What is the name of your solution?
MAKE IT LOUD Art Care Service Platform
Provide a one-line summary of your solution.
MAKE IT LOUD connects LGBTQ+ seniors in New York with society and with themselves through creative storytelling.
Film your elevator pitch.
What specific problem are you solving?
There are currently around 3 million LGBT+ adults over age 50 in the United States of America. That number is expected to grow to around 7 million by 2030. Of the estimated 800,000 LGBTQ+ adults in New York State, nearly one-third (28%) are over the age of 50. LGBT+ older people face unique challenges as they age:
LGBTQ+ elders are 2 times more likely to be single and live alone.
LGBTQ+ elders are 4 times less likely to have children.
They are more likely to suffer from poorer physical and mental health due to loneliness, separation, isolation, and inability to express their identity and emotions.
34% of LGBTQ+ older people worry about having to hide their identity in order to access senior housing while 59% of LGBTQ+ older people report feeling a lack of companionship and 53% report feeling isolated from others
Fear of discrimination can lead LGBTQ+ older people to delay seeking needed care and can lead to premature institutionalization in nursing homes and long-term care facilities due to fear of hostile in-home care providers. LGBTQ+ older people also experience significant health disparities that include reduced access to health care, mental health concerns, and chronic physical conditions.
We want to change this.
We want to improve the life quality and satisfaction of LGBTQ+ seniors above 50 living in the New York Metropolitan area.
They need to be seen, heard, understood, and appreciated.
They need to connect with society as well as with themselves.
What is your solution?
MAKE IT LOUD is a not-for-profit organization that targets improving care quality and well-being for LGBTQ+ seniors as well as enhancing work satisfaction and mutual understanding of their caregivers.
We are a third-party platform that provides the following resources for caregivers and receivers:
A safe and non-discriminatory mindset
Workshop guidelines and manuals
Art supplies & technological devices
Online gallery and contact channels
Both caregivers and receivers can choose to participate in the following programs:
Art
Music
Creative collage
Pottery
Through art creation, the elders are able to document their internal thoughts and feelings that are usually hidden or ignored. They can also increase their self-perception and self-image through artistic expression. The storytelling activities enhance personal value, cultivate community interaction, and eventually promote social awareness.
The artwork done by the elders will be displayed in our online gallery; the web platform will provide contact information for people to connect with elders as well as involvement options for the public to participate in or donate to the initiative.
Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?
We want to serve
The care receivers - the LGBTQ+ seniors, who are prone to low care service quality, discrimination, and loneliness
The caregivers, who are prone to emotional burnout, low satisfaction, and psychological discrimination
Through these artistic mediums, we want the LGBTQ+ seniors to be able to
Create a concretized, creative artwork based on their life stories to tell the society
Establish a more positive, internalized psychological narrative within themselves
Through these artistic processes, we want the caregivers to be able to
Better understand care receivers’ identity and background
Better engage in the caregiving process and improve work satisfaction
Thus, our goals are to
Help LGBTQ+ seniors to externalize and express their inner journey through artwork creation
Help LGBTQ+ seniors to internalize positive and constructive self-image and self-compassionate identity
Improve LGBTQ+ seniors’ mental health and subsequently, their physical well-being
Enhance the community engagement through hands-on interaction between LGBTQ+ seniors groups and the caregivers
Raise social awareness for the usually marginalized LGBTQ+ seniors group
Encourage more social participation and responsibility for the LGBTQ+ aging group
How are you and your team well-positioned to deliver this solution?
- Care is always our passion & motivation.
Our team members all come from the Strategic Design & Management program at Parsons School of Design, which puts human-centered experience & values first in today’s complicated business and social environment.
Our community on campus and in New York City also actively and enthusiastically engages in gender equality initiatives and LGBTQ+ awareness movements.
We are planning to reach out and get in touch with LGBTQ+ seniors in New York City. We’d like to interview and participate in their daily life to experience what they see, hear, and feel on a daily basis with permission.
Which dimension of the Challenge does your solution most closely address?
Enabling new models for childcare or eldercare that improve affordability, convenience, or community trust.
Where our solution team is headquartered or located:
New York, NY, USAOur solution's stage of development:
PrototypeWhy are you applying to Solve?
We are applying to Solve because we want to receive help and inspiration for the following areas in which we are encountering barriers:
Financial: we want to learn more about not-for-profit fundraising methods and channels, especially those for gender and LGBTQ+ topics
Cultural: we want to know more about how to reach out and get in touch with the LGBTQ+ seniors' groups and also the caregiver communities
Market: we want to receive guidance in terms of strategy and development for us as a not-for-profit organization
- Evaluation: we want to understand how we can collect useful information and data with permission from our participants or stakeholders to better improve and navigate our strategic development
In which of the following areas do you most need partners or support?
Business model (e.g. product-market fit, strategy & development)
Who is the Team Lead for your solution?
Ines Wu
What makes your solution innovative?
Our solution aims at enabling broader positive impacts through connections between LGBTQ+ seniors, their caregivers, and society. The creative and artistic elements make our solution stand out because of the power of art to rethink norms, challenge conventions, break boundaries, and elicit emotions and sympathy – all important factors for improving gender equality and eliminating the stigma around the LGBTQ+ senior community. The abstract nature of artworks also warrants psychological privacy and security for the participants.
