Previous Design Efforts
Using behavioral design and innovation, the Chroma Collective seeks to build tangible solutions to persistent gender mainstreaming challenges. In Chroma’s first two years, the Collective completed three design sprints, which resulted in prototypes that were tested out in the real world.
Design sprints are a process of collaborating with end users to move through the research, ideation, prototype, and testing phases at a rapid pace. The examples below show what happens in each stage of a sprint, and how the experience often feels for designers and collaborators alike.
Each prototype was designed with Chroma Collective members and representatives from the Catalyst Network to improve gender mainstreaming at key leverage points within or across the development sector.
Learn more about the three design sprints, including: November 2021, April 2022, & September 2022.
And check out the first two prototypes - the Gender+ Puzzle & GM-on-the-Go below!
Gender+ Puzzle Prototype
A playful tool to design more gender inclusive programs.
The Gender+ Puzzle emerged as a solution to proactively integrate gender plus intersectionality across multiple levels of a development program. The tool helps program teams visualize the multiple and overlapping identities of those in their target population, and helps them understand how the intersection of these identities cumulatively affects how people access and are impacted by their program interventions. Taking intersectionality into account better ensures that programs meet the unique needs of everyone they serve and that they don’t leave anyone behind in global development.
GM-on-the-Go Prototype
An Instagram-based learning community for gender in development.
GM-on-the-Go is meant to be a platform for cross-institutional learning and cross-pollination, used initially by Chroma Collective members and eventually by their networks and broader institutions. Through video, Instagram stories, polls, and posts, users are able to introduce key gender mainstreaming concepts, highlight facts, promising practices, and advice, quiz the community to inspire learning, dive deeper via links to external resources, and engage with and support other peers through the like, share, and comment functionality. Featured content includes: human stories, bite-sized learning moments, best practice tools & resources, impact tracking, and a culture of care.