Social Issue Briefs
Founding Member
Information / Service Design
creating brief research papers that describe complex issues + potential solutions
to all audiences
Background
Law reviews and business periodicals have been standard for years, but newer fields like social innovation haven’t had a similar resource. Until we set out to make one. Luckily, BYU houses the largest university-run social innovation center in the world. Myself and other interested individuals from the Ballard Center formed the pioneering team.
Immediately, we were presented with a challenge.
How do you create a database that is simultaneously rigorous and accessible?
Solution
A research brief that uses a strategic structure and a specific, approachable voice.
Process
We brainstormed which elements would be simple, thorough, and flexible enough to become a highly-trusted academic source that could ALSO be read by audiences like middle-school aged children.
To prototype these elements and the brief
forming process, each of us selected a topic
and began writing a brief.
Key Elements
Contributing Factors
Consequences
Practices
Description
Impact
Gaps
My topic was inspired by prior travels to India and my fierce belief that lifting up women accelerates progress across the board. The previous summer I had traveled to India with a humanitarian group where we partnered with a local non-profit to build self-sustaining latrines, provide english lessons, create a fundraising campaign, and offer togetherness at a leper colony.
Process
I poured myself into research—filtering through complex, international sources—simultaneously parsing interconnected factors as well as connecting the dots. We met as a team regularly to share our learnings of the process.
To ensure execution of an accessible voice, we paired up as editing partners.
Result
With final briefs in hand, the website was structured and published. Since then, thousands have accessed our briefs and students continue to contribute—growing their social analysis skills.
Lessons
01 • Personas are powerful
Designing for an individual (who shares characteristics with your target segment) creates a tailored focus and additional motivation—for an overall better product.
02 • Collaboration = synergy
Effective communication is key to true collaboration. When that communication is present, the sum of the whole really can be > than its individual parts. Diverse perspectives surfaced important features, key to our success.
Date:
Type:
Skills
Conceptual Design
Qualitative Research
Versioning
Depth