The Ministry of Environment and Parks is responsible for the protection, management, and conservation of BC's water, land, air and living resources—including their network of recreation sites and trails. In addition to BC’s Provincial Parks, Recreation Sites and Trails BC (formerly BC Forest Service recreation sites and trails) provides numerous recreation opportunities through sound management of public areas on Crown Land, often in some of the most remote and beautiful parts of BC’s backcountry.
In order to provide visitors with high quality recreation opportunities that meet their needs and styles, RSTBC needs to publish reliable, up to date site and trail information. That same information and data is also crucial for staff decision-making and management of the recreational areas. Good digital tools make for great visitor experiences, effective stewardship of the land, and productive use of staff time.
The Ministry of Environment partnered with OXD as part of their four-year digital transformation strategy to better understand how they might improve the ecosystem of tools for Recreation Sites and Trails (RST) staff and visitors alike.
Through a comprehensive design research phase, we uncovered the needs of users, held opportunities workshops, and set clear priorities for their Product Owner, breaking trail for a digital experience that helps visitors get what they need and enabling staff to focus on what they do best.
We began the project with in-depth discovery research to understand the current system, how it’s used, and the pain points RSTBC staff are experiencing. We held user interviews with staff and visitors where we focused on articulating and understanding their needs.
This qualitative research was then used to help us identify key insights about the current system’s challenges and opportunities in collaborative workshops with the project team. We highlighted two essential perspectives to address:
- For visitors: Reliable, up-to-date information is critical for trip planning and recreation. They want an engaging, intuitive website that simplifies their experience before, during, and after their visits.
- For staff: Managing a vast network of sites and trails is no small feat. Staff need tools that streamline administrative tasks and free up time for high-value activities like site management and financial planning.
By balancing these perspectives, we were able to deliver findings and a clear set of priorities for the RSTBC team that will enhance both the public experience and operational efficiency.
Our collaborative efforts led to the delivery of a robust set of recommendations that validated the need to redesign the public website and guide the transformation. Highlights include:
- Enhancing content: Aligning site information with how people plan their outdoor adventures, ensuring relevant, consistent content.
- Improving usability: Addressing accessibility concerns and providing an easier, more flexible approach to how visitors can find and explore recreation sites and trails.
With these priorities in place, our team delivered the findings to the RSTBC Agile project team to incorporate into the design and build of the new website. OXD is continuing to do more in-depth visitor research to better understand the people who visit Recreation Sites and Trails.