOURCES

The objective of this second stage is to bring hospitality and the tourism sector closer to the territory, to enhance the value of the local production through the journey, and to get to understand and empathise with the primary sector and their production processes. This is an opportunity for other sectors to get closer to the primary sector and to better understand the product, the added value that the ecosystem and landscape provide to it, and its real quality. This is also an opportunity to learn curiosities about farming and crafting processes, and also experiment on this specific space.

III. MAKING THE STRATEGY TANGIBLE

The objective of the third part of the itinerary is to provide tools to the hospitality industry to facilitate the inclusion of local products in the island’s gastronomic offer.

It is an eminently practical and participatory training. It would be divided into different modules, depending on the identified needs. An initial presentation is made in each module, followed by discussion and evaluation of the contents through examples.

Finally, It is about to work through the dynamics of co-creation in the generation of knowledge, analysing what was seen in a theoretical way, from the identity and reality of each business.

IV. RELATIONSHIPS AND ITERATIVE COMMITMENT

For the success of this methodology, it is necessary to monitor the activity, as well as following-up sessions and on-going strategies with clear outcomes. For this, we based the strategy on relationships and communication and introduced a collaborative approach to allow different people to find an opportunity that works for both.

THE MATERIAL TO MAKE THE ITINERARY POSSIBLE

Facilitation guide and assets

A facilitation guide for each step of the itinerary was designed in order to facilitate the sessions in the best way possible. As I couldn’t facilitate them, I tried to communicate especially the objective of each dynamic, the steps by steps instructions, and the preparation requirements.

Also, it was

TESTING, IMPLEMENTATION and the use of the territory

This project began on the island of El Hierro, a territory rich in resources and recognized internationally. It has subsequently been transferred to the Tenerife region, where the methodology based on the island’s existing resources and its relevant territory is currently applied. The removable conclusion is that the territory initially serves as an ideal space for the development of a reference model in terms of gastro-food and tourism guided by the concept of sustainability.

The fact of using these two different territories, El Hierro for the development of the methodology and Tenerife for putting it in practice and testing it, allows us to visualise that in any part of our region is possible to work with the essential value for using local products. From an innovative and contributing perspective, it can be understood that in this process there is enough space for all important stakeholders in the gastronomic chain, regardless of what sector they are part of, there is a beneficial connection for all.