Clarkdale Water Conservation
Puzzle-piece park signage that makes water systems intuitive — featured in ASU's Arizona Water Innovation Initiative newsletter.
The Brief · Design Challenge"How might we communicate the interconnected logic of landscape water management to park visitors in under 5 seconds — without any jargon?"
Design Principles
Visual metaphor over text
A puzzle piece explains what a paragraph can't.
ADA-first, aesthetics second
Accessibility shapes the layout, not the reverse.
Consistency with the park system
Every sign reads as part of one family.
< 5s
Scan time
Full
ADA compliance
ASU Newsletter
Recognition
Installed
Status
Key Challenges
User Challenges
- 1.Visitors were ignoring standard signs.
- 2.Water basin concepts felt too technical for a general audience.
- 3.Signs needed to work for all ages and literacy levels.
Design & Constraint Challenges
- 1.ADA height, contrast, and font requirements constrained layout.
- 2.Sign had to integrate with the existing Selna-Mongini STEAM Park visual system.
- 3.Physical production constraints limited color complexity.
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Research artifact
Drop in an affinity diagram, journey map, or synthesis board that shaped the direction.
Situation
The Town of Clarkdale, Arizona was transforming the Selna-Mongini STEAM Park into a living classroom for water education — but standard signage was being ignored. Visitors needed to understand landscape basin systems without any technical background, in the middle of a casual park visit.
Task
As part of ASU's Project Cities program in Fall 2024, I designed educational signage for the STEAM Park — focusing on user experience and interpretive communication to translate complex water and STEAM concepts into clear, visually compelling designs for youth, families, and adult visitors.
Action
- Researched best practices for interpretive communication — how to present complex environmental and STEAM concepts to non-expert audiences.
- Designed the Landscape Basins puzzle-piece sign — five interlocking puzzle pieces, each explaining a different basin function with illustrations and plain-language descriptions.
- Used the puzzle piece as a visual metaphor for interconnected systems — making the concept of how basins work together immediately intuitive without a single technical word.
- Ensured full ADA compliance — sign height, contrast ratios, font sizing — so the signage worked for all visitors including children and people with accessibility needs.
- Integrated the design with the broader STEAM Park visual system for consistency across the park.
- Worked alongside Clarkdale town staff and used grant funding from Impact Water – Arizona to bring the signage to life.
Result
- Sign installed in the Selna-Mongini STEAM Park — now part of Clarkdale's official water education infrastructure.
- Work featured in ASU's Arizona Water Innovation Initiative newsletter (March 2026) — recognized as a model for community-centered water education design.
- Puzzle-piece metaphor praised as the most effective educational device in the signage system.
- Design contributed to a collaborative effort between ASU, the Town of Clarkdale, Impact Water – Arizona, and community donors — proving that student design work can create lasting civic impact.
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Process & exploration
Sketches, flow diagrams, wireframes, or iteration shots.
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Final outcome
Hero shot of the final screen, artifact, or installed deliverable.
Tech Stack
Adobe IllustratorInDesignPhysical prototypingFigma
Research Methods
Interpretive communication designEnvironmental graphic designADA auditingVisual metaphor designCommunity-centered design
Tags
Environmental DesignVisual DesignWayfindingWater EducationCivic ImpactASU Project Cities
Lessons Learned
- "The puzzle piece metaphor came from asking 'how does a child understand a complex system?' — not from a design brief. The best design decisions often come from reframing the question entirely."
- "Environmental design taught me that the best UX is often the most invisible — you don't notice it working, you just understand."
- "Seeing your work installed in a real park and featured in a published newsletter is a completely different feeling from a screen prototype. It makes the responsibility feel very real."