Bootstrapping Communities
Filmed on October 19, 2016 at the 2016 AIGA Design Conference
The lack of diversity in the tech and games industries is a known issue. One solution is to build support networks for marginalized folks in these industries. Support networks are also important within the realm of products, as social activity adds value to services. Designing and creating supportive communities requires hard work, time, and money. In this talk, Catt Small discusses lessons learned while helping to build several successful—and a few failed—communities of varying sizes online and offline.
Catt Small is a product designer, game maker, and front-end web developer. She has done design work for companies of all sizes including SoundCloud, NASDAQ OMX, and Scholastic. At the age of 10, she began coding, and was designing at the age of 15. In 2011, Small graduated from SVA with a B.F.A. in graphic design, and she earned an M.S. in integrated digital media from NYU in 2016.
Small also makes video games with Brooklyn Gamery and Buttered Toast Studios; teaches game development with The Code Liberation Foundation; and draws comics.
