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Reshaping Advocacy Workshop: A Reflection by Jack Cheung
It was week two of Spring quarter and my second week as a fresh GID Lab Intern when I was first assigned to work on a “Lifeskills Workshop” alongside Mak Pennington, Cecil Susi, and Zainab Hamadi. I had my doubts going into the project, given that I’d never worked on a student workshop in my life – I felt completely out of my depth.
Yet here I am a month and a half later, having already run the Reshaping Advocacy workshop last week with my team. And it’s been a resounding success!
We were able bring students together in a room with community partners and use fun design thinking strategies to come up with ideas to make UW Tacoma’s campus resources more accessible. Representatives from the CEI and the ASUWT who were invited got the opportunity to understand the average student’s perspective on campus issues, and what changes they could implement from their position. Our team was even able to take ideas from the workshop and start turning them into actionable plans that can become a reality on campus.
To be able to start inciting this kind of change and make real, tangible solutions that can actually help people feels surreal. Thus far, most projects I’ve been a part of don’t feel like they break past ideation and initial prototypes; this is the first time I’ve been a project that could lead to actual positive changes for people. It’s really exciting!
I’m proud to have been part of the team working on this workshop, I had a fantastic time working with everyone, and I’m really happy with how our hard work turned out!
Spring 2024 GID Interns Produce Design Workshops
This Spring Quarter, Global Innovation and Design (GID) Lab Interns produced two engaging design thinking workshops for their peers to shift how we think about navigation and advocacy. In Cartographic Gestures, held on May 1, workshop participants mapped how they move around Tacoma and ideated ways to improve navigation and quality of life in the city. Prototypes, inspired by the definition and ideation phases of the workshop, included adding bike lanes throughout the city to improve air quality and bike commuter safety as well as water features in the center of roundabouts to slow people down and improve traffic flow. Cartographic Gestures is part of a national project designed and led by GID Lab partner Make Art with Purpose (MAP). In this time of GPS navigation and moving about with eyes fixated on our phones, MAP created the project to learn how people visualize cities and towns and to generate ideas that improve how people engage with their cities. Additional project locations include Dallas (in partnership with Dallas Public Library) and Chicago (in partnership with The School of the Art Institute of Chicago). After each project, an atlas-like guide is published and distributed throughout each city.
On May 8, a second group of GID Lab Interns produced Reshaping Advocacy, a design thinking workshop centered on redesigning the student advocacy experience at UW Tacoma. With stakeholders in the room, including Holly Wetzel, Associated Students of UW Tacoma (ASUWT) President, and Ahmed Wafai, Student Retention and Community Development Specialist at the Office for Equity and Inclusion, the GID Lab Interns led their fellow students through brainstorming and ideation sessions. Participants recommended multiple ideas to improve access to student resources including a digital hub, a chatbot, small resource centers in high-traffic areas, and increased student networking opportunities. “As ASUWT is the liaison between students and UW Tacoma’s administration,” said Wetzel, “we can help make these ideas actionable by taking them to administrators to study and implement.” The GID Lab Interns will use the data from the workshop to design next-level prototypes to submit to ASUWT for consideration and action.
Anuvir Dhaliwal, Fall 2024
arrow_drop_down_circle Anuvir Dhaliwal
Hi, I am Anuvir! Majoring in Writing Studies with a focus in Technical Communication as well as a minor in Innovation & Design, I love working with technology. I am often inspired by the world of UX design and innovative design thinking encouraged by the GID Lab!
Jack Cheung, Fall and Spring 2024
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Jack Cheung is a junior majoring in Information Technology and minoring in Innovation and Design. "I like to design complex projects and push myself to make my work as fun and unorthodox as possible."
Maria B. Villa, Fall and Spring 2024
arrow_drop_down_circle Maria B. Villa
Maria B. Villa is a senior majoring in Technical Writing and minoring in Global Innovation and Design. "I am grate for the GID Internship as it expands my horizons and teaches me skills that I can apply to my community."
Zainab Hamadi, Spring 2024
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Zainab Hamadi is a juinor majoring in Technical Communications and minoring in Innovation and Design. "I am passionate about Design Thinking and often use it in my life to find solutions to daily problems."
Jannat Musawi, Fall 2023, Winter and Spring 2024
arrow_drop_down_circle Jannat Musawi
Jannat Musawi is a junior double majoring in Psychology and Social Welfare, minoring in Global Honors. Born and raised in Iraq, Jannat wants to use her experience and learning as a GID intern “to return to Iraq and help tackle some of the country's most pressing issues through innovative and creative approaches.”
Mak Pennington, Winter and Spring 2024
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Mikayla “Mak” Pennington is a senior majoring in Psychology and minoring in Global Engagement. "Many of my interests in the psychology field align with design thinking such as designing ways to incorporate mental health needs into everyday life."
Cecil Susi, Fall 2023, Winter and Spring 2024
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Cecil Susi is a senior majoring in computer science and systems and minoring in Innovation and Design. “The internship is giving me the opportunity to apply design thinking skills to hands-on projects across campus and beyond. I enjoy getting to work collaboratively with fellow students to design more inclusive and creative spaces for our community.”
Sotharith Sieng, Spring 2024
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Sotharith Sieng is a junior majoring in Computer Science and Systems and minoring in Innovation and Design. "The GID Internship gives me the opportunity to expand my problem solving skills and apply them to real world problems, such as expanding diversity."
Suweyda Abdi, Winter 2024
arrow_drop_down_circle Suweyda Abdi
My name is Suweyda Abdi and I’m majoring in Technical Communication and minoring in Innovation and Design. My passion for art and design sparked my interest in UX as it gives me the ability to translate my skill set into creative solutions for users’ problems. I also highly enjoy the collaborative work environment as it stimulates my growth in design and research-based projects.
