Heirlooms

Prototype link: https://www.figma.com/proto/hsEBoYfNszraxDAfM1tTx4/Rice-Design-a-thon-2026--Siran---Ainsley-?node-id=0-1&t=fTRTJY2FngxMW4fA-1

Describe your project

Heirlooms is a mobile platform designed to restore intergenerational learning by turning cultural practices into shared, living exchanges. Instead of treating culture as static content to be consumed, Heirlooms is structured around how traditions are passed—through explanation, reinterpretation, and conversation that give meaning to recipes, clothing, and photographs.

The platform allows older generations to document knowledge in ways that feel natural and accessible, using audio paired with visual media, while younger users explore through guided discovery, filtering by culture, time period, practice, and direct conversation. Younger users are able to contribute their own practices, interpretations, and experiences as they emerge, allowing cultural knowledge to be documented in real time rather than reconstructed later.

By removing the expectation of formal teaching or fixed expertise, Heirlooms emphasizes culture as something relational, created between people. Family-specific traditions, blended identities, and adaptive practices are treated as equally credible forms of culture, deserving quality documentation.

Describe your research process and findings

Our research combined user surveys, high-volume polling, and qualitative interviews to understand how people experience cultural tradition today and where intergenerational transmission breaks down.

Primary Research Methods

College Survey (24 responses): We distributed a comprehensive survey exploring relationships with cultural traditions, preferred engagement methods, and barriers to cultural connection. Key findings showed 58% treasure traditional family recipes, 62% most want to feel "a sense of belonging" when engaging with culture, and 41% identified language and expressions as most at risk of being lost between generations.

Fizz Polls (2,000+ total responses): To capture broader patterns, we conducted polls on Fizz, a college-focused platform. We ran identical polls at two institutions: the Claremont Colleges (1,050 responses) and George Washington University (720 responses), plus a targeted question about cultural loss (180 responses at the Claremont Colleges).

User Interviews: We conducted in-person interviews with students to understand nuanced behaviors and pain points around cultural engagement.

Key Findings

The Fragmentation Problem: 79% of survey respondents report feeling only "somewhat connected" (46%) or "connected through fragments" (33%) to their cultural traditions. Only 13% feel deeply connected. This fragmentation isn't from lack of interest—87% would use or maybe use an app for intergenerational cultural exchange.

Knowledge Holders Are Aging: 75% identify parents or grandparents as primary cultural knowledge holders, yet these relationships often lack structured ways to preserve and transmit knowledge before it's lost.

What's Being Lost: Our Fizz poll revealed lived stories and experiences (37%) as most at risk, followed by rituals and habits (23%) and language (19%). Notably, only 7% cited fashion and visuals, yet our broader research showed strong cultural connection to clothing and aesthetic traditions.

Fashion as Cultural Bridge: Across 1,770 total Fizz responses on fashion preferences, we found no dominant era—responses distributed across Y2K (25-31%), timeless (18-27%), 1970s bohemia (15-19%), and blended styles (21%). This diversity suggests fashion offers a non-hierarchical entry point to cultural exploration where personal preference and heritage can coexist.

Desire for Multimedia, Low-Friction Formats: Survey respondents overwhelmingly preferred mixed formats (46%) and visual archives with context (25%). Only 8% wanted purely text-based documentation, pointing to the need for voice, image, and conversational elements.

Key Barrier - Imposter Syndrome: The most compelling finding—37% identified "feeling less overwhelmed/intimidated/imposter syndrome" as what would make a digital cultural space meaningful. Many feel disconnected not from disinterest but from uncertainty about their own cultural legitimacy.

Preferred Engagement: 42% want to explore documented traditions with context, while 25% seek to reconnect with traditions they weren't taught. The desire isn't just preservation—it's active discovery and reconstruction.

Describe your most important design decisions

Our most critical design decision was the onboarding flow that separates users into "Share" or "Learn" pathways, directly addressing the dual needs of knowledge holders and knowledge seekers. The opening screen asks, "Are you here to share or learn?" with equal visual weight given to both options. This bifurcation acknowledges that cultural transmission requires both contributors and explorers, validating users who want to document their own traditions alongside those discovering heritage for the first time.

For learners, we designed a multi-dimensional filtering system. The onboarding asks "What generation are you most interested in learning about?" offering options from the Silent Generation through Generation Alpha, followed by "What are you looking to discover?" with categories including Recipes, Music, Fashion, Guidance, and Open Forum. This allows users to navigate content by both time period and type, transforming passive scrolling into active cultural archaeology where personal interests guide exploration. Users can discover Silent Generation recipes, Gen X fashion, or Millennial music rather than consuming a chronologically ordered feed.

The posting interface includes a "Post Type" dropdown selector and a large text entry field with a simple "Post" button, making contribution straightforward. The profile view shows users can toggle between viewing their "Posts" and collected "Stamps"—a gamification system that incentivizes engagement. Users collect visual tokens (the decorative stamp aesthetic visible throughout) for interacting with cultural content, making heritage preservation feel rewarding rather than obligatory.

The vintage aesthetic pervades the entire interface—decorative lace borders, ornate gilt picture frames around photos, stamp-style design elements, and a cream/beige color palette. This creates a tangible sense of preserving family heirlooms rather than scrolling ephemeral social media content. The "Explore Heirlooms" feed displays posts as vintage-framed cards showing recipes (like the Chocolate Chip Cookies card with detailed ingredients and instructions), creating visual continuity between digital content and physical family artifacts.

The profile system displays a framed profile image, username, and tabs for "Posts" and "Stamps." Content cards show both the contributor's name and the cultural artifact—whether a recipe with full ingredient lists and instructions, or photos with accompanying text. This dual attribution model validates both traditional knowledge and contemporary interpretations, creating a living cultural dialogue rather than fixed museum exhibits where culture is both preserved and evolved across generations.

Built With

• figma