After conducting initial interviews with stakeholders and producing a catalog of related products as shown in the below matrix, I validated a demand in the market and an opportunity to offer a valuable product.

2020 UPDATE: A year after creating this project, Google Maps introduced features to track forest fires, among other natural disasters.

After conducting thorough interviews with prospective users, I was able to identify distinct types of users based on their use case scenarios, goals, and motivations.

With an understanding of the user’s goals and motivations, I conducted a brainstorming session to explore different ways to satisfy their needs. I defined acceptance criteria to measure the effectiveness or ‘success’ of each scheme.

Story maps were produced to anticipate and simulate use case scenarios.

As an architect by training, I approach user flow diagrams as if I am creating an architectural plan with an overall circulation (user flow), distinct rooms (pages) and doors (actions/transitions).

I use the paper prototyping process the way that a director would storyboard an animation: Each screen is cataloged as a ‘frame’ or moment in the user experience. The mock-up effectively reveals awkward transitions or areas that need to be improved.