1st overall at uOttaHacks.
TIMELINE
January 2026 (72h)
TEAM
1 designer (me!)
2 devs
1 PM
ROLE
Product design
Visual design
SKILLS
Product design
Product strategy
Prototyping
01 / Initial Planning
The Thales Challenge
The Arctic is unpredictable. Conditions constantly change, and routes shift without warning. For professional mariners, this is a problem, and for the average person, even beginning to understand the Arctic feels impossible.
This led our team to ask: Why is understanding the Arctic still so complicated that even professionals spend days analyzing?
3+ different views are needed to plan ONE route!
Current Trade Routes
Weather Conditions
Why does this matter?
Understanding the Arctic isn’t just an industry concern… it’s something that impacts the world.
12-15%
of global shipping goes through Arctic trade routes.
80%
of Arctic data require experts to understand.
4x
more ice melting in the Arctic than globally.
02 / Research
Personas
Percy
Maritime Route Planner
Needs:
Easy-to-use platform for quick decisions
Accurate data that is easily seen and interpreted
Pain Points:
Features must be as informative as possible to serve his professional work.
Johnny
A little boy learning about the Arctic
Needs:
Simple interface that resembles apps he's already familiar with.
Pain Points:
Simplicity must be balanced with the complexity of the data.
Problem Statement:
How might we close the gap between Arctic expertise and public understanding?
03 / The Solution
We designed a web app that simplifies the complexities of the Arctic through 3 main methods:
Visual - Live Map
Users can see live trade routes
in real time.
Mental - Dashboard
Data is broken down and displayed on a clear dashboard.
Physical - Interactive 3D Models
Users can play with our 3D model and learn about each vehicle in a fun way!
04 / Implementation
Challenge:
How can we balance heavy branding with accessibility?
Moodboard
Creating a moodboard early-on helped us actually see the visual direction. This helped with decisions like where to include more elaborate visuals and where to prioritize accessibility and clarity.
For example, the red target-inspired borders were only used on the landing page to create atmosphere without overwhelming the overall interface.
Initial Sketches
I thought V2 had a stronger identity + cleaner visual, so I went with the ship design!
Select Iterations
Result
We ended up winning:
1st overall
2nd for the Thales Challenge!
06 / Learnings
Working on a team of non-designers
Design is often reduced to just “making things look aesthetic,” something I especially noticed while working with a team of non-designers. I often found myself in a position where teammates wanted to add extra buttons or features that would just make the interface feel cluttered.
This was my first time having to explain how decisions like hierarchy, spacing, and restraint weren’t just visual choices, but improvements to the experience. And it taught me that a big part of design is not just creating solutions, but communicating effectively to others. (And I was able to spread design propaganda about our importance! :)
The Hackathon Mindset
Unlike traditional projects, hackathons prioritize unique concepts and rapid execution over something polished. The short timeframe forced us to work efficiently, make quick decisions, and continuously re-evaluate our direction.
Through this experience, I learned the importance of iterating frequently and refining ideas as development progressed. And to let go of my perfectionist mindset. Sometimes, the end result was more important than how you got there.
Though if I could go back, I would definitely want to focus more on the UX rather than the UI!