13. Implications and applications¶

The Big Picture: Why This Project Matters¶

Throughout Fabricademy, I have been developing a concept rooted in a simple belief: curiosity is the beginning of every innovation. My final project — the FVSU Interactive Mascot — is more than a sculpture. It is a system designed to invite people in, to lower the barrier between a community member and the advanced tools, materials, and ideas living inside the Fort Valley State University Fab Lab.

This week I step back from making and ask the harder questions:

Who benefits from this project? How does it scale? What are the ethical considerations? What does the full service experience look like? And most importantly — does this product/service actually solve a real problem?

Concept Summary¶

The FVSU Interactive Mascot is a mobile, interactive sculpture built from bioengineered and locally sourced materials from the state of Georgia. It serves as an ambassador for the FVSU Fab Lab — meeting prospective participants where they are (K-12 schools, fairs, community events, campus tours) and inviting them to engage with the technologies and concepts explored inside the lab. The mascot integrates:

Soft robotics — for expressive, tactile movement E-textiles and embedded electronics — for responsive, sensory interaction Biofabricated materials — to embody the lab's commitment to sustainability and local sourcing Computational design — for structural integrity and visual storytelling

It is designed to be touched, activated, and talked about.

Ultra-Personalised Product Service System (UPPSS)¶

A UPPSS describes not just the product itself, but the full ecosystem of service, interaction, and experience surrounding it. Below is the UPPSS framework for the FVSU Interactive Mascot.

Layer	Description
Physical artifact	The Interactive Mascot sculpture, mobile and display-ready
Materials	Bioengineered textiles, soft robotics components, e-textile sensors
Interaction	Touch-activated responses: light, sound, or movement
Narrative	Embedded storytelling — the mascot "knows" about FVSU's history, the Fab Lab's tools, and agricultural innovation in Georgia

Service Layers¶

Layer 1¶

Awareness (Before the Lab)

The mascot travels. It appears at K-12 school visits, FVSU open houses, community events, agricultural fairs, and HBCU conferences. Its job at this layer is simply: be interesting enough to make someone ask a question.

Layer 2¶

Invitation (At the Lab)

When a curious visitor follows the mascot back to the Fab Lab (physically or digitally), the mascot becomes a guide. A QR code embedded in its body connects to the lab's booking system and curriculum materials. The object is a bridge between stranger and participant.

Layer 3¶

Education (Inside the Lab)

Once inside, participants can learn how the mascot was made. Each material and process used in its construction corresponds to a module in the Fab Lab's curriculum (biofabrication → Biomaterials week; movement → Soft Robotics week; sensors → E-Textiles week). The mascot becomes a physical syllabus.

Layer 4¶

Participation (Making Their Own)

Advanced participants can contribute to or customize an iteration of the mascot. This transforms the project from a one-way exhibit into a collaborative, evolving artifact.

Layer 5¶

Amplification (After the Lab)

Participants document and share their engagement. The mascot is documented openly (open-source files, Fabricademy site, social media) so other Fab Labs can build their own version.

Personalisation Levels¶

Level	Who	What Changes
Individual	A K-12 student touching the mascot for the first time	mascot for the first timeSensory response — light color, sound, or movement responds to their touch
Cohort	A classroom or school visiting the lab	The mascot's "story mode" can be set to a specific curriculum theme (agriculture, robotics, sustainability)
Community	Farmers, extension agents, rural educators	The mascot can carry messaging about FVSU's extension services and agricultural research
Institutional	FVSU departments, other HBCUs, partner Fab Labs	Open-source files allow each institution to adapt the mascot's form to their own identity and materials
Regional	Georgia-based makers and growers	Bioengineered material inputs are locally sourced, creating a material identity tied to Georgia's agricultural ecology

Stakeholder Map¶

A stakeholder is anyone who is affected by, contributes to, or benefits from the project. Below is a map of the key stakeholders in the FVSU Interactive Mascot ecosystem.

Primary Stakeholders (direct interaction with the product)¶

K-12 Students (Rural Georgia)

The most important audience. Students, with a focus particularly on students from rural, underserved communities, are the primary target of the mascot's outreach function. The mascot is designed to be approachable, curiosity-triggering, and age-appropriate at multiple levels. Needs: Exposure to STEM/fabrication tools in a low-pressure, joyful setting. Relationship to project: First point of contact; potential future Fab Lab participants.

