Can       imagining       alternative       fictional       realities    prompt      us       to       situate       ourselves       and     our    communities       on       the       internet       differently  ?




Making World with Others, Jan 2024, Royal College of Art, White City.


















Workshops are not just spaces of instruction; they are spaces of exchange. Making Worlds with Others was conceived as a collaborative, participatory practice, designed to move away from hierarchical learning structures and instead
            
foster an environment where young people could build, imagine, and create together.
As a team, we set out to develop a workshop for 10–12-year-old students, one that would ignite imagination, encourage world-building, and cultivate a sense of community. But what followed was more than just designing an activity—it was a process of learning, unlearning, testing, failing, adapting, and questioning.

This workshop was not about teaching young people, but rather about creating a space for them to explore, exchange, and shape ideas on their own terms.















Methodologies

Action Research | Participatory Design | Workshopping | World-building |  Making for Young People


Collaborators

Yashika Goel– Led narrative development and participant-centered ideation.

Martyna Wielgopolan – Drove project management, organization, and facilitation.

Emerald Chen – Managed logistics, documentation, and creative support.

Sauranav Deka – Focused on participant experience and workshop impact.

Mado Kelleyan – Ensured strategic alignment and creative ideation.



Tools and Mediums

Game and Play Mechanics > Workshop Facilitation > Tactile Materils > Community Engagement > Co-creation Workshop





Responses from the workshop, MAking World with Others, PM Group Workshop, Jan 2024





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What is Making World with Others ?
At its core, Making Worlds with Others was a collaborative world-building workshop that invited students to -

Imagine – Build speculative, fantastical environments that reflected their creativity.

Exchange – Work together, share ideas, and engage in dialogue.

Play – Experiment with storytelling, movement, and co-creation.

Make – Visually construct narratives through drawing, tearing, folding, and assembling.

The workshop was not about rules, but about possibilities. The young participants designed and built imaginary houses—not just as physical structures, but as reflections of their evolving ideas. Through interactive storytelling and collaborative design exercises, they navigated how spaces are built, shared, and experienced.

Each phase of the activity encouraged nonlinear, non-hierarchical ways of thinking and creating. The final result was a collective landscape—a world built together, shaped by individual perspectives yet interconnected as a community.






Making World with Others, PM Group workshop, Jan 2024, Royal College of Art, White City
Making World with Others, PM Group workshop, Jan 2024, Royal College of Art, White City



< S  i  g  n  
a  l  s >

Why  we responded with 
world-building exercise?











We began with thinking: What do we want them to learn? But then we asked: What do they want?”

Education often operates within rigid, hierarchical structures—where students absorb knowledge rather than actively shape it. Inspired by alternative pedagogies, decolonial education models, and participatory design approaches, our aim was to :

Dismantle traditional learning hierarchies – Position young participants as active creators rather than passive learners.

Foster imagination and creativity – Encourage free-form thinking and collaborative storytelling.

Bridge cultural exchange and community building – Create a space where young people could explore ideas collectively.


Informed by the key learning references and our own site visits to East London, where we observed community-driven resistance to gentrification, our perspective shifted:

We moved from asking “What do we want to teach?” to “How do we create a space for young people to explore what they want?”

This small shift in focus radically transformed the workshop’s design, emphasizing agency, curiosity, and participation over instruction.




























Key Learnings
Manish Jain’s Declaration of Decolonizing Education – Challenging the structures of traditional knowledge-sharing.


Key Learnings

Lena Dobrowolska & Teo Ormond-Skeaping’s speculative climate workshops – Using fiction and world-building to help communities envision possible futures.


Key Learnings
Scott Rogers’ Level Up! – Exploring the power of game design in fostering creative problem-solving.





Responses from the workshop,
Making World with Others, PM Group Workshop, Jan 2024









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o  l  o  g  i  e  s  +  
P  r  o  c  e  s  s >



How was this workshop conceived and created?
























Chapter
One




< Research
and Site Engagement >











Before designing the workshop, we engaged with local community spaces and art initiatives to understand how public art and participatory projects shape collective identity.

Pontoon Dock Site Visits → Observing how artworks act as platforms for community voices.

Community Bookstores & Conversations → Learning about inclusive space-making and participatory engagement.

These visits reinforced our belief that a workshop should not impose ideas—it should create space for participants to shape their own.






Chapter
Two











< Defining
Key Workshop Elements >











From our discussions, we identified five key principles that shaped the final activity:

World-Building – Encouraging young people to construct and imagine.

Collaboration – Facilitating shared creation rather than individual work.

Storytelling – Using speculative narratives as a tool for engagement.

Cultural Exchange – Creating an environment for diverse voices and perspectives.

Imagination Without Limits – Ensuring no rules, no restrictions, just play.




Chapter
Three



< Iteration
and Testing >











We developed a series of interactive exercises, testing different modes of engagement:

Drawing & verbal communication → Enhancing visualization and storytelling.

Paper manipulation (tearing, folding, assembling) → Expanding creativity beyond a single surface.

Collaborative world-building → Passing sheets to others, layering ideas, and collectively constructing narratives.


Through Action Research we refined the workshop based on real-time responses, observing how participants interacted, where they struggled, and what excited them most.



Chapter
Four



< The Workshop in Action >










Date - January 25, 2024

Activity - A hands-on speculative design exercise where students built imaginative environments.

Engagement - Breaking hierarchies—participants saw facilitators not as teachers, but as co-creators.


Initially, interaction was slow. But as we let go of rigid structures and allowed surprise, spontaneity, and openness to lead, the energy shifted.

By the end, young participants were:

Engaged beyond expectations – Fully immersed in co-creation.

Using game-like mechanics – Inventing new ways to navigate their speculative worlds.

Seeing themselves as designers, storytellers, and creators – Not just as students in a classroom.










Chapter
Five



< Reflections and Looking Forward >










At the end of the workshop, a teacher reflected:

“It was great for them to express themselves through art, use their imagination, and break away from stricter lesson structures. They were able to express themselves, and it was wonderful to get a glimpse of their worldview.”
This feedback validated the core of our project—learning should be participatory, immersive, and non-hierarchical.


Challenges & Areas for Growth

Building deeper engagement – Understanding young people’s needs before the workshop begins by collaborating more closely with teachers and students.

Expanding time frames – A single session creates impact, but lasting engagement requires sustained interaction.

Refining facilitation – Breaking initial awkwardness faster to immediately immerse participants in the experience.

The most enduring realization?

Impact is complex. It doesn’t happen in a single moment—it emerges through ongoing, meaningful collaboration.
Making Worlds with Others was a step in this direction. It wasn’t about a finished product, but about creating an experience where imagination, collaboration, and world-building could thrive.





My research within participatory design methodologies and imapct of co-creation workshops continues as I work on future projects.

If you want to know more, discuss more, please reach out at workxyashika@gmail.com

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