We present a tangible origami-based artefact designed to explore how artefacts can foreground ecological entanglements by embodying movement, fragility, and responsiveness. Drawing on a Research through Design (RtD) practice-led approach using a diffractive lens rooted in new materialist philosophy, and inspired by expressive and defensive behaviours in plants and animals, the artefact combines rhythmic “breathing” actuation, colour change, and contraction to evoke a sense of aliveness and ambiguity. We contribute the design of a diffractive, tangible origami artefact intended to evoke aliveness and artefact agency, and a design process demonstrating diffraction as a generative lens for more-than-human HCI.

For 'looked-after' and adopted children, physical objects are often the only remaining link to their pasts; a portal to stories of former families, homes, and events. The act of reminiscence, known as 'life story work', can help children to process their pasts and overcome trauma. This paper describes the user-centred redesign of Trove, a digital and physical memory box for storing and curating stories about precious objects. We describe our redesign process, synthesising the insights from previous Trove evaluations with looked-after and adopted children, and three re-design workshops with 4 looked-after children at a therapeutic residential school. Our findings advocate for prioritisation of Trove's digital and physical security, the sustainability of its companionship, and the provision of multimedia storytelling to encourage the construction of identity narratives. Inspired by this, we present and discuss the redeveloped Trove, before analysing our participatory design approach with these complex and under-represented groups.

For looked after and adopted children, physical objects are often the only remaining link to their past; a portal to stories of birth families, former homes, and significant people. Yet, often these stories can be littered with traumatic events preventing them from moving forward with their lives. Through reminiscence of these stories and attempting to develop narratives of past events, known as 'life story work', we can help children to emotionally process their past. This paper introduces, trove, a digital and physical memory box for storing and curating stories about precious objects. trove creates a safe space for keeping these objects in transient environments and constructing life story narratives.

Utilising a multidisciplinary and user-centred product and service design approach, 'NewsThings' explores the potential for domestic and professional internet of things (IoT) objects to convey journalism, media and information. In placing news audiences and industry at the centre of the prototyping process, the project's web connected objects explore how user requirements may be best met in a perceived post-digital environment. Following a research-through-design methodology and utilising a range of tools - such as workshops, cultural probes, market research and long-term prototype deployment with public and industry, NewsThings aims to generate design insights and prototypes that could position the news media as active participants in the development of IoT products, processes and interactions. This work-in-progress paper outlines the project's approach, methods, initial findings - up to and including the pre-deployment phase - and focuses on novel insights around user-engagement with news, and the multidisciplinary team's responses to them.

The possibility of linking paper to digital information is enhanced by recent developments in printed electronics. In this article we report the design and evaluation of a local newspaper augmented with capacitive touch regions and an embedded Bluetooth chip working with an adjunct device. These allowed the interactive playback of associated audio and the registration of manual voting actions on the web. Design conventions inherited from paper and the web were explored by showing four different versions of an interactive newspaper to 16 community residents. The diverse responses of residents are described, outlining the potential of the approach for local journalism and recommendations for the design of interactive newsprint.