Leadership Experience Reflection
Movement, this fascinating word that encapsulates the history of humankind: we grow, evolve and experience through the exercise of moving our body, ideas, or preconceptions.
Movement denotes change, an opportunity to utilize personal agency to reframe our outlook on life. This concept is what led me to build the thesis project for my undergraduate major in design: EntreTejidas (Interwoven).
Carrying the strong intention of utilizing design as a framework to incentivize social change in local communities, I led the creation of EntreTejidas (Interwoven), a series of collaborative textile pieces that showcase the exploration of identity in migrant communities of young women in Colombia. Leading this project taught me the importance of directing with empathy, recognizing my boundaries and limitations, being an attentive listener and potentializing my impact by asking for help.
“At the end of the day, this community of women taught me far more about life, sorority, and resilience: teaching is, certainly, the art of constant learning.”
What I didn’t realize when I started conducting my research for the project is that the concept of movement itself, paved the direction towards the adequate community to develop the idea. At the beginning of the semester, I did a road trip to visit my grandmothers in their hometown. As I immersed myself in the majestic green landscapes, I couldn’t help but think of the communities that resided in the rural homes of each town I passed by.
Moodboard “Narrating with their Hands”
“The fulfillment that comes from immersing in the complexity and magic of other’s stories enabled me to identify every girl’s superpower: their abilities, learning opportunities and how I could potentialize their stories by incentivizing their creativity.”
This is how I encountered the Home of Women in Santa Rosa, a temporary home for young girls who were forced to migrate due to the presence of illegal armed groups. When I did my first visit to the home, I felt moved by their vulnerability and resilience, always welcoming and willing to see this challenging time with gratitude. How immensely humbling it is to hear their stories and every confronting situation they have overcome at such a young age. As I engaged in their context, I gained insight into the importance of being attentive and recognizing everyone’s uniqueness. Nowadays, we are constantly bombarded with information, which can be as valuable as it can be distracting. But certainly, the fulfillment that comes from immersing in the complexity and magic of other’s stories enabled me to identify every girl’s superpower: their abilities, learning opportunities and how I could potentialize their stories by incentivizing their creativity.
The process of community research involved a weekly five-hour trip to visit the girls. Because of this, Interwoven became an opportunity to introduce the project to talented women that were eager to be involved. I remember Laura, an anthropologist and great friend (pictured top left) who decided to join for one of the field trips. Her observations as a student of human behavior solidified the insights I found with the design tools. Similarly, studying the dynamics between the girls in the community and realizing the acts of kindness they would do to support each other when they find themselves struggling reaffirmed the value of having a network of support. This became a particularly relevant lesson when I sprained my ankle halfway into the thesis project and had to, suddenly, stop the investigation process to get surgery. As I confronted this challenge, the amount of people that reached out to help in the process engrained in me the significance of recognizing my limits and the power of being vulnerable. As difficult as it was to continue the project on my own, this experience turned into an opportunity to synergize talents and allowed for exponential growth in the project’s results.
My Network of Support: Memorabilia as I reframed movement
Final Thoughts
Looking back at the experience of developing my thesis project, I understand that the recognition of human agency brought together the concept developed. As other colleagues decided to approach it in a more technical manner with materials or digital software, I chose to outstand the humanity of every stage in the design process.
“I believe this ability to develop rich human-centered design project is what has made me into a good collaborator and creative manager. Looking forward into my business practice, I will bring this people-first mindset, empathy and eagerness to listen in the research process to develop disruptive ideas that communicate authentic value for its potential consumers”