Isabelle del Castillo, Winter 2024
arrow_drop_down_circle Isabelle del Castillo
Hi! I'm Isabelle, currently majoring in Computer Science and Systems with a minor in Innovation and Design. I love seeing how people's ideas brought to life can contribute to the growth and advancement of society. I look forward to seeing how we as a team can help foster that growth and change!
Angelina Akinshev, Spring 2023
arrow_drop_down_circle Angelina Akinshev
Angelina is a junior majoring in Urban Design, minoring in Sustainable Urban Development, and pursuing a certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS). She is passionate about using innovative design to better the lived experiences of people because she sees design thinking as foundational for creating better urban and other lived environments.
Maria Babko, Spring 2023, Fall 2023
arrow_drop_down_circle Maria Babko
Maria is a senior double majoring in Communication and Computer Science, minoring in Innovation and Design. She is part of IRIZE, a project that strives to provide free period products on the UW Tacoma campus. She also interns at Degrees of Change, an organization that trains diverse leaders to build more vibrant and equitable communities.
Tien Cao, Spring 2023, Fall 2023
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Tien, a senior, is majoring in Photo/Media and minoring in Innovation and Design. Tien creates user experiences that exceed expectations, continuously seeking ways to improve human-technology interaction in real-world challenges. She is excited to continue learning and push the boundaries of design to produce meaningful programs that positively impacts the community.
Marissa Morris, Winter 2023
arrow_drop_down_circle Marissa Morris
Senior Marissa Morris is majoring in Communications and minoring in Global Innovation and Design. “The GID Award has given me the opportunity to practice design thinking outside of the classroom. This program has facilitated a space for challenging my mind as I have had to think carefully about ways to problem solve within the campus community. Also, I enjoy the collaborative aspect, working within a team has been exciting and motivating.”
Santino Wong, Winter 2023
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Senior Santino Wong is majoring in Communications and double minoring in Teaching, Learning and Justice and Global Innovation and Design. “The GID Award has inspired me to think more broadly about how I can apply design thinking in communications and education, as well as address community issues. The Award has helped me develop skills that will be valuable in graduate school, as well as in my career in special education.”
Aaliya Jones Spring 2022, Fall 2022
arrow_drop_down_circle Aaliya Jones
Aaliya Jones is a junior working to obtain her degree in Urban Design and a Minor in Innovation and Design. With a background in interior design, she brings her focus, enthusiasm, and willingness to learn.
“Under the guidance of the Global and Innovation Design Lab, this quarter I am looking forward to learning how to create long-term equitable solutions for problems while satisfying the desires of the people who recognize there is a problem and those who are in a position to create change.”
LJ Norman, Fall 2021
arrow_drop_down_circle LJ Norman
“My experience as a GID Awardee has been insightful, rewarding, and fruitful. I learned about design thinking and the methods employed to put thinking into action. I really liked learning how to card sort as a means to create usable information architecture.”
Yingchong Zhen, Fall 2021
arrow_drop_down_circle Yingchong Zhen
“Overall, the experience of being a part of the GID lab was super fun and meaningful to me. As an urban study and community planning student, this designing experiment of the GID webpage will benefit me when I need to design cities in the future.”
Faith Kim, Fall 2020, Winter and Spring 2021
arrow_drop_down_circle Faith Kim
“I joined the GID Lab to learn more about user centered design and research, how to implement design-thinking in my life, as well as to strengthen my teamwork skills. By joining the team I realized how much I love this field and am excited to see where this path takes me in the future!”
Kalyn Jones, Fall 2020 and Winter 2021
arrow_drop_down_circle Kalyn Jones
“I like observing the thought process behind creating new applications and programs and learning how developers try to meet the needs of users. Working with the Global Innovation and Design Lab has given me new insights into the functioning of workshops and working in a team environment and I’m looking forward to future workshops.”
Ayda Kedirkhan, Fall 2020
arrow_drop_down_circle Ayda Kedirkhan
“I was born a designer. I grew up co-designing solutions to many of my family’s struggles. I am an immigrant, a woman, an older sister, dark-skinned, and so much more. My identities have helped me learn to create with intersectionality and accessibility in mind. I love that UX design is interdisciplinary and advocates for the user.”
Anh Lam, Spring 2020
arrow_drop_down_circle Anh Lam
“My goal in applying to the GID Award was so I could learn creative problem solving and apply it to developing innovative solutions to help both locally and globally.”
Mailyn Abon, Spring 2020
arrow_drop_down_circle Mailyn Abon
“I applied to the GID Award because it seemed like a good opportunity to explore design thinking while gaining the hands-on experience I’ve been needing to help get my foot in the door of User Experience.”
Abdul Abubakar, Winter and Spring 2020
arrow_drop_down_circle Abdul Abubakar
“What I love the most about the GID Lab is that it provides me with an opportunity to showcase and refine my creative ability while working on meaningful projects.”
Lan Allison, Fall 2019 and Winter 2020
arrow_drop_down_circle Lan Allison
“This has been an amazing opportunity to get first-hand, real-world experience in the field of global learning and design thinking. I am thankful to have gained new skills and knowledge of the work that can be accomplished in the GID Lab.”
Christopher Sim, Fall 2019, Winter and Spring 2020
arrow_drop_down_circle Christopher Sim
“The GID Lab provides me an opportunity to leverage the design thinking process to empower local organizations to solve problems — like affordable housing — that affect our community.”
