Colin Stanley

This article presents and describes the inaugural Community Track at the Participatory Design Conference 2024 in Sibu, Sarawak. The track aims to bring together Malaysian and international indigenous community members interested in co-design, participation, inclusion and collaboration in the field of Participatory Design (PD). As the first of its kind, the track seeks to serve as an opportunity for indigenous community members to share knowledge, practices and perspectives with one another and the broader PD community in a high-level academic setting. This underlies the track’s primary ambition, enabling its extension and endorsement as a mainstream event at the conference and other academic activities of similar pedigree.

This workshop offers an immersive exploration of ethical co-design practices with indigenous communities, addressing communication barriers and co-constructing a Rural Community Engagement Framework. Seasoned facilitators guide participants through mixed-method methodologies, fostering discussions on co-facilitation and co-publishing. The workshop aims to empower participants to deconstruct Afrocentric research canons and integrate culturally sensitive strategies into their engagements, promoting meaningful co-design collaborations for transformative impact.