The Hardest Thing to Build: An Ecosystem Where People Stay
Caitlyn Wang
Nonprofit CEO @ curaJOY | AI for families and clinicians wellness | Empower communities through healthcare access and social emotional learning
During my interview with Twilio for Transform Together, I was asked “What metrics tell you that you are succeeding at your mission?”
I had metrics that should impress:
All of that matters. Each of our team operates with quantifiable metrics—OKRs, KPIs, and data-driven goals that ensure we aren’t just doing good work, but the most effective work possible. I envision a new breed of nonprofits that are even more efficient and innovative than for-profit or any kind of organization for them to make meaningful impact in urgent, prevalent societal problems where others have failed.
But if you ask me what metric is closest to my heart? It’s the people–the volunteers who don’t just contribute, but who invest in this work as if it were their own. That kind of dedication isn’t accidental—it means we’re building something people truly need.
As of last November, 458+ volunteers have actively helped build curaJOY’s product since 2022, and they keep coming back—year after year.
That’s not normal. People don't volunteer weekends and nights on top of their full-time jobs unless it truly matters to them. They’ve looked elsewhere, tried other solutions, and found them lacking. curaJOY offers something different—something they couldn't find anywhere else. And they don’t just contribute; they own it. They shape it. They pour their time, expertise, regrets and love into curaJOY—not because they’re paid to, but because it’s solving a problem they deeply care about.
This is what most organizations miss: When people help build something, they don’t need to be convinced to use it—they already believe in it.
And that’s why curaJOY isn’t just a product—it’s a movement.
The People Have Spoken--curaJOY Is What They Need
There are thousands of mental health and behavioral support programs out there. So why do people choose to contribute to curaJOY
Because they know firsthand that what already exists isn’t working.
93% of behavioral health workers and 44% of k-12 teachers experience burnout, many leaving the field.? 57% of parents experience burnout, and unlike professionals, they can’t leave the field. This chronic stress impacts not just their well-being, but also their children’s mental health, increasing the likelihood of adverse developmental outcomes, emotional struggles, and long-term behavioral challenges. 30% of mental health claims are initially rejected, causing behavioral health practices to lose ~10% of their revenues.
curaJOY works because we don’t just serve communities—we empower them to build the solutions they need. We’re playing the long game—co-creating with the communities who need these solutions, training volunteers, and refining our technology to ensure it actually works in real-world settings. This takes time, but it also ensures lasting impact."
That’s why volunteers don’t just contribute; they stay. Because when something is designed for you, by people like you, it feels different. It feels like yours.
From Users to Builders: The People Who Power curaJOY
Many behavioral health and education interventions have failed not because they weren’t well-intentioned, but because they didn’t truly involve the people they were meant to serve. They were built only for efficiency, not effectiveness. At curaJOY, we prioritize sustainability over quick fixes, knowing that true change requires deep investment and community ownership.? So while most organizations struggle to keep users and employees, we proudly have people who refuse to leave. Many of them have since landed full-time jobs in AI, tech, and behavioral health because of the experience they gained here.
Jessica Teng , a seasoned designer and mom of two, joined curaJOY to deepen her skills in UX/UI design for our mission.? curaJOY gave her the opportunity and structured pathway to learn the technologies behind the AI product she's helping to design. Her participation in the @aiAI4C Health Cohort accelerator for us really touched me because it requires waking up at 5:30 AM! She embodies the dedication and continuous learning we cultivate at curaJOY, proving that innovation starts with understanding the technology you’re building.
Her takeaway? You can’t innovate if you don’t understand the technology behind what you’re building.
A Ram Kim , an economist with a PhD and substantial industry experience in South Korea optimizing consumer spending behavior, is using her expertise to build retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) models for curaJOY—helping people heal, not just sell them more products.?
Anthony Pajot, PhD, MBA , Senior Director and Global Project Head for Vaccines at Sanofi, is a curaJOY board member with a career dedicated to leading high-stakes, global-scale healthcare initiatives. His expertise in vaccine development mirrors curaJOY’s mission—both require long-term investment, interdisciplinary collaboration, and a commitment to solving urgent global health challenges at scale. On top of managing a multi-billion-dollar vaccine portfolio and pipeline, he leverages his strategic vision and scientific expertise to help curaJOY become a trailblazer that mobilizes communities to address the $6 trillion global economic burden of mental health issues (WHO, 2023).
curaJOY isn’t just a solution; it’s changing the way solutions are built. We are designing a system where communities don’t just receive help—they drive the innovation that shapes their future.
