Human-Centered Design (HCD) 

This presentation walks through the fundamentals of Human-Centered Design (HCD) using a structured six-step activity based on IDEO.org’s Field Guide. It introduces HCD as a creative, empathy-driven approach to problem-solving and required me to engage with readings, videos, and ethical citation practices while integrating the work into a professional portfolio. I reflected on past team projects to define HCD as a process that begins with empathy and ends with impact, and I reviewed the case study of allcove, a youth-centered mental health initiative that exemplifies co-design, equity, and stigma-free support by involving teens in every phase of the design. I also explored how HCD can be applied to products, services, spaces, and systems, using “How might we…” questions to frame design challenges creatively.

The presentation further breaks down the three phases of the design process—Inspiration, which involves immersing in people’s lives; Ideation, which focuses on generating and testing ideas; and Implementation, which refines and launches solutions. I summarized seven mindset videos that highlight qualities such as empathy, optimism, and iteration, showing how these shape the way designers think and act. Finally, I synthesized readings on design thinking for social innovation to explain why HCD is valuable to both businesses and nonprofits, using examples like InnoCentive and VisionSpring to demonstrate how human-centered approaches lead to scalable, real-world impact.