My research focuses on how people build communities of belonging and representation on online platforms and spaces. I am particularly interested in youth digital rights and advocating for a more inclusive digital environment rooted in systemic design. I am always excited to meet others also interested in digital rights, community building, and participatory design.

Current Work

I work as an HCI researcher in Professor Johanna Brewer’s Inclusive Design Lab. Within the lab, I explore the socio-cultural interactions and perceptions of moderation on Twitch about youth. How do Twitch's cognitive structure and communal characteristics provide solace in building community and acting as catalysts for social justice and self-expression? How do moderation restrictions limit the platform’s affordances, extent of availability for representation, and creation of inclusive design interventions?

Based on my student research exploring how people build communities of representation on online platforms, I am interested in creating a virtual maker space for youth. The space will serve as an interactive platform for youth to learn about digital citizenship and rights through games, resources, and educational content. By adopting a maker space format, the goal is to empower youth as co-designers and makers in leading change efforts for a better internet.

My other studies of interest include:

Socio-dynamics in a techno-solutionist society

I am interested in the political and socio-economic dynamics of living in a techno-solutionist society. The paradoxical use of technology to fix the same social problems that were created in the first place by technology exacerbates existing inequalities, particularly for marginalized communities. Instead, how can we look more holistically at technology by focusing our attention on improving existing innovations through systemic change?

Digital education and forms of cultural storytelling

Through cultural storytelling and participatory design, I believe conversations about incorporating technology or boosting digital literacy in communities should be guided by a collective effort of the people to challenge widely accepted norms and practices and re-rooting them in cultural contexts.