Designing a Safe City Eco System for “Wandering”

This paper introduces a successful dementia care program in Omuta City, Japan. The program, SOS Training, was not originally designed as a co-design project. It achieved codesign characteristics as a result of trial-and-error practice among public and private enthusiasts for making a better and safer community for people with dementia.

As a case of substantial codesign participation of citizens that involves people with dementia, this paper points out challenges and opportunities for making Omuta’s program scalable and sustainable. The newly established design team that includes the authors, investigates potentials of the Omuta way of helping people with dementia.