Chicago Piping Plovers
Non-Profit, New Website
Chicago Piping Plovers is a new website dedicated to a federally endangered species - Great Lakes Piping Plovers - who nest at Chicago’s Montrose Beach.
The site serves 2 main purposes - to provide updates and education to the general public, and to provide volunteer bird monitors with key information on monitoring the birds, and current status and conditions of the birds and the beach.
The home page tells the story of the plovers in real time, with blog post updates by multiple authors, detailing progress, and individual observations, photos, and videos.
The volunteer section of the site is password protected and includes important detailed information for monitors - safety, duties, monitoring guidelines and contact information, along with daily updates on the plovers’ progress during the critical nesting period.
Key strengths of the new site
Home page is clean and uncluttered, displaying large, engaging images, and public updates.
Volunteers-only log-in on the home page allows for easy access to non-public information for monitors.
Detailed information for volunteer monitors is organized for easy viewing and quick updating.
Provides a central hub of vital information for all local birding and conservation organizations, as well as the public.
A new logo provides a clear and distinctive identity for the organization.
“Judy Cheske is very easy to work with, highly responsive, and her designs are straightforward and intuitive. I started using the website and adding to it with very little coaching or direction, a sign of good website design. But when I needed help, Judy was always available to guide and help.”
— TAMIMA ITANI, ILLINOIS ORNITHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION