Technology for Social Good
This research explores how diversity within design teams strengthens and leads to innovative inclusive technologies that better reflect and serve a diverse society.
A program of community-based research innovation, the INSPIRE program operates within a rich ecosystem of academic and industry partners.
INSPIRE is a five-year program that engages multidisciplinary student teams at the University of Victoria, Kathmandu in Nepal and students from Singapore Management University, applying design-thinking methodologies to solve real-world challenges identified by partnering communities. Each project uses an experiential learning model that combines an intensive curriculum covering software development, sustainability, project management, and stakeholder engagement with an agile, iterative process of problem exploration, prototype design and evaluation, and ultimately the implementation of solutions in the community. Projects run from four months to two years.
Throughout the process, project members are mentored by industry experts, develop a working relationship with a community partner. They experience authentic software development conditions, including navigating ambiguous problem contexts and managing complex stakeholder relationships. The program website is a rich resource of project details, our partner ecosystem, yearly program reports, insightful conference presentations, and student testimonials.
Active Projects
INSPIRE: STEM for Social Impact
A five-year program engaging multidisciplinary student teams at the University of Victoria, Kathmandu in Nepal, and Singapore Management University, applying design-thinking methodologies to solve real-world challenges identified by partnering communities.