Community Space For Well-being

Client

Chinese Immigrants

Industry

Community

Space

Design Challenge

While depression is at epidemic levels today, immigrants have stressors that make them especially susceptible to depression. Many immigrants encounter significant challenges as they navigate the process of assimilating into a new environment. Facing a new culture and social environment can lead to difficulties in adaptation, with language barriers and cultural differences potentially resulting in social isolation. As a result, many immigrants find themselves caught in a bad cycle that negatively impacts their mental health.

• ASIAN AMERICANS HAVE EXHIBITED THE LOWEST RATES OF SERVICE UTILIZATION.

• CHINESE INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS HAVE HIGH LEVELS OF DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY SYMPTOMS WITH LOW UTILIZATION RATES OF COUNSELING SERVICES.

45% REPORTED SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION 29% EXPERIENCED ANXIETY

ONLY 4% OF THEM UTILIZED THE SCHOOL’S COUNSELING SERVICES.

Opportunity

How might a community space help immigrants who suffer depression without seeming like a mental health clinic? while combating stigma and overcoming the depression that comes from being invisible to society？

This project proposal addresses a gap in social services by providing an alternative approach to supporting the mental well-being for immigrants. The centric issues that this project focuses on are not around mental illness, it specifically addresses the mental health challenges within migrant communities. This type of community space has the potential to be as a big system – A thoughtfully designed community space can enhance mental well-being within a particular community and has broad relevance. However, its extensive scope makes it challenging to suggest a universally applicable solution. Consequently, I have designed a model tailored for a specific group: newly arrived immigrants.