Placing adolescent girls’ lives at the center: Using human-centered design to adapt gender-transformative programming for displaced families in Colombia

Background Gender-transformative, whole-family, and mental health interventions offer a promising approach to support the well-being of populations in humanitarian settings, but their effectiveness hinges on contextual adaptation to local gender norms, family structures, and displacement-related stressors. Objectives This paper presents the application of a four-phase Human-Centered Design (HCD) process to adapt the Sibling Support for Adolescent Girls in Emergencies (SSAGE) program for forcibly displaced Venezuelan and Colombian returnee families in Cartagena, Colombia. Design We employed a participatory, multi-phase adaptation design grounded in HCD principles, integrating qualitative inquiry, co-analysis, piloting, and expert validation to iteratively refine the intervention. Methods Through iterative phases of participatory research, thematic co-analysis, piloting with target participants, and expert validation, the team systematically adapted SSAGE’s eligibility criteria, curriculum delivery, and curriculum content. Adolescents, caregivers, community stakeholders, and local experts contributed to identifying context-specific needs and informing program modifications. Results Key content adaptations addressed local conceptions of gender roles, identity, sexual and reproductive health, mental health, and family dynamics. The HCD process also informed practical modifications—such as age-stratified sessions and trauma-sensitive facilitation protocols—to improve cultural fit and participant engagement. Conclusion This adaptation underscores the importance of tailoring gender-transformative programming to complex family structures and evolving social norms in displacement settings. The approach offers a replicable model for intervention adaptation in similar contexts and lays the foundation for a Hybrid Type-1 effectiveness-implementation trial of SSAGE in Colombia.