Product Designer @ Creative Resilient Youth:

Community for young creative to express feelings and create with personalized topics

OVERVIEWCreative Resilient Youth (CRY) is a Philly-based art and leadership organization dedicated to nurturing creativity and wellbeing, and empowering young voices. Over the past few years, CRY has facilitated youth-led events, including art workshops, study groups to foster meaningful community building among youths.

This project is a 0 -> 1 mobile-first app to support CRY’s mission to keep youths engagement and expand their impact. I lead the design of a digital community to help marginalized youth in Philadelphia foster creativity, build resilience and connect.

OUTCOMES As the only designer on the team of 15+ people, I co-led research of exploring the use case of AI in creative art for youth well-being, drive end-to-end design and product strategy, delivered the design from 0 to 1.

The MVP is now in development. See this work featured in media.

ROLEFull Stack Designer

TEAM7 Youth Co-Designer
2 Software Engineers
Non-profit Stakeholder
Health Researcher
Principle Investigator

TIMELINEMarch 2024 - Present

• The Challenge •

• Research •

We conducted different types of research to understand the problems, existing products and opportunities. This helped us set a vision for a feasible ideal states with community members

METHOD ONEEnd-to-end co-plan, co-learn and co-design workshops
I co-facilitated 7 co-design research workshops with 10+ co-designers who are already the active member at Creative Resilient Youth. We developed a shared language and goals, defined design opportunity and brainstormed concepts.

METHOD TWO
Competitive analysis

I collaborated with 2 engineers to analyze 10+ digital art platform/products – Adobe Firefly, Mental Canvas, Art Breeder, Octostudio, and more – Our goal was to understand how AI is currently used in powering art and creativity, how those platforms enable community building, and know what we definitely don’t want.

METHOD THREEDiary study with co-designers
We invited co-designer to use any competitor products to create personal project, and understand how they feel about integrating digital platform into their creative workflow and their overall experience.

• Building trust •

Facilitate open conversation to explore the use of AI

• Develop a share definition of community •

Co-designers do not want another platform to generate artwork for them. They believe this platform is different and should emphasizes:

HMW

Design a process-oriented creative arts community for teens to reflect and express as part of their healing journey?

• Branding •

Adding energy to CRY’s legacy green, and building association to healing

I designed and facilitate a brand workshop to engage co-designers in discussion about the platform’s brand traits, color, and typography.

• Platform Consideration •

Prioritizing mobile experience for maximum impact

NUMBER ONEDigital device accessibility
We want to lower the barrier of commuinty engagement. Mobile is the primary internet access point for many Gen-Z users, especially those from marginalized communities who may not have regular desktop access.

NUMBER TWOCost efficiency
Given resource and budget constraints, starting with mobile enabled faster development, which allows us to test with our target audience and iterate rapidly.

NUMBER THREEGen-Z user behavior

CRY’s target users are Gen-Z. According to research from GWI, 98& of Gen-Z owns a smartphone. They primarily interacts with digital platforms via mobile, making it the most intuitive choice.

• Features •

#1 : Prepare Creative Journey with Daily Mood Check-In

Creative exploration is a journey of self-discovery, and we make it easy for users to start reflecting. They can quickly select an avatar that represents how they feel or jot down their thoughts in a short journal entry. Based on their input, a personalized affirmation is generated to acknowledge and validate their emotions, encouraging a deeper connection with themselves.

#2 : Boost creative journey with AI-generated prompts that align with your check-in results

Creativity and self-expression often come with challenges (aka. creative blocker). With the power of AI, we provide a starting point for your creative journey, making your creative expression easier and more accessible. By unlocking your full potential, we empower you to transform your ideas into meaningful growth.

#3: “We Time” for Creative Collaboration to cherish the process

Too often, we focus solely on the outcome and overlook the process. We Time is a workspace for like-minded individuals to celebrate and support each other’s progress. Like, comment, or send a gif to show your support to the progress your peers made. With the same prompt, the possibilities are endless.

#4: Personal Archive as a place to reflect and stay motivated

The ultimate archive for you to show your work of various prompts. Celebrate your achievements with key milestones: from your start date to the updates you’ve made and the support you've received. This space also includes mood check-ins and journal entries, offering a holistic view of your growth.