A 3-day intensive bootcamp brought together a diverse group of changemakers, innovators, and aspiring thinkers to co-create solutions that make our cities more inclusive, creative, and human-centered.
The first day kicked off with introductions to the program and its partners, led by Flow Accelerator and Makani Innovation Hub teams, setting the stage for a journey focused on creativity and inclusion in urban environments. Participants learned how to map user needs, build empathy, and conduct meaningful user interviews to identify the root causes of challenges in city life. Through practical tools such as persona building, empathy maps, and problem-framing canvases, participants gained a deep understanding of the real people they were designing for. The day emphasized the importance of approaching city challenges through the lens of lived experiences and not assumptions.
Building on the user insights gathered on Day 1, the second day was all about ideation and creative exploration. Participants were introduced to methods that encouraged out-of-the-box thinking and helped them generate a wide range of ideas addressing the defined challenges.
Using prioritization frameworks, teams evaluated their ideas based on impact, feasibility, and alignment with city priorities. They also learned how to collect early feedback from peers and mentors to improve their concepts before moving to prototyping. This stage helped reinforce the idea that innovation is a process, and early feedback from our expert mentors is key to creating viable solutions.
On the final day, participants began turning their refined ideas into tangible solutions. Through sketching, storyboarding, and mockups, teams visualized their proposed interventions. They then worked with tools like the Validation Canvas and feedback scripts to plan simple user tests and identify how they could validate their concepts with target users.
A highlight of the day was the opportunity to present their early ideas to Ramallah Municipality staff and field experts, who provided critical feedback to help ensure alignment with the city’s current priorities and strategies. Participants also worked on crafting compelling pitches that communicated their solutions and the real problems they aimed to solve.
Across the three days, the bootcamp provided participants with rich learning experience in design thinking, prototyping, storytelling, and collaborative innovation. Working in teams, they tackled challenges related to accessibility, community engagement, environmental resilience, and urban space activation, all to develop Ramallah into a more inclusive and creative city.
Stay tuned for Demo Day, where participants will pitch their final solutions to city stakeholders, experts, and the wider community. It’s a moment to celebrate youth-driven innovation, and a step closer to building cities that work for everyone.
