From research data to web-based policy tools: User-centered design techniques in the development of the AgMIP impacts explorer

Making research results accessible and transforming them to usable information for policy and decision making through a web-based tool is a complex challenge. Research projects are generally not designed to meet the information needs of specific stakeholder groups. Furthermore, tools developed in these projects are usually intended to disseminate research data on a wide scale, not to provide answers to specific questions of these stakeholders. User-centered design techniques can guide the development process of such tools, to enhance their usefulness and thus the applicability of the research outcomes for the intended audience. We applied techniques for user requirements analysis of the Impacts Explorer tool in the AgMIP research project, which models the impacts of climate change on agricultural systems with a focus on farmers’ income and food security. The objective of the Impacts Explorer is to support users in different continents, with different requirements and levels of knowledge, in developing adaptation plans in agricultural management.
This paper discusses the approach we followed for the user requirements analysis and evaluates the effectiveness of the techniques and lessons learnt. We conclude with recommendations for implementing this approach in the development of similar tools.