Overview:

Erin partnered with the University of Technology Sydney’s Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion (CSJI) to visualise a community-led research project exploring the key elements of accessible and inclusive communities.

Focusing on Glebe, Ultimo, Pyrmont and Haymarket, the project translated research into a visual roadmap that communicates clearly while reflecting the distinct character of these neighbourhoods.

Challenge:

The project required communicating research to a diverse audience, including the university, local partners and the community.

The challenge was to present place-based research in a way that was clear and engaging, while ensuring the visual language felt human and grounded in the local context. The design also needed to align with CSJI’s brand while remaining approachable.

Approach:

Erin developed a visual approach that combined structured communication with a strong sense of place.

Hand-drawn illustrations introduced warmth and personality, while elements such as inner-Sydney terrace houses helped situate the work within its local context. The design was aligned with CSJI’s red, grey and black palette, with tints used to soften the aesthetic and create a more approachable tone.

Careful attention was given to layout and hierarchy to ensure the visual roadmap could be easily understood by a wide range of audiences.

Key Outputs included:

• A visual roadmap communicating key elements of accessible and inclusive communities, including visual elements referencing local built form and neighbourhood character

Outcome:

The project resulted in a visual roadmap that communicates clearly while remaining engaging and accessible to a broad audience.

By grounding the design in the character of the neighbourhoods and incorporating a more human-centred visual language, the work supports stronger engagement with the material and enables the research to be more effectively shared with community stakeholders.

Testimonial:

“The final design exceeded our expectations. One of our key goals was to communicate data back to community in an accessible and creative way, which Erin absolutely achieved. Our team was particularly impressed at how well Erin was able to integrate our branding in a way that complemented our goals. The design is clear, easy to understand, and exciting to engage with…

From the outset, Erin used diverse imagery in our data visualisation. With other designers, we’ve had to go back and request more diverse representation but Erin got this right from the very beginning which we really appreciate…

We are really grateful to collaborate with Erin and are looking forward to working with her again in the future.”

— Amber Loomis, Senior Social Impact Practitioner
Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion, University of Technology Sydney