Who Is Yasmin?
Participated in over 15 Hackathons!
Huge chatterbox. I’ll be the one always to start a conversation about anything!
Makes a great cup of coffee (was a barista for 4 years!)
BIG fan of video games, especially horror and fantasy RPG (I worked for a indie studio as a UI developer)!
Inclusivity first, I’m a designer who wants to hear from everyone; every developer, every marketer, and every team member.
Proud NSBE (National Society of Black Engineers) Member
Proud book club runner, mostly into non-fiction and tech critique books.
First generation Ethiopian-American, first woman to graduate graduate school, first to be loud and proud of my work.
Led a workshop on generative AI and women’s voices! Ask me about my research!
Let me tell you a little story…
“You Got Games On Your Phone?”
2010-2016
I’ve always grown up addicted to the arts, from my father taking me to art museums monthly, to my love for sketching out fantastical worlds. Anything that was in my mind, I did everything to make it happen….
2021
2017-2020
When I started my undergraduate degree at The New School, I learned that my university didn’t have a designated “game design” major, which led me to make a bold choice: I needed to pave the way for my own unique path. I designed my own program which later was coined “Design and Technology”
2021
2021-2023
As I graduated, I felt something was missing. I enjoyed gaming, I (sort of) convinced myself I enjoyed hard development, but I still didn’t feel I was tapping into my true designer potential.
My career changed after one day, while I was helping my family pay bills online.
A Designer is Born
During COVID, when everything was integrated online, I was stuck at home helping my family on how to pay some bills online. During the process I realized apps aren’t designed for those who didn’t grow up or familiarized themselves with the tools.
Why not? Why should they be isolated from the online world?
It didn’t take long for me to fall in love with gaming, and thus tried everything in my power to be in gaming spaces, from conventions, afterschool programs, and conferences.
2023+
I picked up UX with them in mind. Every user matters. Especially in the age of advanced technologies.
And so, day after day, design after design, I continued to produce my work. My belief remains that technology changes fast, we should keep in mind those who don’t have access to the same tools as the general public.
After all, aren’t we human centered designers?