SeaCitizen: Community-Powered Oceans

Concept and prototype of a citizen science platform.

Client

Ironhack (Bootcamp project)

Date

Dec, 23

Timeframe

2 weeks

Team

Lucas Pimentel, Michaela Lemm

Overview

This case study examines the creation of SeaCitizen, a project undertaken at the Ironhack bootcamp.

Our challenge was to utilize data and analysis from Ironhack’s Data Analysis students, who had studied marine mammal distribution in the Arctic.

Motivated by their insights into the effects of climate change on marine life, we chose to innovate a platform focused on marine species identification and community-driven conservation efforts. The project entailed four days of research and four days of ideation and prototyping, aiming to engage users in the crucial task of preserving marine biodiversity.

This case study examines the creation of SeaCitizen, a project undertaken at the Ironhack bootcamp.

Our challenge was to utilize data and analysis from Ironhack’s Data Analysis students, who had studied marine mammal distribution in the Arctic.

We also have a short presentation for this case study, and a prototype of a landing page in case you want to check them out :).

Prototype

Click on the image to open our prototype!

For this project, we experimented with prototyping using variables in Figma to navigate through the screens - we are happy to share the project if you want to check it out!

Click on the image to open our prototype!

For this project, we experimented with prototyping using variables in Figma to navigate through the screens - we are happy to share the project if you want to check it out!

Research

Our research combined user surveys and interviews with extensive market and competitor analysis, revealing key insights into the challenges and needs of marine life enthusiasts, and identifying gaps in existing conservation tools and platforms. The key findings were:

Difficulty in Species Identification:

Many enthusiasts, including a kayaker we interviewed, face challenges in accurately identifying marine species.

Logging Observations

Water sports enthusiasts, especially divers, frequently record their sightings, indicating a strong interest in marine life documentation.

Citizen Science

This concept emerged as important, demonstrating the potential for public involvement in scientific research, particularly in marine conservation

Market Gap

Despite the success of platforms like iNaturalist in community engagement, there is a lack of a specialized platform for marine life, presenting an opportunity for SeaCitizen.

Meet Ocean Taylor

Ocean Taylor, our user persona for SeaCitizen, is an ardent marine enthusiast facing challenges in species identification. This passion for marine life and desire to contribute to environmental conservation is coupled with a need for a community of similar interests.

Ocean represents the typical user we aim to assist with SeaCitizen, emphasizing the platform’s focus on easy identification and community engagement in marine conservation.

Problem Statement and HMW

In this phase, we defined the core challenges our project aims to address. The problem statement succinctly captures the primary issue faced by marine enthusiasts, guiding our design process.

The “How Might We” question then directs our focus towards innovative solutions, framing our approach to enhancing the experience of marine life enthusiasts and contributing effectively to marine conservation.

The Solution

Above you found the (almost) fully functional prototype for the project, but here's a brief description of what was added to it.

Our solution incorporates:

Projects feed

A feed where users can discover and get up to date with what their friends have posted

Community IDs

A community discussion section under the observations for the ID discussion.

Marine-life tailored input

Input fields tailor-made for marine life observations; among other features.

Conclusion

Throughout the SeaCitizen project, we gleaned several key insights:

Variables in Figma and Prototyping

Our experience with prototyping using variables for screen and menu changes was insightful. While effective as a proof of concept, it highlighted the need for refinement, especially in animations.

Next Steps:

Should we choose to further develop SeaCitizen, we would focus on incorporating an AI tool for species identification, gamification elements to boost engagement, and educational components for marine conservation awareness. These learnings are pivotal for our ongoing commitment to improvement and user-centric design. If the project advances, our next steps will include refining the prototype, exploring funding opportunities, and broadening the platform’s reach to a larger audience.

Designed and developed by me