FVSU Students, Faculty, and Staff

The Fab Lab lives within FVSU's academic ecosystem. Students in agriculture, engineering technology, and the sciences are natural collaborators and potential builders of the mascot's next iteration. Needs: Hands-on applied learning that connects coursework to real community impact. Relationship to project: Collaborators and co-makers.

Community Members (Middle GA, Fort Valley and Peach County, GA)

The Fab Lab serves the broader Fort Valley community. Local makers, entrepreneurs, and families interact with the lab regularly. Needs: Access to tools, skills, and economic opportunity. Relationship to project: End users of the lab's services that the mascot is designed to attract and welcome.

Secondary Stakeholders (influenced by or invested in the outcome)¶

FVSU Administration and the Land-Grant Mission

As a land-grant HBCU, FVSU has a mandate to serve rural and underserved communities through research, education, and outreach. The Interactive Mascot aligns directly with this mission. Needs: Demonstrable community impact, enrollment pipeline, institutional visibility. Relationship to project: Institutional backer and beneficiary.

Georgia Farmers and Agricultural Extension Agents

FVSU's deep roots in Georgia agriculture mean that farmers and USDA extension agents are a critical constituency. A mascot that carries messaging about precision agriculture, sustainable farming, and STEM literacy speaks directly to this group. Needs: Practical tools, knowledge, and connections to innovation. Relationship to project: Potential participants in advanced workshops; ambassadors to rural communities.

Fabricademy / Fab Lab Network

This project is developed within the Fabricademy framework and is openly documented. Other students, instructors, and Fab Labs worldwide are stakeholders in the open-source outputs of this project. Needs: Replicable, well-documented projects that expand the network's reach. Relationship to project: Peer community; potential replicators and remixers.

K-12 Educators and School Administrators

Teachers and principals who bring students to the Fab Lab (or who host the mascot at their schools) are key intermediaries. Needs: Curriculum-aligned programming that justifies field trips and partnerships. Relationship to project: Program facilitators; gatekeepers to the student audience.

HBCU Network

Fort Valley State University is one of over 100 Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the United States. The open-source model of this project invites other HBCUs with Fab Labs or makerspaces to build their own mascots. My hope is that this would create a network of community-facing, culturally rooted interactive artifacts.

Rural STEM Education Advocates

Policy organizations, nonprofits, and researchers focused on closing the rural STEM education gap are indirect beneficiaries of a project that puts advanced fabrication tools in service of community engagement.

Bioregional Material Producers

Because the mascot uses bioengineered materials sourced in Georgia, local growers and biomaterial researchers are part of its supply chain thus stakeholders in its success and replication.

Service Model Summary¶

Stage	Experience	Output
Discovery	Visitor encounters mascot at event or on campus	Curiosity, question-asking
Invitation	QR code / lab staff connect visitor to lab resources	Booking, enrollment
Education	Visitor learns how the mascot was made	Skills, confidence
Creation	Visitor makes something in the lab	Personal artifact, portfolio
Community	Visitor shares, documents, returns	Network growth, open-source contribution

Originality and Reflection¶

The following references ground this project in research, precedent, and artistic practice. Scientific and Academic References

Atkinson, R. D., & Mayo, M. (2010). Refueling the U.S. Innovation Economy: Fresh Approaches to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education. Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. — Foundational research on the role of STEM education in economic development, directly relevant to the FVSU Fab Lab's mission.
Johnson, J., Showalter, D., Klein, R., & Lester, C. (2014). Why Rural Matters 2013-2014: The Condition of Rural Education in the 50 States. Rural School and Community Trust. — Documents the rural educational gap referenced in the Week 1 research, providing evidence base for the mascot's outreach function.
Resnick, M. (2017). Lifelong Kindergarten: Cultivating Creativity through Projects, Passion, Peers, and Play. MIT Press. — Theoretical foundation for the mascot's design philosophy: learning through making, play, and creative exploration.
Shea, K., Aish, R., & Gourtovaia, M. (2005). "Towards integrated performance-driven generative design tools." Automation in Construction, 14(2), 253–264. — Computational design principles applied to the structural development of the mascot.
Mogas-Soldevila, L., Bhatt, A., & Oxman, N. (2014). "Water-Based Fabrication." 3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing, 1(3). — Research informing the biofabricated material components of the mascot.

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