Humanising research stories

Finalist – Best Design Awards. Humanising research stories for a wider audience.

Canterbury Medical Research Foundation (CMRF) is the invaluable link between supporters, scientists and people. The Foundation fundraises, provides resource to researchers, and builds awareness of the great brains that the region holds.

CMRF has a monumental job – they needed a website to echo the impact that their research backing makes to our local community and to the global academic field. Publica came on board to design and develop their new digital footprint.

Working across specialisations such as brain, diabetes, heart and cancer research, the influence of CMRF’s support is widespread. The website is a key portal in showcasing research, offering grant opportunities, enabling donations, and event information automation. Showcasing a range of research areas and encouraging a variety of user actions, the platform prioritises a consistent and comforting brand presence to keep the user experience grounded.

The challenge, and ultimately the website’s key mark of success, is in the way the design humanises research stories. Using contemporary design principles and front-end animation, the brand is brought further to life. A responsive layout brings energy to the research output by visualising the meaning of medical advancements to patients and their families.

In an industry that is entirely motivated by its patient outcomes, the Foundation now has a platform that shows this connection on screen.