Index

Case study · Portfolio

Selected Work

NearAid

NearAid is a hyper-local, multilingual community platform that connects neighbors during electricity or water outages.

Design

Case Study

Overview

A focused community product designed around urgent local coordination, language access, and trust during essential-service outages.

Context

Tools

01 / Problem

Outages create confusion before they create coordination.

NearAid reframes an emergency moment as a local information system: neighbors can report disruptions, confirm restoration status, and find help without relying on a single language, channel, or authority source.

02 / Value

A calmer way to ask for help — and offer it.

The experience prioritizes clear reporting flows, location-aware updates, and multilingual accessibility so residents can move from uncertainty to action quickly. The interface is designed to feel practical, legible, and reassuring under pressure.

Signal over noise

Every screen reduces the number of decisions required in a stressful moment, using clear status states and direct community actions.

Designed for mixed-literacy use

Content patterns emphasize short labels, recognizable actions, and multilingual support rather than dense instructions.

03 / Outcome

A service pattern for local trust.

The final direction combines outage reporting, neighbor-to-neighbor assistance, and localized updates into a single lightweight mobile experience. The system balances urgency with calm typography, clear hierarchy, and predictable interaction patterns.

04 / Reflection

What the project clarified.

Designing NearAid reinforced that emergency tools do not need to look dramatic to feel useful. The strongest design decisions were the quiet ones: reducing friction, making status legible, and giving people a way to act without escalating anxiety.

Suhani Mukherjee · Selected Work