Design study, Public Safety
Tsunami Zone Walk
A self-initiated design study: Help people learn whether they live or work in a tsunami zone and walk their route to high ground once.
These are self-initiated studies, not client work. Each is a fictional campaign; none was commissioned by, produced for, or approved by any agency or organization.
The brief
- Line of business
- Public Safety
- Audience
- Residents, workers, and visitors in low-lying neighborhoods along the bay and the beach.
- Objective
- Help people learn whether they live or work in a tsunami zone and walk their route to high ground once.
- When and where
- Saturday, April 17 | 9 to 11 am, Starts at Bayfront Plaza
Concept A: Calm Day Practice 12
Argues that walking the route once on a calm day is what makes it automatic on the day it matters. Type style.
Concept B: Shaking Is the Signal 12
Teaches the natural warning in plain words: near the coast, strong shaking means move to high ground once it stops. Scene style.
Concept C: Fridge Map 12
Puts the evacuation map where families look every day, right next to the school calendar and takeout menus. Grid style.
Spanish adaptation of Calm Day Practice 12
The first direction adapted rather than translated: the headline, supporting line, and call to action rewritten in Spanish, with the layout reflowed for the longer text. Type style.
What was checked
Every one of the 48 pieces was checked as it was composed. The lowest text contrast measured anywhere in this study is 5.19 to 1, against a minimum of 4.5 to 1. Type sizes are in the units of each format: pixels for digital formats, and for print, units of the drawing at the sizes shown.
| Format | Minimum type size | Smallest set | Lowest contrast |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poster, 18 by 24 inches | 11 | 13.2 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Flyer, letter | 11 | 13.5 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Social story, vertical | 13 | 13.0 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Retractable banner | 10 | 10.0 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Display ad, 160 by 600 | 10 | 10.0 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Social post, square | 13 | 13.2 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Display ad, 300 by 250 | 10 | 10.0 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Postcard, 6 by 4 inches | 13 | 13.2 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Event cover | 12 | 12.0 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Billboard | 12 | 12.0 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Email header | 11 | 11.0 | 5.19 to 1 |
| Display ad, 728 by 90 | 10 | 10.0 | 5.19 to 1 |