Problem
The website currently lists projects and tools side by side — a portfolio. It doesn't answer the funder's real question: "Why are these the right people?" When someone reads our WSF proposal and clicks through to the site, they see a catalog, not a story.
Vision
The landing page should tell a story in sequence that takes the reader from problem → system → evidence → invitation. The audience is funders, First Nations development corporations, Ministry directors, and stewardship organizations reviewing proposals — not developers browsing GitHub.
Narrative Structure
1. The Hook (hero — exists)
"Open-Source Watershed Science" — keep as-is.
2. The Problem We Solve (expand "Who We Are")
Communities and First Nations need to understand their watersheds before they can plan restoration — but the technical barriers are so high that complete assessments are never assembled at all. Critical information remains scattered, difficult to access, and overly dependent on outside specialists. We change that.
(Adapted from WSF proposal at repo/proposal_2025_wsf/proposal_2025_wsf_watershed_workflow_framework.Rmd)
3. The Pipeline (interactive DAG, narrated)
Not a standalone diagram — a guided walk-through with plain language. The reader follows the data journey:
- Start with any stream in BC → model its network (fresh)
- Delineate sub-basins (breaks) → map the floodplain (flooded)
- Detect what's changed over time (drift) → find the historic photos (fly → stac_airphoto_bc → diggs)
- Pull in elevation data (stac_dem_bc), stream temperatures (water-temp-bc), climate trends (cd)
- Build the field project (dff-2022) → go collect data → organize photos by site
- Style the maps consistently (gq) → publish the report (fpr, ngr, bookdown)
- Everything is open source. Every step links to the tool that does it.
Each hex sticker appears as the reader scrolls through. Click any hex → pkgdown site or GitHub repo.
Key framing: "This system didn't exist before we built it. No other environmental consultancy in BC has this level of integration."
4. The Evidence (current "Our Work" tiles, reframed)
"Here's what this looks like in practice" — not "projects" but proof the system works:
- Neexdzii Kwah: 14 sub-basins characterized, 760 ha tree loss quantified, governance framework delivered
- Fish passage: 40+ reports across 4 regions since 2020
- NRP: decades of nutrient data integrated, fertilization effectiveness quantified
Keep these as the detailed reference pages. The landing page links into them as evidence, not as the main attraction.
5. The Multiplier Effect (the real pitch — move up from contact page)
"Every project builds tools that benefit the next one. What we develop together becomes freely available to the broader community."
This is the value proposition for funders: your dollar doesn't just buy a report — it builds infrastructure that compounds. The tools get better, the next project costs less, the whole community benefits.
6. Open Source + Contact
GitHub link band + contact form with partnership messaging (already built).
Design Constraints
- Must work within Hugo/blogdown and the hugo-apero theme
- Custom landing page layout already exists at
layouts/index.html — extend it
- Earthy palette (forest green, river blue, parchment, cream) already established
- Responsive: icon nav on mobile, full logo on desktop (already done)
- Plain language throughout — no jargon. The reader is a watershed manager, not a software engineer.
Dependencies
References
- WSF proposal:
repo/proposal_2025_wsf/proposal_2025_wsf_watershed_workflow_framework.Rmd
- Capabilities doc:
repo/logic/samples/capabilities.md
- Current landing page:
layouts/index.html
- Pipeline DAG preview:
static/dag-preview.html
- Contact messaging: "We partner on multi-year watershed programs — building open-source tools and technical capacity alongside restoration and monitoring work."
Anti-patterns
- Don't flex on speed ("assembled in minutes") — undersells the engineering
- Don't claim Simon's tools (bcfishpass, fwapg) as ours — "building on provincial models"
- Don't use jargon (STAC, UAV, ECCC, SQL) — plain language for non-technical readers
- Don't list tools alphabetically — tell the story of how they connect
- Serif fonts work for section headings, sans-serif for hero/taglines
Problem
The website currently lists projects and tools side by side — a portfolio. It doesn't answer the funder's real question: "Why are these the right people?" When someone reads our WSF proposal and clicks through to the site, they see a catalog, not a story.
Vision
The landing page should tell a story in sequence that takes the reader from problem → system → evidence → invitation. The audience is funders, First Nations development corporations, Ministry directors, and stewardship organizations reviewing proposals — not developers browsing GitHub.
Narrative Structure
1. The Hook (hero — exists)
"Open-Source Watershed Science" — keep as-is.
2. The Problem We Solve (expand "Who We Are")
Communities and First Nations need to understand their watersheds before they can plan restoration — but the technical barriers are so high that complete assessments are never assembled at all. Critical information remains scattered, difficult to access, and overly dependent on outside specialists. We change that.
(Adapted from WSF proposal at
repo/proposal_2025_wsf/proposal_2025_wsf_watershed_workflow_framework.Rmd)3. The Pipeline (interactive DAG, narrated)
Not a standalone diagram — a guided walk-through with plain language. The reader follows the data journey:
Each hex sticker appears as the reader scrolls through. Click any hex → pkgdown site or GitHub repo.
Key framing: "This system didn't exist before we built it. No other environmental consultancy in BC has this level of integration."
4. The Evidence (current "Our Work" tiles, reframed)
"Here's what this looks like in practice" — not "projects" but proof the system works:
Keep these as the detailed reference pages. The landing page links into them as evidence, not as the main attraction.
5. The Multiplier Effect (the real pitch — move up from contact page)
"Every project builds tools that benefit the next one. What we develop together becomes freely available to the broader community."
This is the value proposition for funders: your dollar doesn't just buy a report — it builds infrastructure that compounds. The tools get better, the next project costs less, the whole community benefits.
6. Open Source + Contact
GitHub link band + contact form with partnership messaging (already built).
Design Constraints
layouts/index.html— extend itDependencies
static/dag-preview.html, needs integration)References
repo/proposal_2025_wsf/proposal_2025_wsf_watershed_workflow_framework.Rmdrepo/logic/samples/capabilities.mdlayouts/index.htmlstatic/dag-preview.htmlAnti-patterns