Identity. Dignity. Belonging. Care.
Over the past few weeks, five interdisciplinary student teams from Humber tackled a challenge at the heart of human-centred care: How do we reimagine personal care experiences to enhance dignity, independence, and well-being for seniors?
As part of the Flourish Hackathon, each team presented concepts rooted in autonomy, connection, and meaningful experience for seniors. After deliberation by our judges - Kelisha Be, Laurie Bradford, and Vanita Varma - three top teams were recognized for their innovative thinking and well-designed development and implementation plan.
Roots and Recipes - An intergenerational program where students document residents' personal recipes and life stories to create a shared cookbook that preserves cultural heritage in both print and digital formats. Student Team Members: Hani I., Carlos A., Idil M., and Crystal K.
Life Lens - A program that uses a short family questionnaire and simple AI-generated prompts to guide brief daily conversations and weekly storytelling circles that help seniors feel connected, engaged, and less alone. Student Team Members: Jemima A., Masako K., Ashdeep S., Nadia I., Gurmat S., Hamida S.
The Flourish Media Network- A "Media Circle" program that brings residents together each week for creative conversations, shared stories, and meaningful connections that provides a turnkey “Podcast‑in‑a‑Box” kit so seniors can record meaningful, professional-quality audio that honours their voices and strengthens connections with loved ones. Student Team Members: Ana Q., Katherine M., Karina E., Khushi M., and Olena R.
Each team brought new and innovative ideas to support seniors to age with care and dignity. Through this challenge, students built employability skills in systems thinking, collaboration, and innovation. The student competitors didn't just develop innovative concepts; they also gained a deeper understanding of person-centred care.
Thank you to Enactus for collaborating with us and to our judges for their time and expertise. Most importantly, congratulations to all our student competitors!
