The Duke Explore App: A Way To Tell Stories Across Campus and Beyond

Virtual page of the Duke Explore app, welcoming visitors to Sarah P. Duke Gardens, with information about the Blomquist Garden of Native Plants
Duke Explore takes visitors through the newly renovated Duke Gardens.

This is a summary of a story written by Katarina Dragasevic on the Office of Information Technology.

A decade after its launch by Duke’s Office of Information Technology, the Duke Explore mobile app continues to expand as members of the university community add new self-guided digital tours. The latest addition is a walking tour of the recently renovated Sarah P. Duke Gardens.

Lauren Smith Hong, the Gardens’ marketing and communications director, said the Gardens team has long wanted a mobile tour but lacked the resources to create the tool.

“This was a game changer for us,” she said about Duke Explore. “It helps bridge gaps in knowledge by deepening visitor engagement through visual and audio storytelling,” she said.

The walking tour focuses on key spaces in each of the Gardens’ four main areas, including the new Charlotte Brody Discovery Garden.

Built on the Stqry platform, the app hosts tours that incorporate images, audio and video. Examples of other tours include the Centennial Tour, which spotlights more than 30 historic locations on and off campus, supplemented with archival images and narration. A “Hidden Durham” tour features little-known sites throughout the city.

Students enrolled in an English class used Duke Explore to build a walking tour of Hayti, a traditionally Black community in the southern quadrant of Durham’s downtown district.

And last month, Duke Forest launched its own tour on the app, featuring geolocated maps for all forest divisions, historical background, trail information and resources for anyone interested in getting more involved in its stewardship.

The app is available for download on the iOS App Store and the Google Play Store. If you’re interested in creating your own tour on Duke Explore, visit the Office of Information Technology.