Students will launch the Fanous lantern design challenge by engaging with real stories about Arab heritage celebrations, conducting firsthand interviews with community members, and creating an evidence-based empathy map that captures authentic user needs related to the symbolism of light.

Students will synthesize their fanous interview research into patterns, define a clear user-centered problem statement grounded in evidence, and craft a focused How Might We question that will guide lantern ideation in the next phase.

Students will generate a wide range of culturally grounded lantern concepts inspired by user interviews and their How Might We statements, then narrow to the strongest ideas using user-need criteria before creating detailed concept sketches that will guide prototyping.

Students will build and test low- and medium-fidelity fanous lantern prototypes grounded in their user interviews, document feedback from real users, and revise their designs based on evidence before constructing a stronger version for exhibition.

Students will conduct a final validation test of their paper lantern installations with new users, refine their docent narratives based on feedback, and present their full design journey—from interviews to iterations—during a Lantern Festival Evening for families and community members.