You, Me & Money

YLab partnered with RMIT and Today Design to create You, Me & Money, a tool helping young people navigate financial relationships and build money confidence.

A group of people are sitting at a table, participating in a co-design workshop. They're smiling and chatting while focused on the sheets of paper scattered on the table.

THE CHALLENGE

Financial abuse is one of the most common forms of abuse for people in intimate relationships.

For young people, there is a significant lack of resources to support them in building financial capability in their relationships. Off the back of groundbreaking research from RMIT’s Jozica Kutin, we partnered with Today Design and RMIT to find a tool for young people to navigate their financial relationships and to help them better understand their relationship with money.

WHAT WE DID

RMIT, Today Design and YLab came together to design a solution. We brought young people from different backgrounds, identities, experiences and relationship statuses together to develop the tool. We took participants through workshops and facilitated continuous feedback to ensure its relevance and effectiveness. Rather than hit young people hard with negative financial abuse messaging, the tool takes a softer approach and welcomes young people in through a simple and friendly ‘What's your money style?’ quiz. After being assigned a ‘money character’, users are provided with resources and tools to manage their money, assess their financial relationships and build the confidence to have the big conversations about money in their relationships.

THE IMPACT

This solution gives young people and the people that care about them the tools to have better conversations about love and money and to be able to find help if they are in an economically abusive situation.

A group of four people are gathered around some mock ups for the You, Me & Money website pinned up on the wall. One person is speaking, as shown by gestural hand movements.

'Working with YLab really opened my eyes to what true co-design is — especially when it comes to young people and what they need. I would never do another project with young people without YLab.'

RMIT University