Click here to see a video of the experience.
After receiving the written content for the AR experience from the Urban Sprouts and Persistent Planet teams—as well as making a few final adjustments—I completed the final design for the AR mural. It’s now live and available for visitors to interact with at the Persistent Planet mural site.
To make the climate change mural more interactive, I designed an AR experience to accompany the physical piece. Viewers could walk up to the mural, scan a QR code, and explore the AR content on their phones. This digital experience added context, stories, and facts about the environmental issues depicted. I created the first version of the AR design and presented it to the Persistent Planet and Urban Sprouts teams for feedback.
AR MURAL
After doing some outreach we were able to secure a partnership with a local community garden in San Francisco called Urban Sprouts. They had an available mural space that the Persistent Planet team was able to paint the final mural on.
One of Persistent Planet’s biggest needs was finding a mural space. To support that, I helped lead outreach efforts—contacting around 10 local climate and community organizations each week to explore potential partnerships and locations for the mural.
OUTREACH
After our review session I was able to implement the changes discussed. We then launched the website for Persistent Planet.
I made some early design concepts to share with Diya, focusing on layout, structure, and tone. Rather than narrowing it down to just a few templates, I explored a range of ideas to spark conversation and see what resonated with her.
I’m a design consultant with Her Idea, a non-profit that empowers young women by connecting them to real-world projects. When I learned about Diya’s vision for Persistent Planet, I was excited to help bring it to life. As her mentor and project guide, I supported her throughout the process. Here’s how I helped:
This project was a truly meaningful learning experience. I grew not only as a designer but also as a mentor. I had the chance to explore the world of AR design using tools like Adobe Aero, while also collaborating with community partners like Urban Sprouts and supporting youth-led activism around environmental justice. It was incredibly rewarding to help bring Diya’s vision to life and see how design can amplify important causes.
Looking back, here are a few things I would approach differently if I were to do this project again:
After completing this first project, I’ve continued to support Persistent Planet as they expand their efforts—painting more murals across the city and advocating for environmental justice. I remain involved as a design advisor and adult ally, helping wherever I can. Looking ahead, I hope more young people are inspired to join the movement and use their creativity to spark change.
This project helped bring Diya’s vision for Persistent Planet to life—using art to raise awareness about climate change in the Bay Area. The website we created attracted more visibility and funding for the organization. The outreach efforts led to securing a public mural location, and the AR experience added a dynamic, interactive layer that deepened the mural’s impact on viewers.
IMPACT + NEXT STEPS
Diya had a few changes she wanted to make, but overall, she liked the direction of the design. Her feedback helped refine the layout and better align the site with her vision. Here were some of them.
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WEBSITE DESIGN
To spark change, my mentee Diya—a passionate high school student—founded Persistent Planet, an organization focused on environmental justice. Her goal was to create a climate mural that would bring awareness to the environmental issues facing the Bay Area. By turning data into art, she aimed to make the invisible visible and inspire community action through creativity.
The Bay Area faces a growing environmental crisis.
Yet these stories often go unseen. The data exists, but the people behind it remain invisible.
Persistent Planet aims to change that—using community-driven advocacy and the power of art to make climate justice impossible to ignore.
Persistent Planet is a youth-led climate awareness project that uses art and murals to spark conversations about climate change in the Bay Area.
Created by my high school mentee Diya, the project combines her love for art and the environment. I helped her design a website, reach out to community partners, secure a mural space, and create a digital version of the mural online.
The goal was simple: make climate awareness more visible, creative, and accessible to everyone.
NEXT PROJECT
