About the project
The ACT Government needed an overarching climate action website that encapsulated new and current ACT Government programs to help people reduce greenhouse gases and adapt to climate change.
We heard that Canberrans want to make a difference, but need to know how. Two-thirds of people the ACT Government surveyed are actively concerned about climate change and sustainability. One-third of those had not taken any action because they don’t know where to start.
The challenge
The ACT is leading Australia in sustainability and in bringing this community on board to take action. However, their existing online presence didn’t support this goal. Information on climate action was spread across disparate government websites, with confusing navigation.
This site was a major undertaking. It was the first time multiple sections of the ACT Government collaborated on a project of this nature. In particular, stakeholders wanted an intuitive way of surfacing policies, programs and resources from across the disparate areas.
Our approach
True North came on board to set a strategic direction and design the solution.
Discovery phase
In our discovery phase, we sought to understand the ecosystem of sites as a whole — and the specific design challenge at hand. We did this through:
- Consulting stakeholders: combining strategic insights from senior executive with staff on the ground who brought direct experience of engaging with the public.
- Desk research: We ran comparator analysis, reviewing interrelated websites from their sector, and other jurisdiction’s climate change sites as a source of contrasting insight. We also analysed documents relevant to this project and harnessed web analytics to identify current sites’ position and prominence in the sector, as well as SEO keyword research to capture the language that is most likely to resonate with their audience.
- Content audit: we captured the core topics addressed through the client’s sites, and integrated this data with insights from Google Analytics to check the extent to which existing content meets both user needs and business requirements.
- User research: given the compressed timeframe, we designed a survey to capture insights from users at scale.
Design and production phase
In the design phase, we created and tested an information architecture, wireframes and content model to deliver the solution. We did this through:
- Question interface: it quickly became clear that a standard hierarchical navigation would not be enough on its own to surface information, given the inter-related nature of content. We tackled this by designing a question-based interface that guided users straight to the right information, based on how they described their needs.
- IA design + testing: we collaborated with the client to define a new information architecture, drawing together all the content from disparate sources. We then tested the information architecture using Optimal Workshop’s Treejack tool, and refined this based on insights.
- User testing: We ran user testing to check if the solution was clear, intuitive and useful, following a task-based, ‘speak aloud’ protocol.
- Content development: We onboarded a team of expert web writers to create content for the new site.
The result
From a cluster of disconnected websites to one clear destination for climate action.
We delivered an engaging, robust website that conveys a distinct brand, secures trust and delivers clear guidance. In testing, people felt energised and optimistic about ways to make positive changes in their everyday lives.
The client was impressed that something this ambitious could be delivered to this standard, on time. It showed how strong content governance may work for future projects.
User testing showed that our work delivered on what they needed—it gave them a pathway, and showed that action was possible. Not only that, the cross-portfolio approach to the project has served as a model for future ACT Government web projects.
This was a satisfying project for True North Content. We simplified convoluted content and created something useful, versatile and scalable. And we made it easier for our community to respond to the biggest challenge of our time. It doesn’t get more rewarding than that.
“Thank you so much for your support and flexibility on this project. It’s been a pleasure to work with you.”
Caitlin Nelson, ACT Government
View the site: https://www.climatechoices.act.gov.au/
