Before thinking about how to build technology, Ila Kumar asks a different question: what environment will the technology operate in and who should be involved in its design? She argues that meaningful innovation does not arise from engineers or designers working alone, but from the people who will benefit from the technology taking part from the very beginning.\ \ At MIT’s Lifelong Kindergarten group, Kumar works side‑by‑side with young people who have experienced childhood trauma, especially those in the child welfare system, to reimagine how technology can support healing, connection and independence. She stresses that community‑based design is the only way to account for needs, cultures and barriers, and thus to create sustainable, positively impactful technology.\ \ Originally planning to stay at MIT only for a master’s degree in 2021, she fell in love with the work and continued toward a PhD. Growing up in Philadelphia, she studied at the University of Pennsylvania and participated in several projects at the intersection of technology and mental health. Those experiences made her question whether “tech for good” projects were delivering lasting change. Instead of abandoning technology, she shifted to a community‑centric approach, believing that holistic well‑being can be supported when technology is co‑created with its users.\ \ In a collaboration with Stepping Forward LA, her team replaced text‑heavy communication with a visual collage system, enabling trauma‑affected youth to express emotions that are hard to verbalize and to foster a sense of belonging. Another ongoing project with the Justice Resource Institute involves a mobile app that empowers youth to take an active role in their treatment planning, set personal goals, and track progress, with clinicians and users co‑designing and evaluating the system.\ \ Kumar also co‑facilitated a ten‑month technology leadership circle with Foster America, bringing together foster‑care alumni and tech experts to envision digital solutions that fill gaps in child‑welfare services. This experience highlighted the need to involve social‑service providers in the innovation process. Noticing that trauma‑survivors were already turning to artificial intelligence for critical life decisions—often without caregiver awareness—she began training care providers to discuss AI responsibly with young people.\ \ Beyond the lab, Kumar serves as a court‑appointed special advocate, working one‑on‑one with youth in the foster system, which deepened her belief that lasting change depends on relationships. She co‑taught a community‑driven innovation course with the Priscilla King Gray Public Service Center and later founded a bi‑weekly community of practice linking researchers at MIT and Harvard who navigate the benefits and challenges of conducting research alongside, rather than on, communities.\ \ In her spare time she enjoys birdwatching, cooking with friends and creating graphic illustrations—pursuits that, like her research, reward patience, observation and careful attention. As technology becomes ever more woven into young people’s lives, Kumar hopes innovation will move out of the lab and into the communities it is meant to serve, with researchers making decisions with communities instead of for them.\ \ Review: Kumar’s journey illustrates how deeply integrating community participation into technology development can transform “tech for good” into lasting social impact.