The story of the workshop format ahead of the final challenge
The Ask & Hack project, carried out in collaboration with Sys-Tek srl, is now in its second edition, consolidating the workshop format that aims at social and digital inclusion through technological co-design. During the third meeting, which took place yesterday, Wednesday 28 January, at the Convitto Nazionale Umberto I in Turin, the participants' comments offered valuable testimony to the educational and human impact of the initiative.
Alessia, Sofia and Letizia, students of the Cambridge scientific course, emphasised how the project, which counts towards school-work training hours (formerly Pcto), has allowed them to empathise with completely different lives. Other students, such as Nicolas and Vittoria, highlighted the discovery of how the world is designed exclusively for able-bodied people, defining the removal of such obstacles as a fundamental task for society. A particularly appreciated aspect was the opportunity to apply individual skills, such as drawing and IT, which are not usually used during the normal school day, to respond to real needs.
The meeting agenda included Speed Friending sessions to break the ice and the immersive “Reverse” experience: young people from the “Buio in Pista” association reversed roles, showing students the practical use of assistive technologies such as screen readers and voice commands.
Andrea, a 23-year-old with visual impairment, expressed his desire to create an application that aims to humanise and raise awareness, using “as little artificial intelligence as possible” so as not to lose the emotional and humanistic component of mutual support.
The students worked in mixed teams to analyse the daily obstacles related to mobility and accessible driving, defining specific User Stories to formalise the expected benefits of future digital products.
The course, led by trainers from the Fondazione Mondo Digitale, will conclude on 20 February with a hackathon at CNA Torino. In the final challenge, the mixed teams will propose creative digital solutions born from direct discussion and the desire to transform technology into a universal language of inclusion. This year's chosen payoff, ‘See-licio’, sums up this ambition: bringing people together to ‘see together’ and design a more equitable society.
