The Crisis Beneath the Surface

Youth today face existential stress, not just emotional turbulence. We saw this not as a crisis of youth, but as a failure of systems to evolve.

Mental health among youth is deteriorating. Identity is fragmented across virtual and real domains. Relationships are transient. Milestones are obsolete. And yet—expectations persist.

• 60% of youth aged 18–24 feel unable to cope due to pressure to succeed.

• 39% of LGBTQ+ youth have seriously considered suicide in the past year.

• More than 40% of high schoolers report persistent sadness.

From milestone to multiverse.
From checklist to co-navigation.

When we explore future systems, we often look at elements in isolation-youth, technology, identity. But real change happens in the space between things.

The Borromean rings-a mathematical structure where three rings are interlinked in such a way that removing any one ring causes the other two to fall apart-offer a powerful metaphor. It's not the individual parts that hold the structure, but the relationship between all three. Designing for the future means thinking in these interdependent systems-not as separate parts, but as bound relationships that shape outcomes.

Key insights from our research

• Future freedoms feel increasingly threatened for young people.

  Youth express deep fears about autonomy, privacy, and freedom in the current political scenario and existing technological surveillance.

• The loneliness crisis is leading to social relationships being redefined.

  As traditional milestones like marriage and partnership lose their predictability, young people seek more fluid, experimental, and transient forms of connection.

• Youth are navigating fluid, multiple, and often conflicting identities.

  Shaped by digital life and evolving personal values, young people constantly shift between different versions of themselves-making it harder for them to have confidence in their sense of self.

• Youth are overloaded by information but lack trusted guidance.

  Constant exposure to fragmented content floods youth with data, but without reliable frameworks to interpret it, decision-making and self-understanding become harder.

Exploring relevant futures

Thinking about purpose and possibility

As designers, we normally build ideas from a needs-driven approach and iterate as we prototype the feasibility, viability and desirability of our outcomes. However, when following an algorithmic design approach, we build ideation seeds considering future possibilities on multiple fronts - creating a design concept that encompasses what will be.

Merging these methods allows us to ask, where are those key gaps we ought to consider? What do those starting points look like?

How does our seed interact with users in tomorrow’s world? Let’s explore that future together.

Who inhabits tomorrow's world? Exploring perspectives for patch users

A deep dive into future generations

Including paradigm shifts and struggles

Designing for the future means understanding probability - taking into account all research findings and developing a comprehensive panorama.

These are not guesses, they are informed perspectives that current signals, literature, patents, developments and economic infrastructures point towards.

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
How can we reimagine the entire in-flight meal experience to prioritize sustainability and equity, while still ensuring passenger satisfaction and relevance?

Reimagining the in-flight meal experience goes beyond just changing what's on the menu; it requires a complete overhaul of how passengers experience the service. Sustainability, encompassing people, profit, and planet, lies at the heart of this transformation.

Currently, the focus is primarily on environmental impact, with little consideration for equity and inclusivity. Traditional in-flight meal services often overlook diverse dietary preferences and cultural considerations, leading to a one-size-fits-all approach that may exclude certain passengers.

The aim for this is to create an experience that is not only environmentally friendly but also fair and inclusive for all passengers. By leveraging data and innovative solutions, we can tailor the in-flight dining experience to individual preferences, ensuring that every passenger feels valued and catered to.

Key Features

Empowering the future of in-flight dining by giving passengers the agency to take ownership of their meal

Key Features

Transforming In-Flight Dining with Advanced Logistics and Sustainable Practices to Minimize Waste and Maximize Freshness

WASTE MANAGEMENT
How can we transform the in-flight dining experience to not only serve nutritious meals but also responsibly manage waste?

With the number of global travelers reaching 1.5 billion in 2019, all requiring meals during their journeys, the tourism industry significantly contributes to the 40% of annual global food production that goes to waste, often ending up in landfills. Recent data has shown that approximately 2.5 million tonnes of food waste are generated annually from in-flight meals, significantly impacting the aviation industry's environmental footprint. However, airlines are at the forefront of deploying solutions to prevent and manage waste efficiently. Currently, food waste collection and disposal of in- flight meals vary among airlines and airports.

In the future state, airlines are adopting innovative solutions to minimize in-flight meal waste production, impacting the entire system of air travel. Leveraging data-driven insights and comprehensive waste management programs, airlines are optimizing meal preparation, minimizing waste generation, and promoting a more sustainable approach to in-flight meal waste management. By closing the loop in the product lifecycle and optimizing resource utilization, airlines are expected to significantly reduce in-flight meal waste production, contributing to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly flight experience.

Key Features

Transforming In-Flight Dining with Advanced Logistics and Sustainable Practices to Minimize Waste and Maximize Freshness

DATA AS AN ASSET
Exploring how the transformative power of data and computation in revolutionizing the way the in-flight meals ecosystem

Our entire solution for revolutionizing in-flight dining is backed and powered by the incredible capabilities of data and computation.

Imagine a passenger who prefers vegetarian meals, avoids gluten, and has a preference for spicy food. By leveraging data on past meal selections and dietary preferences, we can ensure that this passenger receives a personalized meal that perfectly aligns with their tastes and dietary restrictions. This level of personalization not only enhances the passenger experience but also minimizes food waste by serving meals that are more likely to be enjoyed and consumed.

One of the biggest challenges in in-flight dining is minimizing food waste. By analyzing data on passenger meal preferences and consumption patterns, we can optimize food inventory and meal preparation, ensuring that we only serve the right amount of food needed for each flight. For example, if data shows that a particular flight has a higher percentage of vegetarian passengers, we can adjust the meal options accordingly, reducing the likelihood of leftover food being wasted.

Potentials and Opportunities

Re-Imagining the inflight meal experience solves for one industry interfacing with the entire food system; But it has the potential to solve for several industries as well

How we have designed this system is predominantly based on the in-flight meal experience. However, a system such as this can be modular in so many ways. It is possible to reimagine this entire system and model it for hospitals, schools and other larger institutional agents.

This system takes into account sustainable practices in food sourcing and waste disposal (among others), whiles centring the experiences of users and empowering local ecologies in the process