Student Food Security Design Jam Winter 2024

Challenge: To collaboratively facilitate access to food security resources for students

As part of Centennial College’s efforts to provide and facilitate access to basic needs for students to thrive, this session brings members of the College and community partners together to co-design proposals intended to enhance students’ access to an integrated network or ecosystem of support, specifically to meet food security needs.

While there are many interconnected basic needs, there is power in focusing on one theme at a time to maximize focus and impact. February’s Design Jam will focus on food security because students’ needs in this area are known (through the National College Health Assessment). Other needs are planned to be the focus of future sessions.

In two half-day sessions, participants work through social purpose model canvas to develop an implementation plan including buy-in from stakeholders and implementation/ deployment plans to achieve, and present the plans in a facilitated environment, first working online, followed by an in-person session to encourage problem-solving and holistic understanding of the challenge

The program has the following key elements:

Parameters and Objectives: The program revolves around three core objectives: 

• design and present socially innovative and sustainable ideas, 
• create a corresponding implementation plan through social purpose model canvas and deployment plan, and 
• effectively communicate the solution.

Working in Teams: Participants are grouped into diverse teams, drawing individuals from Centennial staff, students and the wider community.

Support and Facilitation: detailed information on the challenge theme, jam process and other resources are made available before the sessions, as well as an AMA session is provided prior to, and rapid presentations on methodology and use of collaboration tools delivered during the jam.

Participants are introduced to the Jam’s purpose and methodologies. The first team exercise involves exploring barriers, stakeholders, and potential solutions. Groups choose a critical problem, frame it using the “How Might We…” statement, and brainstorm innovative ideas. The second exercise focuses on generating a broad range of collaborative ideas and possible value propositions. After team randomization to gain additional inputs from members of other teams, team leads present their value proposition for a chance to have the team’s proposition voted most popular.

The first team exercise of the day focuses on the development of the social purpose model, including the deployment plan. After rapid representation on the topic, teams work on its application in building a social purpose model for the chosen idea including crafting a use case, describing the idea as a value proposition for the beneficiaries, buy-in by the stakeholders, the deployment plan to create impact, and more. Next, team members are randomized to gain additional inputs from members of other teams for discussion in the final exercise. The final team exercise is to refine the deployment plans and develop a presentation for their idea for the benefit of a target beneficiary or customer through their social purpose model canvas and implementation plan. The day concludes with teams presenting their deployment solutions and answering questions by the facilitator team, followed by a quick wrap-up with a focus on the next steps.