This is Ruiqi Yao, a design researcher and practitioner focusing on service design, social innovation, and design anthropology. My work explores how design can support marginalized communities in navigating social and technological transitions.

Hi,

Over the past five years, I have led projects and co-authored publications that bridge policy, infrastructure, and user experience. These range from developing a pioneering provincial design standard for age-friendly digital services (DB44/T 2678—2025) to community-based interventions on Mayu Island and in rural communities, supporting cultural development, community consultation, and local self-governance.

In these projects, my research has emphasized mapping, infrastructuring, and relational practices as ways to broaden participation and sustain long-term collaboration. This perspective has drawn my attention to how different actors—human and non-human—inhabit distinct temporal scales, and how social relations evolve through the interactions among these scales.

Currently, I am preparing to pursue a PhD in Design Studies, focusing on how design can serve as a form of care and response-ability, enabling marginalized communities to sustain relationships and create adaptive futures across multiple temporal scales.