Overview
A multilingual digital platform helping refugee claimants navigate Canada’s legal system with clarity, humanity, and trust.
The Challenge
Commissioned by Kinbrace Refugee Housing and Support in partnership with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), My Refugee Claim aimed to transform an overwhelming, text-heavy legal document into a human-centred, culturally sensiitive, multilingual digital guide accessible to refugee claimants navigating an uncertain journey.
The project required deep coordination across a wide advisory panel of legal, humanitarian, and refugee protection experts. I facilitated and synthesized feedback from these stakeholders at every stage—balancing legal accuracy, cultural sensitivity, and user comprehension. Starting with content that lacked hierarchy or clear pathways, I led the development of a content strategy that organized thousands of words into intuitive, digestible sections. Working closely with UX, we designed a dual-mode architecture that allowed users to either read the guide linearly or access key concepts on demand through an interactive, cross-linked glossary and quick menu access.
The experience needed to support 13 languages, accommodate ESL readers, and integrate text-to-speech across all versions. It also had to feel welcoming and emotionally safe with friendly illustrations, a calming palette, and supportive UI cues guiding users through a potentially high-stress process. I supervised the full visual development, managed the translation workflow and quality assurance, selected AI voice profiles for each language, and oversaw the integration of HubSpot for multilingual training session sign-ups.
My Role
- Project Leadership & Stakeholder Coordination: Served as Senior Producer, facilitating ongoing feedback from an advisory panel of legal, humanitarian, and refugee protection experts. Balanced diverse perspectives while ensuring content remained accurate, culturally sensitive, and user-focused.
- Content Strategy & Information Architecture: Led the organization of thousands of words into an intuitive, dual-access structure—supporting both linear reading and on-demand exploration via an interactive glossary. Guided editorial workflows to prioritize clarity, usability, and comprehension for users across multiple languages and literacy levels.
- UX & Design Oversight: Collaborated with the UX designer to define wireframes and content flow. Worked with the art director, illustrator, and visual designer to create a friendly, painterly interface, approachable iconography, and consistent, accessible visual language throughout the experience.
- Multilingual Production & QA: Managed translation workflows for 13 languages using WPML, oversaw review and approval processes, and coordinated integration of text-to-speech functionality with voice casting recommendations for each language.
- Technology & Integration: Oversaw the full development of the site, managing production workflow, technical requirements, review cycles, and deliverables. Directed the integration of HubSpot APIs to support multilingual training session sign-ups and scheduling, and supervised QA testing to ensure technical accuracy, accessibility, and consistency across all platforms
- Team Leadership & Training: Coordinated cross-functional teams including content producers, UX, visual designers, developers, and translators, ensuring milestones were met and deliverables aligned with strategic goals.
Outcome
This project won a gold award in the Humanitarian Action & Services category at the 2nd Annual Anthem Awards in 2022. Created by the The Webby Awards, The Anthem Awards honors the purpose & mission-driven work of people, companies, and organizations worldwide.The resource has become Canada’s most trusted digital legal resources for refugee claimants with hundreds of thousands
