Garage Stories is an innovation lab designing think tanks, pop-up labs and hackathons that tackle real-world challenges.
It brings together interdisciplinary teams to apply technology to human-centred problems — from mobility and healthcare to sustainability and culture.
Working through Design Thinking and Design Futures methodologies, participants develop technology-driven solutions with a strong focus on user experience, storytelling and measurable impact.
Working through Design Thinking and Design Futures methodologies, participants develop technology-driven solutions with a strong focus on user experience, storytelling and measurable impact.
Hack The Hospital
An international hackathon series to improve the lives of hospitalised paediatric patients. Developed in collaboration with leading children’s hospitals including Boston Children’s Hospital, Sant Joan de Déu, SickKids and Great Ormond Street, the programme combined online and in-person editions.
Numbers
+250 participants
+50 community partners
Key Sessions
Storytelling & Engagement for Kids — Kimberly Hicks (The Walt Disney Company)
From Augmented Reality to Augmented Human — Judith Amores (MIT Media Lab)
Good-Centric Design — George Aye (Greater Good Studio)
Designing Healthcare Spaces — Suzy Genzler (NYSID)
Teams received live feedback from former patients, families and caregivers, supported by mentors from institutions such as MIT Media Lab, Disney, IBM and GSMA.
Outcomes
BoostBoard — AR game platform for hospital stays
Room2Explore — immersive hospital room experience transforming patient rooms into a space mission
The winning projects were presented at Mobile World Congress and implemented in hospitals.
Robots, AI & Creativity
A sprint design weekend exploring how AI can enhance creativity and the arts.
Numbers
20 selected ideas
Key Sessions
David Hanson - Hanson Robotics
Creative Coding & Machine Learning — Vera van de Seyp (MIT Media Lab)
Outcome
Please Touch This Art — tactile 3D-printed artworks with AI voice assistance for visually impaired audiences.
The project was further developed during a prototype residency at TVIBIT (Tromsø) and presented at the Forum des Images Festival.
Hack The Planet (And Human’s Health)
A global hackathon focused on sustainable behavioural change.
With experts from WHO, IBM and MIT Media Lab, participants developed solutions at the intersection of health and environment.
Numbers
+200 participants
+50 community partners
Key Sessions
Maria Neira — World Health Organization
Health & Environment Panel (WHO, ISGlobal, EU Centre for Environment & Human Health)
How to Design for Good — Tom Tapper (Nice & Serious)
How to Deal With Change? — Donald Edmondson (Center for Cognitive Behavioural Health, Columbia University)
Outcome
Viridis — A blockchain-powered Digital Product Passport that rewards sustainable consumer choices while supporting responsible brands.
The project was presented at Mobile World Congress and awarded €3,000 to further develop the solution.
Space Stories
A think tank exploring new storytelling formats to make NASA’s Earth research more accessible.
Challenge: Sea Level Rise
Numbers
15 selected participants (US-based creatives and technologists)
Outcome
Winning concepts were invited to visit and present at NASA JPL Headquarters, exploring new ways to communicate sea level rise research through immersive and narrative-driven formats (XR, VR and transmedia approaches).
Girona 2030
An urban innovation lab reflecting on key civic challenges — mobility, sustainability, healthcare and coexistence.
Teams worked through a Design Futures process to imagine how Girona could look in 2030. Their proposals took shape as augmented reality interventions placed in specific urban locations — digital layers visible through a mobile app, revealing speculative futures directly onto the city (augmented reality filters in public space).
Outcome
A public mobile app, launched during Girona Mobile Week 2021, invited citizens to experience speculative visions of Girona in 2030 directly in the urban space.
A complementary futures article expanded on each proposal, exploring the themes and scenarios in greater depth through design fiction articles.
Colophon
In collaboration with (selection)
Mobile World Capital Barcelona, Generalitat de Catalunya, DKV, NASA JPL, Coca-Cola European CCET, Forum des Images, TVIBIT.
Direction
Marta Ordeig Bofias
Creative Producer
Mar Gimeno Lumbiarres
Assistant Producer
Lidia Lizancos
Communications
Mar Gimeno Lumbiarres
Martina Ebram
Coordination Support
Mia Rodríguez-Sarmiento
Julia De Fuentes
Video, Film, Photo
Mar Gimeno Lumbiarres
Lidia Lizancos
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