The HCDE Master’s program is completed through a capstone project that demonstrates the user-centered design process beginning to end. My group chose to study Hazus-MH, a natural disaster mitigation/loss estimation program created by FEMA, that runs on ArcGIS. Due to my background, I was the designated graphic design lead for the 2 quarter duration of the project. Much of the graphic design work came in the design and formatting of our extensive documentation and communication deliverables.
Hazus-MH is a complex piece of software, with complex data preparation and analysis processes. To counter this complexity, the graphics of our communication pieces needed to be clean, clear, and modern. I also created visualizations where appropriate to further clarify and contextualize information (for example, the Hazus-MH Workflow visualization). The color scheme of blues and grays relate to the types of hazards Hazus-MH analyzes - earthquake, floods, and hurricanes. The line-work on the presentation section delineators evoke topographic maps. The next project, the Hazus Report Build Video and Poster, are stylistically different from our extensive documentation. The presentational pieces are less formalized, meant catching the eye, and for quicker consumption. They also have a different audience than our documentation.
