Human-Centred Design Lab

International interns contribute to AC research project for at-risk youth

Two international youth are interning at the Algonquin College Ottawa Campus through the Fall 2025 Term. Te-Jung Tsai and Tzu-Ming Lin are part of the Taiwanese Ministry of Education’s Taiwan Global Pathfinders Initiative, which encourages Taiwanese youth to work abroad, exchange ideas and build cross-cultural connections with the international community.

Five people pose in front of a red conference banner

(L-R): Te-Jung Tsai, Tzu-Ming Lin, Maria Montano (full-time research associate), Jed Looker, Danny Nhu (full-time research associate, TASTE team lead)

While at the College, Tsai and Lin are interning at the Human-Centred Design Lab under Principal Investigator Jed Looker, working on a community-based research project to address the challenge faced by Ottawa youth not in employment, education or training (NEET). In collaboration with Kevin Holmes in the Social Innovation Lab, the two-year project, titled Supporting Vulnerable Youth: A Transdisciplinary Approach to Service Transformation in NEET (TASTE), is funded by the Embark Student Foundation Grant in partnership with the Rideau-Rockcliffe Community Research Centre and aims to build pathways to post-secondary education by identifying the challenges faced by at-risk youth. Continue reading →

CICan National Skills for Success Hackathon focuses on collaboration, innovation

A group of smiling students giving thumbs up and peace signs.

Hackathon participants gather in the Human-Centred Design Lab at the Ottawa Campus.

Algonquin College students and alumni recently participated in the Colleges & Institutes Canada (CICan) National Skills for Success Student Hackathon, where multi-disciplinary teams collaborated to develop innovative solutions for a collective challenge. Held over March 22-23, 2025, the event brought together students and recent graduates from 16 post-secondary institutions across Canada to learn about the Skills for Success (SFS) Program, a Government of Canada initiative which provides training, resources and funding for Canadians to develop workplace skills to advance their careers. Students then explored design solutions for the SFS Online Tool – an interactive assessment which helps job seekers identify resume gaps, industry trends and upskilling opportunities at CICan member institutions.

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Algonquin College student wins international World Design Organization competition

An Algonquin College learner has won an international competition hosted by World Design Organization (WDO), earning admission to the 34th World Design Congress in London, UK. Laura Avila, a Level 02 student in the Interdisciplinary Studies in Human-Centred Design program, partnered with three other students in North Macedonia, the United States and India to compete in the WDO design sprint under the theme Heritage in Motion: Defining the Future by Design.

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