Designing for
Social Good
Snapchat AR Scholars & Hope for Haiti design + research project
University of Oregon 2023-2024
The project aims to increase awareness and drive donations for Hope for Haiti, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing economic, social, and humanitarian relief in Haiti. By leveraging AR technology, the project seeks to make the distant struggles of Haitians feel more immediate and relevant to users in the United States, encouraging empathy and action.
“I really enjoyed the process of strategizing a thing that would be created with augmented reality,” Darby said. “It was really exciting to me that we’re actually making something right away and learning to use these tools.”
Led creative and experience strategy and storyboards for AR designs.
Contributed to an AR experience that effectively raised awareness and support for Haitian communities.
Partnered with technical team members to ensure design viability in AR applications.
Nominated at AWE for Best Societal Impact.
My contribution
Strategy & Storyboards
My role primarily focused on developing the creative strategy and creating detailed storyboards and user journeys for the AR experience. My contributions were critical in shaping the narrative and visual aspects of the AR lens called "Hope for Haiti AR," which was designed to enhance the connection between participants and the Haitian people.
Led creative strategy, storyboards for AR designs.
Worked with our developer Luke Walker to translate the experience from idea to AR prototype.
Project documentation.
Development
The AR experience, developed using Snapchat’s Lens Studio, involves a virtual journey through a Haitian schoolhouse. Participants interact with various elements within this environment, gaining virtual beads on a bracelet with each interaction, symbolizing their learning journey about Haiti’s challenges.
Team Composition
The project is spearheaded by Professor Dr. Pimentel and cohort of graduate students from SOJC’s new Immersive Media Communication Master’s program. Students from various disciplines, including those with expertise in strategic communi
Methodology
Students began by consulting with Hope for Haiti to understand the key messages and stories they wanted to convey. The design team then crafted a compelling AR narrative that was iteratively refined through feedback from both their peers and an associated research team. This team also conducted pre- and post-experience surveys to measure changes in participants' perceptions and the effectiveness of the AR experience in fostering empathy.
Outcomes
The project culminated in a virtual AR experience that successfully shortened participants' perceived distance to Haiti, making the issues faced by Haitians more tangible and emotionally impactful. The AR experience is set to be showcased at the Meaningful XR Conference, and Augmented World Expo (AWE) in 2024.
Hike for Haiti Lens Creation
To support Hope for Haiti’s May fundraising event, I created the AR Snapchat Lens Hike for Haiti. This filter creates an experience to empathize with the children of Haiti’s daily trek to school.
Concept & development.
AR lens creation in Snapchat Lens Studio.
Premiered the Lens at UO Portland Industry Night.