Target group: the LGBTQ+ seniors are usually ignored or marginalized. Research has shown that their life quality is often impacted by social stigma and discrimination. As a consequence, they are less willing to seek help or care services than their heterosexual counterparts.
Platform connection: as a third-party organization, we want to create a space where gender and identity diversity is welcomed and embraced via our service platform. It’s an integrative platform that connects caregivers and receivers, the public and the LGBTQ+ community, as well as artworks and audiences.
Transmedia storytelling: artistic expressions via transmedia storytelling empower the creators to regain a sense of agency and authenticity. They can freely choose what, when, and how they want to express their inner journeys, thoughts, and stories. The process enables the LGBTQ+ seniors to re-create their life narratives and therefore re-shape their self-image and improve self-worth.
Technological enablement: through technological enablement, both the caregivers and receivers can actively engage in the educational learning process. They are not only expressing themselves through creative mediums but also familiarizing themselves with current technologies.
What are your impact goals for the next year and the next five years, and how will you achieve them?
In one year: to consolidate the business idea and test the prototype
Seeking advice and feedback from professional organizations and key stakeholders
Interviewing and engaging with LGBTQ+ seniors, caregivers, and other care sector practitioners in the New York Metropolitan area
In five years: to expand the team and establish a more diversified structure
Recruiting people with professional backgrounds in not-for-profit management, social work, and art therapy
Recruiting people with expertise in public relations, marketing, program development, and fundraising initiatives
How are you measuring your progress toward your impact goals?
In alignment with United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal #3, Good Health and Well-being, we want to measure our progress toward the following impact goals:
LGBTQ+ Seniors’ Mental Well-being & Physical Health
We will conduct periodic follow-ups via phone calls, interviews, and questionnaires to collect information and feedback from the LGBTQ+ seniors on their mental well-being and physical health changes after engaging in the activities (weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly)
Caregivers’ Emotional Engagement & Work Satisfaction
We will partner with nursing homes or caregiving organizations to collect information and feedback from the caregivers on their emotional engagement and work satisfaction levels after engaging in the activities (weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly)
What is your theory of change?
Activities: Art, music, collage, and pottery making
Immediate Outputs: Through engaging in the above activities that allow high degrees of mobile flexibility and creative freedom, the LGBTQ+ seniors are able to create artworks and artifacts, materialize inner feelings and possible traumas, reinforce a sense of identity and autonomy, and consolidate self-compassion and empathy.
Short-term Outcomes: The LGBTQ+ seniors will benefit from an enhanced sense of self-worth and self-compassion. Meanwhile, the caregivers will also benefit from a sense of emotional engagement and enhance their work satisfaction through interacting and participating in the creative care service.
- Long-term Outcomes: Through viewing and appreciating the artifacts and artworks created by the LGBTQ+ seniors, the audience is able to sympathize with the community more easily and effectively. Creative storytelling provides an artistic and emotional conduit for society to better understand the usually marginalized group.
Describe the core technology that powers your solution.
- Audiovisual Media: We use audio and visual media in our art care service to help LGBTQ+ seniors better participate in the activities. The seniors are encouraged to navigate and master the technology in order to increase their engagement level and familiarize themselves with modern applications.
- Software and Mobile Applications: We have developed a web platform to display the core solution functions and help promote our vision, mission, and values. There will be a subsequent mobile application to provide easier access to all the available information and contents on the website.
Which of the following categories best describes your solution?
A new business model or process that relies on technology to be successful
Please select the technologies currently used in your solution:
Which of the UN Sustainable Development Goals does your solution address?
In which countries do you currently operate?
In which countries will you be operating within the next year?
What type of organization is your solution team?
Nonprofit
How many people work on your solution team?
4, all full-time staff.
How long have you been working on your solution?
2 months
What is your approach to incorporating diversity, equity, and inclusivity into your work?
Our leadership team consists of four Chinese female members. We recognize the importance of social, cultural, as well as identity diversity and inclusion as we are often the targeted, marginalized, or discriminated groups in American society.
We also acknowledge that not everyone has the same access to basic human rights or infrastructure services like internet, electricity, water, or housing. We embrace and want to create an inclusive environment where everyone is welcomed and encouraged to contribute with their unique perspectives and strengths.
In the next few years, we will expand our team and invite more people from different cultural and identity backgrounds to join. We will maintain an open culture of communication and collaboration.
What is your business model?
Our business model can be found here.
Do you primarily provide products or services directly to individuals, to other organizations, or to the government?
Individual consumers or stakeholders (B2C)What is your plan for becoming financially sustainable?
Our plan for becoming financially sustainable is through the following channels:
Sustained donations and grants: we strive to secure sustained donations and grants from public and private sources, including but not limited to crowdfunding, organizational funding, and personal donations.
Selling products or services: through our online gallery and auctions, the public will be able to access artwork or artifacts created by LGBTQ+ seniors. The objects go to the highest bidder.
Solution Team
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Our Organization
MAKE IT LOUD