Improving the campus experience at the University of Toronto through student-led design
The Innovation Hub welcomes a wonderful group of students into our team each term. We’re beginning this summer term with a skilled group of changemakers comprised of both work-study students and Team Leads.
Written by Arshdeep Kang, Communications & Operations Lead, Bachelor of Design
Over the past year, the Innovation Hub worked in partnership with the Family Care Office to develop a mini-site for staff and faculty at the university to support student parents. In this blog, the Innovation Hub’s UI/UX team reflects upon learnings from working on the year-long mini-site project, emphasizing the ways their culture of collaboration have shaped the trajectory of the project.
Written by the UI/UX Team
This year, the Innovation Hub continued our partnership with the Faculty of Arts and Science by facilitating student consultations to learn more about the needs and experiences of students in academic programs. In this blog, the team reflects on learnings from their research and the impact the work can have on the university.
Written by the Innovation Hub UTQAP Team
Over the past year, the Innovation Hub partnered with Accessibility Services to gain a deeper understanding of how students with disabilities can fully engage in and feel supported in all aspects of campus life. In this blog, the design research team reflects on how they felt about listening to the voices of students with disabilities, and the impact the listening has on creating change.
Written by the Engagement and Belonging for Students with Disabilities Team
This year, the Innovation Hub partnered with the Centre for Community Partnerships to host a series of design thinking workshops for Alternative Reading Week (ARW) 2025. In this post, Amelia and ARW facilitators, Ruth and Lidiia, reflect on the power of learning through play.
Written by Amelia Di Meo, Research Coordinator, Master of Health Science, Translational Research
Personas are powerful storytelling modes that can inspire us to learn and empathize. In May, the Innovation Hub has launched a new Personas section on our website. We honour the launch of Personas with this blog post, where Ajeetha and Amelia reflect on why human-centered storytelling is so impactful.
Written by Ajeetha Vithiyananthan, Blog Editor & Digital Content Writer, Bachelor of Science, Psychology and Sociology and Amelia Di Meo, Research Coordinator, Master of Health Science, Translational Research
This year, a design research team at the Innovation Hub worked with the School of the Environment to explore how equity, diversity, inclusion, and access (EDIA) is embedded in curriculum, programming, communications, hiring, events, spaces, processes, and culture, and to understand where gaps exist. In this blog, the team reflects on this work and how design thinking helped them to identify tangible steps for how the School can champion EDIA and enhance student experiences.
Written by the EDIA at the School of the Environment Team
Over the past year, the Graphic Design team at the Innovation Hub has brought student stories to life through visual design. In this blog, the team discusses collaborative strategies they used to enhance their creativity, reflecting on their shared achievements and growth.
Written by the Graphic Design Team
In this blog post, the Qualitative Data Archivist (QDA) Team reflects on how they experienced human moments in their work, despite not interacting directly with study participants. The team discusses how relating to their work kept them motivated, the importance of making participants feel safe to be vulnerable, and how being a part of the team has helped them develop skills needed for their future careers.
Written by the Qualitative Data Archivist Team
Design thinking can become so much more than just research practice. It can evolve into a powerful problem-solving approach within a profession, and finally, a mindset. In this blog, our outgoing Research Lead, Lidiia, shares her learnings from the last four years as an employee at the Innovation Hub.
Written by Lidiia Tulenkova, Research Lead, Honours Bachelor of Arts, Sociocultural Anthropology, Material Culture & Art History