Adobe: “A Rising Tide Lifts All” Event

As we navigate an era of rapid change in the workplace, it is more important than ever for organizations to cultivate authentic community, celebrate diverse voices, and keep employees engaged and inspired. I was honored to be invited to the Adobe AAPI Heritage Month Celebration to share my cross-cultural creative journey with the community.

In my keynote, I shared the stories behind creating some of my most beloved works: the Unicode Dumpling 🥟 and Boba Tea 🧋 emojis — now used by billions of people worldwide. These stories go far beyond design: the boba tea emoji was initially rejected, until three Data Scientists — Ranjitha, Sujay, and Timothy — stepped in with data to champion the proposal. It became a powerful example of artists and scientists collaborating to drive innovation and cultural representation at a global scale.

I also shared the story behind my cross-cultural campaign for Shanghai Disney Resort, where I integrated iconic characters — Mickey, Simba, Mulan, Elsa, and Snow White — with traditional Chinese paper aesthetics, bridging Eastern and Western visual languages for a global audience.

Beyond the professional milestones, I opened up about my personal journey through a fireside chat with the Head of Community Advocacy & Customer Empathy, Teresa Au: growing up in Asia, attending a STEM high school, and convincing my family to let me pursue design abroad in Australia and the UK. I shared the story behind my own name — how my grandfather changed it from “Pretty & Creative” to “Happy & Creative” — and how that act of love shaped my identity and creative philosophy. I also spoke about the importance of mental health, and how transforming grief over losing my grandmother during the pandemic into an ongoing flower art project reminded me of art’s profound power to heal and connect.

The session closed with a lively raffle, where every attendee had the chance to win one of twelve original art pieces of my “Together, We Blossom” series — a little reminder that being present is its own gift 🎁.

It was a true honor to share my journey with the Adobe community and contribute to a more connected, culturally aware workplace — because a rising tide lifts all of us. 🌊

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