CHANGEMAKER
Change begins with understanding — and grows through action.
Statistics show that there are over 28 million people with visual impairments in China, meaning approximately one in every fifty people is affected. This includes about 8 million who are fully blind and 20 million with low vision. Massage therapy is a traditional and vital employment field for this community.
In 9th grade, I co-founded the school's film and photography club with several classmates. Drawing on previous volunteer experiences, we decided during our 10th-grade Christmas break to produce a documentary about a blind massage therapist. Our interviewee, Mr. Jiang, is an optimistic, passionate individual who loves life. He is an excellent communicator, eager to share and full of inspiring energy. By documenting and presenting his story, we aimed to raise broader awareness and attention for this community—marking the beginning of our first "Blind Interview."
Building on the initial filming experience, in 11th grade, we connected with a former Tencent "Visual Impairment Experience Officer" and several volunteers for a second round of interviews. This session offered more diverse perspectives, leading to deeper and more comprehensive discussions. It provided everyone involved with a greater understanding of the daily lives, work, and mobility of visually impaired people, and the process was deeply moving.
DOCUMENTARY INTERVIEWS WITH THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED
It all started with making a documentary for Mr. Jiang, a blind massage therapist. From recording his story, to organizing photography workshops, building a learning platform, and designing teaching aids, we learned to not just help, but to create together.
NON-VISUAL PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP
During our interview with Mr. Jiang, we learned about his wide range of hobbies; he is skilled at everything from video games to photography. He mentioned that, as a visually impaired person, being able to take a family portrait himself would be "a very cool thing." We took these words to heart.
Therefore, during the summer after 10th grade, we organized a non-visual photography event. This involved coordinating the venue, supplies, and volunteers, and even arranging pick-ups and drop-offs at bus stations and subway stops for all visually impaired participants. The summer in Guangdong was exceptionally hot, yet registered attendees came from various locations and participated actively. Everyone persisted with the outdoor shooting under the blazing sun—what we consider a simple act of taking out a phone to capture a picture presents significant challenges for them. It requires volunteers to repeatedly describe the surroundings, after which they make continual attempts and adjustments based on their own ideas. Things we take for granted might be what others dream of and strive hard for, often with great difficulty. This experience taught us to cherish and appreciate our own lives more.
LEARNING PLATFORM
FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED
After tutoring a blind child, we realized that our time together was limited — but their desire to learn was boundless. From that realization grew the idea of an online learning platform that transcends time and space, where visually impaired students can access knowledge freely and continue learning at their own pace.
During my volunteer work supporting people with visual impairments, I met a student named Xiao Wang by chance. He is cheerful, bright, and eager to learn. Like me, he loves playing games and even plans to study programming. On weekends, I tutored him online in math. Since I live at school and am not allowed to use electronic devices during the week, and weekends at home are often busy, the time I could spend helping him was quite limited. That made me start thinking: is there a better way to help more students like him?
Later, through discussions with our volunteer teacher, we came up with the idea of creating a learning platform specifically designed for people with visual impairments. Under the teacher’s guidance, several classmates and I divided tasks and collaborated to bring the idea to life. The process turned out to be far more complicated and detailed than we had imagined. Yet during this journey, more teachers and kindhearted volunteers joined us. They suggested integrating projects related to the design and production of assistive tools for people with disabilities, which made the platform’s content richer and more comprehensive—and allowed it to reach and benefit more people in need.
Now, the platform is progressing smoothly and will soon be officially launched. In today’s world, where “traffic and clicks are king,” a platform serving people with disabilities in China may not attract much attention or visibility. But I’ve always believed that someone has to do this kind of work. If we can create more opportunities for them to learn and help them overcome difficulties and barriers in daily life, then even our small contribution fulfills the very purpose and hope that inspired me from the start.
TactileED
Science & Innovation for the Blind
While tutoring Wang, the visually impaired elementary student, I gained a more direct understanding of the learning difficulties faced by visually impaired children: Braille books are dozens of times more expensive than standard texts, and teaching aids are severely lacking. Drawing on my own learning experiences, I collaborated with several classmates to design and create a reversible Braille writing board and a three-dimensional tactile Periodic Table of Elements.
We transformed the traditional flat periodic table into a 3D model. Through modular tactile design, it represents complex content such as electron shell configuration, number of valence electrons, distribution of elemental properties, and the trends across "periods" and "groups." Each element module can be removed from the baseboard, allowing teachers to use it for diverse interactive lessons like element puzzles, sequencing games, and simulated chemical reactions, thereby enhancing both the fun and effectiveness of learning.
From documenting stories to building platforms, these experiences have given me a profound understanding that public welfare is not only about "seeing" those who need help but also about earnestly "being seen" by their world, understanding their needs and radiance. This has been a journey of listening, understanding, and action. It has taught me to cherish more and strengthened my resolve to continue using technology and creativity to spread warmth.
