Mendocino County Safe Space Project / Non-Profit for Queer Youth
Website Design
Branding
Usability
UX Designer
UX Reseacher
Brand Designer
Create a trustworthy and informable website for the Queer youth in Mendocino County with the MCSSP
Focused on understanding how websites reflected who they are and established trust with their users.
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Competitive Analysis
Compared MCSSP with similar non-profit organizations
Affinity map
Stakeholder and community values portrays a holistic view of MCSSP's role in the community.
Focused on understanding how websites reflected who they are and established trust with their users.
Analysis showed 60% of websites use an impact statement before redirect to donation.
Establishing emotional connections via testimonials or storytelling is a common way to secure user interest.
95% of user interviews reported locals desire a visible Queer resource
Research found a majority of the Queer community in Mendocino needed for services MCSSP offered but were unaware of its offering
Making a navigable resource hub for Queer Youth in Mendocino County
Branding is a visual representation of the active Queer community
The original MCSSP website contained little content, the next step for our team was to create an information architecture based on two types of content: presenting what the organization does and what resources would be useful for queer youth.
required content
Hotline numbers
Legal Resources
Shelter & Housing Resources
Support groups (online or offline)
Counseling & Therapy Resources
Toolkits and Safety tools
Nice to have content
Community events
External links to identity-specific organizations
Research papers
Reading & film lists with queer representation
The goal of MCSSP is to be a resource and support hub not just for their local community, but for all queer youth in the United States seeking information. The site emphasized how to inform the public on what MCSSP provides, how to support this organization, and as a base of queer knowledge and resources.
To developed a visual identity that felt like home to the community MCSSP serves, branding focused on warmth, inclusivity, and reflection to establish trust and embrace positivity in user experience.
A Warm, Approachable Support Center
Webpage
Joy In Pride celebrates MCSSP’s mission and highlighted positive outlets and representation of the Queer experience and allyship.
The "narrative" page includes features focusing on positive aspects of Queer experience, a content break from resources:
Words of P.R.I.D.E
Published content related to making PRIDE a positive and informed experience.
Watchlist
Recommend and increase community exposure to positive Queer media
LGBTQ+ Spaces
Highlight local Queer-friendly or owned businesses and spaces.
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Webpage
Designed as a trusted home for queer youth and their allies in Mendocino County, Programs & Services offers a comprehensive, easy-to-navigate portal of available resources on local and national level:
Complete with a refreshed brand identity, an organized resource directory, and a donation-forward structure built to support the queer community of Mendocino County, the project addressed MCSSP's core needs: becoming a reliable service to Mendocino county.
Creative Strategy By grounding every design decision in research, from competitive analysis to trust-building strategies, the final website positions MCSSP as a credible, welcoming, and reliable resource for queer youth, allies, and parents alike. The process of creating a proper creative strategy was reliant on my team's understanding both the needs of MCSSP and the need of the locals they serve.
Designing for a community-driven nonprofit reinforced that branding is never just aesthetic. To establish trust and encourage involvment, my team had to reflect deeply on how to present MCSSP to the community. Creative strategy creation pushed me to consider beyond what a brand or digital experience can achieve, but how it can lead to the fulfillment of a mission.