Designing for Baltimore’s Voice: My Block Counts Redesign
Project type
Duration
Role
Problem
MyBlockCounts environmental justice app was outdated with usability issues and severely underused. 67% of users abandoned surveys within 2 minutes due to confusing navigation and overwhelming interface. English-only design excluded 35% of target communities. The entire app needed a complete redesign.
Research Question
Design Process
Research & Discovery
Coordinated with stakeholders (T.H.E. EJ Lab team, WYPR hosts, community partners)
Analyzed user feedback from app store reviews and support tickets
Conducted competitive analysis of 3-4 civic engagement apps
Collaborated with development team to understand technical constraints
Before & After
App Icon Transformation
Before
Generic GPS satellite icon with basic speech bubbles
After
Community-focused environmental justice symbol with integrated data visualization elements
Result
Icon now clearly communicates environmental justice advocacy instead of generic location services
Information Architecture Overhaul
Before
Users dumped directly into 45-question survey with zero context
After
Strategic 4-screen onboarding that transforms users into community advocates
Result
75% reduction in user confusion, 92% onboarding completion
what i created
Cultural-first language selection (English, Spanish, Chinese)
Community-centered illustrations featuring diverse Baltimore residents
Progressive value revelation through environmental justice storytelling
Celebration moments after each survey section
Survey Experience Transformation
Before
Text-heavy questions causing cognitive overload, no progress indication, submit button buried at bottom, no question numbering
After
Visual categorization with engaging interaction patterns, animated progress with contextual icons, floating submit button, clear question counters
Result
60% improvement in completion rates
what i created
Custom illustration system for 8 categories (Transportation, Health, Safety)
Animated progress visualization with contextual category icons (heart for health, truck for transportation, etc.)
Clear question numbering ("2 of 10") showing progress and remaining questions
Floating submit button for easy access without scrolling
Visual Identity & Navigation Redesign
Before
Generic GPS icon, inconsistent styling, buried settings, unclear CTAs, button-heavy settings interface
After
Community-focused environmental justice branding with intuitive navigation and clean settings hierarchy
Result
45% faster task completion
what i created
Brand Integration: Extended EJ Lab green palette into accessible color spectrum with custom environmental justice iconography
Component Library: 24-piece design system ensuring consistency across 15+ screens with strategic information hierarchy
Settings Transformation: Button-heavy interface → clean list format with expandable language options and flag-based selection
Navigation Redesign: Apple Maps-style location integration with proper action hierarchy (standard vs destructive styling)
Key Design Decisions
Why Animated Progress Over Static Bars
After A/B testing with 50 users, animated progress indicators increased completion by 34%. The contextual category icons (heart for health, truck for transportation) created emotional connection to their specific concerns.
Why I Redesigned All Survey Categories
Original categories were abstract ("Physical Disorder"). I redesigned around concrete community concerns ("Transportation Issues") with custom illustrations. Reduced user confusion by 67%.
Why Language Selection Comes First
Research showed language barriers weren't just functional they were about community trust. Making language selection the first interaction signaled the app was built for diverse communities.
Testing & Results
My Process
Created interactive Figma prototypes for 5 key user flows
Conducted 12 moderated usability tests (4 per language)
A/B tested 3 different progress visualization approaches
Ran accessibility audits with WAVE and manual keyboard testing
Key Fndings
Cultural representation in illustrations directly impacted trust and completion rates.
Impact
Reflection
This project taught me that designing for social impact requires a fundamentally different approach than traditional product design. Working solo on MyBlockCounts pushed me to think beyond aesthetic improvements I had to understand the cultural nuances of environmental justice communities and translate complex civic engagement into intuitive digital experiences. The biggest breakthrough came when I realized users weren't just collecting data, they were participating in activism. This insight shaped every design decision, from the celebratory onboarding flow to the contextual progress icons that made each survey feel personal and meaningful. The 60% improvement in completion rates proved that thoughtful UX design can directly amplify community voices in environmental advocacy.
See how the redesign is amplifying community voices: Download on the App Store
