00:00the greatest impact is often not just about dollars and cents a product or
00:04publication but it is empowering people to learn new approaches that they
00:10previously did not think of did not was not trained in and then they can become
00:15change makers themselves and this is when I thought this is exactly why I do
00:28this hi I'm Agnes I'm a designer working in the intersection of healthcare
00:33technology education and human experience my journey began in industrial
00:38design but since my final year in my bachelor studies I've decided to focus
00:43only on industrial design for healthcare because it presents some of the most
00:47complex and yet meaningful challenges facing society so the core problem I
00:53have dedicated myself to addressing is how may we create systems technologies and
00:59services that genuinely improve human well-being while preserving dignity
01:04independence and purpose so no matter which stakeholder comes along my way my
01:10goal is to ensure that innovation serves people rather than expecting people to
01:15adapt to innovation
01:22so one of the most meaningful moments was seeing students my clinicians that I
01:29work with industry partners come together around a healthcare challenge and
01:33realizing that they have been thinking differently because of the experience
01:38and then sometime later some of those individuals continued collaborating on their
01:44own you know on new projects creating solutions and opportunities now using
01:50design lab approaches which I've shared with them before and then it can extend far
01:55beyond the original initiative so in that moment then I realized that the
02:00greatest impact is often not just about dollars and cents a product or
02:04publication but it is empowering people to learn new approaches that they
02:10previously did not think of did not was not trained in and then they can become
02:15change makers themselves and this is when I thought this is exactly why I do this
02:26leadership is about creating conditions where diverse expertise can come
02:30together solve problems that no single individual could solve alone so trained as a
02:36designer I often act as a translator between disciplines and my role really is to
02:41help each group understand the shared perspectives of each other the values and
02:48aligning everyone around a common purpose and when people feel heard respected and
02:56connected to a common mission that's where collaboration becomes
03:00significantly more effective and equally important is creating psychological safety
03:06team members should feel comfortable in raising concerns challenging assumptions and
03:12sharing new ideas they must feel that they are articulating in a very safe space
03:18and innovation then tries when people feel trusted
03:27I believe one of the most critical challenges is ensuring equitable access to health and
03:32well-being across increasingly diverse populations so health care is no longer
03:37just treating illnesses or acute conditions but it is about enabling people to live
03:43meaningful productive and fulfilling lives throughout their longer lifespans and we must address the
03:49growing gap between medical advances and people's ability to understand them to
03:55assess them and benefit from them and this requires us to think beyond hospitals and
04:00clinics health is influenced by communities workplaces education social support mobility
04:08technology and even economic opportunity so the future of health will depend on our
04:14ability to build integrated ecosystems rather than isolated solutions
04:25One turning point came from working closely with health care professionals and patients during a
04:32rehabilitation project where I observed that many interventions they may be technically sound
04:37and even clinically validated but yet the adoption remains poor
04:42The problem lies with not understanding the lived experience of the patients and nothing
04:48really about the technology itself but we really need to fully understand the daily realities of the people
04:54that we are trying to design for and that we are trying to help so that realization changed how I
05:01approach innovation
05:02So instead of asking what can we build I began asking what makes sense for the people that are living
05:08this experience
05:09and that shift continues to shape my work today
05:14One recurring challenge has been bringing together people from vastly different disciplines
05:20Designers, engineers, clinicians, researchers, policy makers and even business people
05:27They all speak different professional languages and then they operate under different priorities
05:34So what one group considers as successful may look entirely different to another
05:39So I had assumed that good ideas would naturally bring people together
05:44But I learned that alignment actually requires deliberate effort
05:48So instead of focusing solely on solutions, I invested time in building shared understanding
05:54So when people spend time listening to each other, co-creating and identifying common goals
06:01This was where there could be potential breakthrough
06:05And collaboration is not a by-product of innovation but it is the foundation of innovation
06:17I do not think of balance as a perfect equilibrium
06:20So different seasons of life then require different priorities
06:24So my family keeps me grounded, they provide perspective and remind me that achievement is meaningful only
06:30when it is connected to relationships and purpose
06:33And I've also learned that rest is not the opposite of productivity
06:37So reflection, family time, faith, personal interests
06:41These are all essential for sustaining creativity and resilience over long periods of time
06:52So I often say that innovation requires both hardware and heart-ware
06:58It's because hardware gives us the capability but the heart-ware gives us meaning
07:06So hardware is where things like empathy, trust, ethics, culture, relationships and understandings forms all of it
07:16And these are the invisible types of factors that determine whether people will embrace the solution or reject it
07:24And the future will not belong to those who simply build the most advanced technologies
07:29But it will belong to those who care how to integrate this technology excellence with human wisdom
07:41So first accept that meaningful change is rarely linear
07:45So it will be a whiny navigating path
07:49Many a times there will be setbacks, resistance
07:53And moments where the progress feels a bit stuck here and there
07:57So this is normal
07:58So second, stay connected to the people that you serve
08:01Impact becomes much clearer when you always remember who benefits at the end of the day from the work that
08:08you're doing
08:08And third, be comfortable holding back conviction and humility
08:12You have enough conviction to pursue your vision
08:16But also have enough humility to adapt when new information comes along
08:21And finally, remember that change is often slower than we hoped
08:25But more powerful than we imagined
08:28So persistence really matters
08:32Start small, but start
08:33Many people believe that they need a grand vision before taking action
08:38But in reality, change often begins with curiosity and compassion
08:42So just pay attention to a problem that genuinely bothers you
08:46Listen carefully to the people experiencing it
08:49Learn continuously
08:51Then take one practical step towards improvement
08:54And remember that you do not need to change the entire world overnight
08:58If you can improve just one person's experience, one community or one system
09:03You have already begun the journey of a change maker
09:11I wrote down the word empathy
09:13Because empathy is where meaningful change begins
09:17Empathy allows us to see beyond our own assumptions
09:20Understand the experiences of others
09:22And design solutions that truly matter
09:24Technology may accelerate change
09:27Knowledge may guide change
09:28But empathy ensures that change serves humanity
09:33What can be possible for you
09:35It's all about creating zarings
09:35It's all about how many people of the world
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