Students will engage directly with Sofia from UNCI Intertribal and peers to gather firsthand stories of Indigenous joy and pride, conduct structured interviews, and create evidence-based empathy maps grounded in real quotes. These artifacts will serve as the foundation for defining a meaningful design challenge in the next phase.

Students will synthesize interview research from Sofia and peers into clear themes, develop empathy artifacts, and craft evidence-based How Might We statements that define a focused design challenge centered on expressing Indigenous joy and pride.

Students will generate a wide range of creative concepts for an Interactive Mural & Podcast Installation that expresses Indigenous joy and pride, grounding every idea in real user insights from Sofia and community interviews. They will move from divergent brainstorming to evidence-based selection, producing annotated concept sketches that directly connect design choices to documented user needs.

Students will build and refine testable versions of their Interactive Mural & Podcast Installation by creating low-fidelity prototypes, gathering real feedback from Sofia and peers, and iterating toward a stronger, user-informed digital experience that clearly communicates Indigenous joy and pride.

Students will conduct a final validation round of their Interactive Mural & Podcast Installation with Sofia from UNCI Intertribal and new users, then present their complete design story—tracing research, problem definition, ideation, prototyping, and iteration—during a live stakeholder showcase.