OUGD505 - Product Range Distribution - Research and Concept Crit

Pre-Crit

I made the below design boards to show, and planned to speak about about how the the research led to me to the conclusion that I want to do a campaign aimed at the Chinese Government.

Crit Feedback

• Targeting the Chinese government directly isn't realistic and is far too optimistic.
• They think the special treatment Pandas get is acceptable because of how it represents conservation as a whole.
• The fact that the Chinese government willingly work with WWF is all the more reason to involve them in the campaign, as it adds more strength to the argument.
• Education should be a key point of the campaign, as the success in captive breeding is so recent that it's not common knowledge.
• Targeting a younger audience through zoos like suggested would be effective because their interaction with the campaign would force the parents to campaign to take notice of it too.
• An app aimed at 8-12 year olds would be good for this.
• The research I've done could lead to this project being quite big and ambitious, so I need to make a full considered plan before I do anything.

Post-Crit

After speaking with my crit group and Danny, I decided that the way to go was to develop an app that acted as a game where the goal was to increase the panda population.

I also found that on February 28th 2015, the Chinese Government released some up to date figures on the wild Panda population since 2004, putting it at 1,864, rising from 1600 that was estimated 11 years ago. This is 16.8% rise. The rise in protected environment however has only risen by 11.8% since 2003. Now 66.8% of the wild Pandas live in protected reserves, which only take up 53% of the habitable areas. 

The 16.8% increase over 11 years works out at about a 1.5% increase a year, and this is only in wild pandas. The human population is currently rising at about 1.3% a year, which is a statistical way to show that Panda reproduction is no longer a serious problem.

The fact only 33.2% of the population live in 47% leaves a lot of empty space that is vulnerable to being chopped down for industrial growth. The separation of the Pandas habitat is still a problem as well, putting 12% of Pandas at risk of losing their habitats to industrial development, which is why it's important that more areas are bought up.

Things to Research 

• WWF Apps
• Game Apps
• Zoo Tycoon

When I was researching habitat corridors I stumbled across an exercise that can be used in schools to help students understand the less obvious issues and financial costs of conservation. Basing a game around this adds an element of strategy. This sort of interactivity will naturally lead people to the conclusion that expanding the protected area is the way to win. This exercise is here. If I was to relate this to real life situations such as zoos, I'd have to update the costs to make it more relevant.