As climate change alters landscapes and ecosystems, environmental managers need practical guidance to help identify and manage climate risks and opportunities. Biotext worked with the NSW Government to create a practical framework for climate-adapted environmental management.
We codesigned stakeholder workshops to understand the information needs of environmental managers, and developed a climate-adapted management framework to fill a critical gap in the available guidance.
Our role
- Business analysis
- User research
- Information architecture
- Content design and structure
- Web writing
- Copyediting and proofreading
- Work with subject matter experts
Our solution
Our research phase involved working with the department to design and facilitate a series of stakeholder workshops. These sessions focused on understanding the current levels of knowledge and experience in climate-adapted management approaches – and where existing guidance was lacking.
Using our analysis of workshop insights, we refined a clear framework for environmental managers to follow, based on their current level of climate awareness, and in alignment with existing NSW and global climate adaptation standards and guidelines. We refined the framework sections to make sure guidance was presented sequentially and in a way that was relevant for the environmental management sector.
During our quality assurance phase, we drafted the framework copy to fit with the style and tone of the broader website. Content was refined based on feedback from user representatives and subject matter experts within the department. We took different approaches for different types of content to ensure each page was fit for purpose:
- framework pages balanced contextual information with concise instruction
- introductory pages gradually built understanding of core concepts and steps
- a PDF download provided immediate, practical ideas to inspire action.
Our favourite part was translating intangible concepts into practical information, to help users implement a values-based, First Nations–informed approach to adapting to climate change.
Outcomes
- Workshops and synthesised insights for 9 key areas of environmental management
- Framework structure and written content for the Land and water management section of the AdaptNSW website
- Supporting PDF download of practical management actions