Zhenwen Zhang

I submitted this project because I wanted to bring attention to a topic that often lives in the margins of digital design — accessibility education. Many organizations want to “design for all,” but very few have a platform to truly learn, test, and practice inclusive UX in an interactive way. Winning the Vega Digital Awards is deeply meaningful to me. Personally, it validates years of belief that accessibility isn’t just a compliance checklist — it’s a mindset, a design philosophy. Professionally, it affirms that the design industry is ready to recognize tools that not only look good but also teach empathy and make inclusion measurable. It’s both humbling and motivating.

The idea for the Accessibility Learning & Testing Hub came from my experience observing how difficult it is for teams to experience accessibility challenges firsthand. Designers and developers often rely on guidelines, but empathy is hard to learn from text. I wanted to create an immersive platform that simulates real accessibility scenarios — allowing teams to test their digital products through different lenses: visual, auditory, and motor conditions. The hub combines education, testing, and analytics into one ecosystem.

What set this project apart was its fusion of empathy, interactivity, and practicality. Instead of another resource library, the Hub allows users to feel accessibility barriers — like how a color-blind user sees a website, or how someone with reduced mobility navigates forms. Technically, it stood out because it doesn’t just simulate — it measures. The platform provides actionable feedback, enabling teams to benchmark their accessibility progress over time. Strategically, we framed accessibility not as a limitation but as an innovation driver. That positive reframing resonated with both designers and decision-makers.

The biggest challenge was balancing technical accuracy with emotional storytelling. Accessibility testing often becomes too technical, which can distance users from its human purpose. We wanted the tool to be precise but also emotionally engaging. To overcome this, I worked closely with people who live with different disabilities. Their insights shaped every aspect of the experience — from how we designed the simulation interface to how we phrased educational content. Their feedback ensured that the platform remained authentic, respectful, and impactful.

Winning the Vega Digital Awards gives credibility to an often-overlooked area of design. It opens doors to meaningful collaborations — especially with educational institutions and large organizations trying to strengthen their accessibility culture.

The most memorable reactions came from people who tested the Hub and said, “I never realized how much I was taking for granted.” Those words alone justified all the effort. Seeing the platform spark genuine empathy — not guilt, but understanding — has been the most rewarding part.

My advice: start with purpose, not polish. Awards recognize originality and impact, not decoration. Choose a topic that genuinely matters to you, one that solves a real human problem. When documenting your project, tell its story. Explain the problem, the emotion, the learning — not just the result. Great entries move juries because they carry authenticity. And finally, don’t design for applause. Design because you believe the work deserves to exist — the recognition will follow naturally.

We’re entering an era where digital experiences are becoming deeply multisensory and adaptive. As AI and spatial computing evolve, designers have a unique opportunity to make inclusivity the foundation, not the feature. I see myself continuing to build at the intersection of UX design, education, and accessibility innovation — creating tools that teach empathy through experience. My hope is to influence the next generation of designers to see accessibility as the soul of good design, not the side note.

I’d say — start before you feel ready. Awards aren’t only about recognition; they’re about reflection. Writing your entry forces you to articulate your process and purpose — that alone makes you a stronger designer. You don’t need a big budget or fancy visuals. You need honesty, passion, and a clear “why.” Even if you don’t win the first time, you’ll gain perspective on how to improve your storytelling and strategy for next time.

Collaborate across disciplines. Accessibility, AI, design, and storytelling shouldn’t live in silos. True innovation happens when empathy meets engineering — when different minds build for the same human goal. Let’s stop thinking about “users” and start thinking about people — with all their diversity, limitations, and brilliance.

Absolutely. I’d like to dedicate this award to the accessibility advocates and testers with lived experience who guided this project with honesty and patience. They taught me what inclusive design really means — that it’s not about sympathy, it’s about respect. And to my collaborator Ye He, a talented developer and designer, whose technical expertise brought empathy to life. Her dedication turned abstract ideas into functional, human experiences.

A platform that transforms accessibility from a checklist into an experience — helping teams learn inclusion not by reading, but by feeling.

The next step is expanding the Accessibility Learning & Testing Hub into a collaborative education platform for global UX and development teams. We’re working on modules that integrate real-time analytics, AR simulations, and gamified learning — making accessibility education engaging and scalable.