MID seminar with Torben Wallbaum, Associate Professor in Human-Computer Interaction and director of the Human eXperience Lab

Do it together: Our latest works in relatedness technologies
For over two decades, HCI has built "relatedness technologies" to help people feel close over distance — but almost always designed for people rather than by them. I'll share our recent work exploring how people, including those with no design background, can shape and personalize their own ways of staying close.

Bio: Torben Wallbaum is an Associate Professor in Human-Computer Interaction and director of the Human eXperience Lab (thehxlab.com) at Flensburg University of Applied Sciences. He is co-head of the Centre for Interaction, Visualization and Usability (CIVU). His research explores the intersection of human needs and interactive technology, with a particular focus on child-computer interaction, social computing, and technology literacy. Current projects investigate how interactive systems can support feelings of connectedness and belonging across distances, the role of technology in family life, and how tangible and IoT-based tools can empower children as active participants in their own learning.