Young Meets Old

Problem Statement

Jung trifft Alt Düsseldorf e.V. aims to bring children and older people together by creating a shared meeting place while also providing children with a space for playful learning. Currently, the planning and registration for courses are handled manually and analog using paper lists, which often makes it difficult to know in advance how many children will attend a particular activity. The challenge was therefore to design a digital solution that simplifies course organization while remaining intuitive and accessible for both children and older adults.

Idea and Concept

The prototype was developed as part of a student design competition with the goal of creating an intuitive and user-friendly app for both children and older adults. To better understand the needs of the organization, students visited the association to gather insights. During the concept phase, methods such as competitor analysis, personas, scribbles, and a sitemap were used. Key features include a dashboard with an overview of the user profile and registered courses, a course overview for browsing and signing up for activities, and a gamification element to encourage interaction with the app.

Implementation

Over several weeks, the team of media informatics students developed an interactive app prototype in Figma. They created a playful style guide based on the association’s colors and included a unique “play area,” where users nurture a virtual tree through interaction. Personalization options ensure the interface works equally well for both children and older adults. After presenting the results to Jung trifft Alt Düsseldorf e.V. at Westphalian University of Applied Sciences, the prototype was selected as the winning design and will serve as the basis for future implementation.