I often think of you and the impact you've had on me. Your guidance and the things I learned from you still resonate with me. I just wanted to let you know how grateful I am for your influence, and for the things I learned from curaJOY. -Sunny H.
curaJOY’s mission is important to me because emotional wellness is at the heart of strong families and communities. I believe that prioritizing emotional health can create a ripple effect of positive change, and I’m passionate about being part of something that directly improves lives. -Rija S.
Growing up in a Vietnamese-American household, emotional wellness and mental health was not as prioritized in comparison to other factors such as academics, finances, etc. I was the "odd" one out of my family. I wanted to be able to create more positive interactions with them and be more open-minded to all the endless thoughts, opinions, actions, etc. curaJOY can really make a big impact on people's lives. -S. Nguyen
The Most Important Metric
A lot of companies talk about "community-driven solutions," but most only conduct usability testing and focus groups after the major decisions have already been made. The difference? We embed our communities into the design and development process from the start, ensuring their needs drive the evolution of curaJOY. But very few actually create the conditions for people to participate meaningfully. People can’t solve a problem they don’t fully understand and when they don’t have the tools, experience, or skills to solve it.
That’s why curaJOY doesn’t just build solutions—we build people. We don’t just ask for feedback—we invest in people so they can actively build the solution with us. We empower them to recognize systemic issues, ask the right questions, and become part of the change.
Most solutions fail at true engagement because they only seek input—not ownership. Most companies build first and test later. We do the opposite. At curaJOY, volunteers—from clinicians, high schoolers to parents to AI engineers—aren’t just passive participants; they are actively learning, questioning, and shaping the product. And that’s what makes our approach slower, but infinitely more sustainable.
When people help create something, they don’t abandon it. They invest in it, advocate for it, and improve it over time. Parents proudly display their children’s imperfect drawings, cherishing them far more than any mass-produced art. Why? Because they have ownership. They were part of its creation. The same is true for curaJOY—when people build something, they care about it more, they advocate for it, they refine it. Ownership isn’t just emotional—it’s the key to sustainability
curaJOY is proof that real co-creation isn’t just possible—it’s essential. We recognize and elevate the expertise of every volunteer—whether it’s a retired engineer mentoring young data scientists or an artist helping refine the emotional intelligence of our AI models. Every contribution, no matter how unconventional, has a place in curaJOY’s evolution.
Success Isn’t Measured in Dollars—It’s Measured in the People Who Refuse to Leave
Most companies measure success in revenue, downloads, or funding rounds. curaJOY’s success is measured in something far more powerful:
Anyone can build technology. Many AI companies today are just repackaging existing models, but curaJOY is far more than an LLM wrapper. Our work spans AI-driven customer experience (CX), MLOps, and process orchestration—creating truly intelligent and adaptive behavioral health solutions that evolve with the people who use them. But to build something that people willingly commit years of their lives to, with no financial incentive—that’s rare.
And that’s why I know curaJOY is making an impact.
The Future Belongs to Those Who Build
Every year, millions of children and families fall through the cracks of an overburdened, understaffed system. Over 169 million people in the U.S. live in areas with mental health professional shortages, leaving them without access to essential care. (Source: HRSA, 2023) Behavioral health provider shortages have left entire communities without access to care. Schools struggle to support students with mental health and learning needs. Without adequate intervention, these gaps lead to rising crime rates, increased substance abuse, chronic unemployment, and homelessness. The inability to access timely behavioral health support often sets off a domino effect, impacting not just individuals but entire communities, further deepening social and economic inequities. We don’t have the luxury of waiting for someone else to fix this. The time for action is now.**curaJOY isn’t waiting for someone else to fix the broken behavioral health and education systems.
We’re building the solution—together.
And the people who stay, build, and grow with us? They are the real proof that curaJOY is here to stay.
Youth Ambassador at curaJOY
3 天前Beautiful. Absolutely wonderfully well said. I think that more people need to talk about this: It's not the new tech or the profits that make the company, it's the people.