Suluhu Labs

introduction

Suluhu Labs empowers high school students to become thoughtful, action-oriented changemakers. Using Human-Centered Design, we help students identify real community challenges, develop innovative solutions, and take meaningful action. Our goal is to cultivate empathy, creativity, and resilience, equipping students not just to dream of change but to make it a reality.

About the program

Suluhu Labs is an immersive 8-week program where high school students tackle real-world challenges in their communities using Human-Centered Design. Through collaborative workshops, hands-on projects, and mentorship from experts, students develop practical skills in research, design, teamwork, and communication, creating solutions that have a tangible impact.

Human-Centered Design (HCD), also called Design Thinking, is a structured approach to solving real-world problems by putting people first. The process teaches students to:

Empathize: Understand the experiences, needs, and perspectives of the people affected by a challenge.
Define: Clearly identify the core problem based on these insights.
Ideate: Brainstorm a wide range of possible solutions creatively and without judgment.
Prototype: Turn ideas into tangible forms that can be tested in the real world.

Test & Iterate: Gather feedback, refine solutions, and improve them based on what works.

About HCD

Through Suluhu Labs, the Meher Foundation aims to empower high school students to become proactive changemakers in their communities. The program helps students develop empathy by teaching them to understand the perspectives and needs of others, and it builds problem-solving and creative thinking skills through hands-on Human-Centered Design projects. Overall, the program aims to equip students with the skills to create practical, sustainable change in their own communities.