Dustsceawung

Improving website functionality for a social justice collective


Content Design   Website Development



Dustsceawung is a Chicago-based artist and social justice collective whose mission is to amplify the voices and experiences of vulnerable populations across the globe.


In 2024, I was commissioned to design a digital experience as a part of Dustsceawung’s EXPO Chicago activation. I created an index of actions and resources for supporting social justice causes in their countries of focus.

As we approached the 1-year anniversary, the group was interested in updating the site, improving usability, and making the site collaborative. I conducted an audit of the site with social justice activists and city government staff to learn which actions they consider effective, and how the site and its users could have a more substantial impact.
Role
Research
UX/UI
Prototyping
Content Design
Website Development

Team
1

Tools
Figma, Cargo

Constraints
Limited web developer capacity


Research


To audit the current experience, I conducted a usability test of the current site and follow up interviews.

Current Site


Usability Test InsightsUsers appreciated the feed format, the directness of the copy, the deeply researched actions, and organization by country.  However, the monotony of the type was difficult to read; the “Act” button was unclear; and users wanted more context about the site and the organization.


Interview InsightsUnexpectedly, in-person actions and events were highly desirable and considered highly effective. Both groups appreciated local actions, and felt strongly about offering different levels of engagement and interaction to users.
    Age Range
    25 - 35

    Number of Sessions
    2 group sessions

    Group 1
    Community organizers

    Group 2
    City government workers

    “I would want to know who in my respective city is doing something about any one of these causes that I can engage with, go to, or read about.”


    “I wonder about showing the spectrum of actions, how you can have a stance that at the very least everyone should be able to do something on this site.”


     “I wonder if there should be a Chicago tab because I feel like it’s where my voice actually matters, where we can make a difference, where we can organize and be inspired. I like the things that we do here, I believe in the reverberating impacts of it.”





    User Persona




    Competitive Analysis
    Industry Key Findings
    • websites are often inundated with information and images: news, actions, educational resources, and membership
    • most sites cover a broad range of human rights issues (as opposed to a narrow or specific focus)
    • most available actions are donating, signing petitions, and sending messages to congress


    Opportunities
    • ability for users to donate to a variety of organizations other than the host website
    • ability for users to add information, references or resources
    • how might the user experience be more focused for users
    • how might users more effectively connect to government or get government involved








    Defining the Problem



    How might we help users connect to in-person and local actions?
    How might we     support users to take action at varying degrees of participation?
    How might we improve site readability and comprehension?



    Concepts and Initial Testing
    Low and Mid Fidelity Wireframes
    Based on the values identified in the research, I prioritized legibility, indicating action type, including local in-person events, and a contributing events feature. I designed low and mid fidelity wireframes where actions items were organized by type and level of engagement; developed a hierarchy of mixed font styles; added an online vs. in-person toggle; created a feature for users to filter events by zipcode; and added a button for users to contribute to the index. I tested with 2 different color palettes and 2 different type tags. I decided on a text-only feed because these issues don’t lend themselves to positive imagery.








    Key Findings

    1. Users struggled to read and pronounce the site title

    2. Users wanted more context about the items, organization and site

    3. Users expected a vetting process for contributing action items, for safety

    4. Identifying different levels of engagement continued to be priority

    5. Users reacted  positively to the online vs. in person tab

    6. Users missed being able to filter by country

    7. The zip code filter was misused or overlooked

    8. Users preferred the green color scheme





    Iterations and Further Testing



    Iterations and High Fidelity Prototype
    Based on that first round of feedback, in this iteration I focused on improving readability, indicating different levels of engagement, incorporating a vetting process, including context about the organization, and updating the forms.












    Iterations and Final Prototype



    Navigate to Prototype


    What worked well:

    • The additional context
    • The left most home panel
    • The inclusion of a vetting process
    • The online vs. in person tab
    • The form opening to a separate page
    • The “demands” page

         Further TestingNext I tested tag preferences, button preferences, substantiality of the context, and if users preferred to be able to add any action item, or only in-person actions.

    InsightsUsers preferred explicit copy on the Act buttons. They were interested in being able to add all actions (as opposed to only in-person actions), and the “Contribute” button needed emphasis. They determined the engagement levels were unnecessary—the remaining copy does the work of the tags and levels could open unnecessary debates about hierarchy of actions.









    Reflection


    I really enjoyed this redesign and working again with this client. This project allowed me to exercise and grow in my content design and strategy skills, and also in web development. I’m the developer for the project but my developing skills are limited, so I had to design within the constraints of my ability. I’m interested in exploring accessibility considerations in future iterations i.e., screen reader optimization; a contribution form that’s compatible with audio submissions, and public, live analytics about participation. Also based on the frequency of feedback, I’m considering a Chicago-centric version with a national focus.