Bringing Light into the Dark

Redefining Empathy Through Enterprise

What began as a volunteer role soon became a lifelong inquiry: can compassion itself be structured, scaled, and sustained like a business?

When I first joined Dialogues in the Dark—an immersive exhibition led by visually impaired guides—I was fascinated by its paradox. It inverted all the assumptions of commerce: sight was useless, and yet, awareness was the product being sold.

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Raised in a family of nonconformists, I had always learned outside the lines. My father left a corporate career in the 1990s to found his own company; my mother was among the first women in Chengdu to study abroad. Their example taught me that business was not just about profit, but about perspective.

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At Dialogues in the Dark, I started as a fundraiser, driven by sheer energy—posting flyers, pitching endlessly, and celebrating each ticket sold. But when sales dropped, I faced an uncomfortable truth: goodwill alone wasn’t sustainable. I began studying how social enterprises survive—how incentives, tax structures, and strategic partnerships can turn empathy into a self-sustaining system.

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Over time, I redesigned our local fundraising model: negotiating lease extensions, cultivating long-term partnerships, and aligning corporate giving with authentic impact. Through my work with the Chengdu Disability Association, I drafted a 36-page corporate outreach proposal outlining tax-deduction models for social enterprises, enlisted three local firms, and raised over 900,000 RMB in donations. The initiative was later featured by FM98.1, expanding the conversation on inclusive employment and accessible business models.

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My curiosity for accessibility extended beyond social design into technology. Collaborating with Dr. Jiang Li from Stanford University, I co-invented eyeOS—a wearable navigation aid for blind and low-vision individuals powered by YOLOv5-enabled visual recognition. The prototype, currently being tested in partnership with the Nanjing Municipal Government, uses real-time detection of road conditions and traffic to enhance mobility and independence for visually impaired users.

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To promote sustainable philanthropy at the community level, I also founded the 1% Pledge Club, a parent-led giving initiative launched during a PTA meeting. The club has since enlisted over 80 parents to commit 1% of their annual income to charity, streamlining donations through a one-form system and supporting three local nonprofits chosen by the group. What began as a simple pledge has grown into a model for collective giving—making generosity a structured, recurring practice.

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These experiences taught me that empathy alone is not enough—it needs structure, systems, and innovation to last. Whether through fundraising models, public advocacy, or assistive technology, I have learned to see inclusion as both a moral and an operational goal.

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Today, as I continue building projects across communities—from African crafts to Nepali artisanship to inclusive enterprises for the visually impaired—I carry the same conviction: that light doesn’t only illuminate; it empowers.

What started as an experiment in darkness became a guiding principle for how I now design every venture—balancing empathy, efficiency, and impact.