Cultivating equity in transforming library spaces

The challenge: To understand how 55,000 students actually used these spaces, and why some areas were underutilized.

Role: UX Researcher

Employer: Deakin University Library, Australia

Team size: 13 (Director, Project Lead, Service Designer, Facilities Manager, Librarians, Client Experience Staff, Students)

Project Lead time: 8 weeks

Year: 2023

Situation

Insight

In 2018, UX was still new in the library context. While the library was central to student life, there was no defined way to integrate student voices into projects. Guerrilla testing gave limited reach and often interrupted students’ study time.

Objectives

Explore student experiences of belonging, engagement, and cultural safety.

Ensure research reflected the diversity of Deakin’s community (First Nations, neurodiverse, disability, parents, LGBTQIA+, faith groups, international scholars).

Translate findings into actionable insights for contractors and leadership.

Methods

Stakeholder workshop: 1 x 4hr workshop, attended by 8 project team/stakeholders.

Trial workshop: 1 x 3hr workshop, attended by 4 library staff and student advisors.

Student workshops: 3 x 3hr workshops, 1 in person and 2 online, attended by a total 13 participants.

Ethnography study: 1.5hr sessions with current students, 3 x on campus, 1 x online, total 4 participants.

Recruitment: Our recruitment strategy reflected diversity in students from – First Nations, neurodiverse, disability, parents, LGBTQIA+ community members, people of faith, and international scholars.

Task

My role was to lead the UX research that would uncover how students actually used the spaces, what challenges they faced, and what opportunities existed. I needed to:

Deliver actionable insights that would guide contractors and library leadership in shaping the redesign.

Bring stakeholders together around a shared definition of inclusivity.

Capture diverse student perspectives, ensuring marginalized voices were represented.

Action

Concept Design: Launched the Experience Lab, a pop-up stall inside libraries offering coffee/tea, interactive activities, and open conversation.
Scaling Impact: Rolled out the Lab across all four campus libraries to capture a wider, more representative student base.
Stakeholder Engagement: Designed Lab activities around active library projects, showing decision-makers the direct value of student feedback.
Human-Centred Design: Led research planning, facilitation, and integration into project workflows.
Extended Projects: Initiated explorations like a researcher dashboard — consolidating research metrics into a single, real-time interface.

Results

Produced a research report that became the cornerstone of the renovation strategy.
Library leadership adopted the findings, embedding inclusivity into decision-making.
Contractors used the insights as a design blueprint, ensuring the new library facilities reflect real student needs.
Shifted the project from abstract values to a research-driven roadmap for inclusive spaces.

All images used in above examples copyright Deakin University, reproduced with permission.