I am Pedro and I design to turn ideas into real projects

European Environment Agency

UX/UI Design for European Agency of Environment Website Digital Product: EEA Website

Overview

The European Environment Agency, based in Copenhagen, Denmark, is responsible for providing independent, reliable information about the environment across Europe. The website serves as a crucial platform for disseminating environmental data, reports, and findings to the public, policymakers, and environmental professionals.

Problem Statement

The existing EEA website hosted a vast amount of valuable environmental information. However, both users and internal staff found it difficult to locate relevant data efficiently. The site lacked an intuitive structure and consistency, causing critical research and insights to become lost in a sea of less pertinent content. The challenge was to redesign the site in a way that improved information accessibility, usability, and navigation.

Figure 1. Bad practises in UX Design.

Figure 2. Lack of consistency in structure and hiearchy.

Research & Analysis

As part of a comprehensive UX strategy, I led a User Experience Workshop with EEA employees to assess the key pain points and opportunities for improvement in the public website. This included:

User Behavior Heatmaps: Analyzing where users were struggling to find information and what paths they took through the site. This data was crucial in identifying inefficiencies in navigation and information architecture.
Key Findings: We discovered significant issues with search functionality, content hierarchy, and the general usability of the site.

Figure 3. Heatmaps in the original website.

Design Process

Wireframing & Prototyping: Based on the workshop findings, I developed a series of high-fidelity wireframes and prototypes using Figma. These designs aimed to correct major UX issues, streamline navigation, and improve the overall information flow.
Accessibility Improvements: Key focus areas included enhancing the website’s accessibility for users across different platforms and ensuring compliance with web accessibility standards.
Information Architecture Overhaul: A new, consistent structure was designed to make environmental data easier to find and interact with, reducing information overload.

Figures 3 and 4. Sample of the Webiste High-fidelity mockups.

User Testing

The redesigned wireframes and mockups were subjected to user testing, focusing on both internal staff and external users. Testing tasks included locating specific data, accessing reports, and using the enhanced search functionality.

Key Results:

EEA Website Testing Results

Improved Navigation: Staff and external users found the new navigation more intuitive, significantly reducing the number of clicks required to find information.
Streamlined Data Access: The new structure allowed users to access relevant data more quickly, improving workflow efficiency for EEA staff.
Enhanced Search Functionality: The redesigned search feature allowed users to find specific reports and data sets with ease, addressing one of the key pain points of the original site.

Figure 5. User testing results (before & after UI/UX implementations).

	Before	After
Accessibility (Before/After UI Design)	5	9
Country Landing Page (Intuitivity)	6	8
Customer Journey (Simplicity)	5	8
Related News (Understanding Rate)	7	9

Final Design

The final proposal incorporated all the insights gathered during the workshops and user testing. The new website design for the European Environment Agency improved navigation, enhanced accessibility, and ensured a more streamlined and engaging user experience.

Key Design Features

Simplified navigation with clear paths to relevant information.
Accessible design adhering to web standards.
Improved presentation of environmental data, making it easier for users to digest and utilize.
A user-friendly interface designed for both public users and EEA staff.

Figure 6.Final European Environment Agency website version.

Impact and Results

The website redesign resulted in a significant improvement in user experience. Internal staff reported that tasks which previously took several minutes were now completed in a fraction of the time, and external users found it easier to navigate and access reports. The project highlighted the importance of iterative user testing and prototyping in creating a website that meets the needs of both staff and the public.

Increased User Satisfaction: The redesign significantly improved user satisfaction based on post-launch surveys and usability tests.
Operational Efficiency: The streamlined interface led to quicker access to data, saving time for both EEA staff and external users.

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. Leonardo Da Vinci, polymath.