This project became a real turning point for me. At the time, I was a junior designer at an agency that focused on digital products. I usually worked on redesigns and smaller tasks, but one day we won a government tender from the Murmansk region, and I was trusted to design everything from scratch. It was more than just an interface. I was responsible for the logic, visuals, structure and interactions.
"Young Arctic" is a platform created to engage young people in the region's social, cultural and economic life. It included a web portal and a mobile app. The main goal was to make information about opportunities, support and direct contact with local authorities easy to access.
I was the only designer on the project and coordinated everything related to visuals and logic:
The client came in with three key problems:
I started with a feature map that showed what the platform would include and how the sections and user flows were connected. Once the structure was approved, I moved on to designing the interfaces.
The project turned out to be large in scale. I designed all the states, transitions, error messages, filters and interactions. It was important not just to draw pages but to build a living system. I focused on logic, a consistent visual language and predictable user behavior.
I created a full UI Kit, from colors and icons to cards and tables. Every component had clear descriptions for states, behavior and responsiveness. This sped up development and ensured a consistent style across both web and mobile versions.
In the platform, I aimed to bring together all the sections that matched the client's needs:
The section for current updates in the region. I made it feel lively and user-friendly. Content is grouped by topic, and the cards with previews, reactions and dates create a sense of activity. The tag cloud helps users quickly find what they need. All of this keeps young people engaged and makes reading the news feel like a natural habit.
The mobile version is just as user-friendly as the web one. I kept all the key features, including collections, filters, fullscreen view and smooth navigation through the bottom menu. The interface is light and easy to use.
Help engage young people through gamification. Each one is designed as a card with points that can be exchanged for rewards. I added tabs and filters to make navigation easy.
Shows current openings, including volunteer opportunities. I added filters for city, salary and work format, and the cards include all the key details. There is a quick apply option and the ability to hide listings you're not interested in.
Mobile interfaces for jobs and surveys are adapted for quick actions. Large tap areas, clear statuses and simple navigation make the experience smooth and easy.
The events section lets users sign up for upcoming activities. Each event includes a description, date, format, registration, address and tags. Nearby, users see suggestions for similar events. This helps them discover new things and stay engaged.
Makes it easier to apply. The process is broken into steps, with a city search and a user-friendly budget form. The interface is simple and clear, even for first-time users.
Make it easy to get answers or ask questions. The questions are grouped by topic, and the contact form is always accessible. This keeps the service clear and builds trust.
The mobile help section keeps all the same features. There is quick search, a tab for submitted requests and an easy-to-use form with tips and attachments. Users understand what to do and when to expect a reply, which builds even more trust.
In the store, users can exchange points for merchandise. Points are earned through tests, surveys and volunteering, which encourages participation and makes the experience more fun.
A full admin panel was developed. It allows real-time tracking of user activity, content management and request moderation.
The interface needed to be both modern and simple, so it could work for a wide audience. We didn't have access to analytics, so I built A/B tests directly into the platform's surveys. Users chose between interface options and earned points for participating. This allowed us to:
Six months after the release:
The main result: Murmansk Region ranked third in the country for youth policy implementation among regions with a population under 1 million. This proved that thoughtful UX can have a real impact on social processes.
The "Young Arctic" project marked my professional shift from a junior to a middle-level designer who can build complex systems. It wasn't a business product. It was a socially important platform where I saw the real power of UX design for the first time. I'm proud to have been part of it.