Creating the University of California’s Sustainability Annual Report Website
Changing the way you create an annual report is not easy. The transition from a print to a digital presentation can be a daunting journey. Openbox9 guided the University of California through a new process and platform with experience, creativity, and commitment to their mission in order to create an intuitive and informative sustainability annual report website.
Farewell to a PDF very few read, and welcome to a beautiful and useful interactive website. The culture of sustainability that guides UC as they grow and operate is now brought to life through a new digital report.
Apples & Oranges
Consisting of 18 locations including campuses, health systems, and laboratories, UC’s commitment to sustainability is made and carried out by each location. The website enables users to interact with data at a systemwide roll-up level and at the level of each location. Collective progress of the institution can be measured alongside the ways each location contributes to the overall impact.
As circumstances differs between each location – from geography, to size, to history, to resources – the report narrative provides the context needed to derive meaning from the numbers. Connections between campuses and their corresponding health systems, between locations and their stories, and between the system as a whole and their individual parts creates story-telling not previously possible with a linear PDF report.
Openbox9 linked UC’s raw data files to interactive data visualizations. The strategic and technical solutions increase user engagement and enables the UC team to make real-time updates. The sustainability website allows users to explore specific data points, filter views for clarity, and digest information within context to make sense of and interpret actionable insights from the data.
Numbers are turned into stories, linking the work of the UC community to quantifiable outcomes. Communication and digital strategy solutions allow website users with varied interests to deep dive into the information important to them within a cohesive narrative. UC is given snapshots of shareable information to promote their work and lead users to engage with the full report.
Data Strategy to Tell a Story
The University of California’s commitment to sustainability impacts decisions about energy sources and water use as well as education, research, and public service priorities. Decentralized locations are aligned around a common commitment to steward resources, education, and innovation for the public good.
There are countless data points to quantify progress toward their commitment. We started by defining the main message and its purpose – what is the primary idea the audience needs to know, and how do they use that information? Defining the message and utility for each policy area guided our designers in choosing the best means of communication – how to most effectively show change over time, or the percentage of cost savings; how to depict steps being taken to transfer reliance from one energy source to another, or visualize the reduction in usage.
This process ensured the visual communication solutions were not merely ornamental. Visual interest enhances understanding and provides utility to the various audience types who review, learn from, and use the report.
Conclusion
UC’s commitment to sustainability is comprehensive and influential. Openbox9 had the honor of using our experience to navigate through the process of change. The result is a sustainability annual report that engages the user and celebrates the full story of UC’s work.
The University of California’s sustainability annual report website shows off their work and impact creating a sustainable community, inspiring us all to take action for a sustainable future. Contact us for data visualization, strategy, design, and development solutions for your sustainability website.
