ARUA-SFS: A resource hub for better food systems

Client: University of Pretoria
Project lead & client management: Design for Development
Design and Illustration: Unfold
Website development: Matogen digital

ARUA-SFS, a centre of excellence in sustainable food systems, needed a user-friendly website that makes finding resources easy. Unfold developed their logo and colour palette, creating a strong visual foundation for the site.

Structuring the Site

We started with a sitemap to organise key sections—impact areas, projects, members, partners, and funders—so everything connects seamlessly. The Resources page, in particular, needed careful planning to ensure searching is simple and intuitive.

Prototyping the Experience

Using Adobe XD, we designed a mobile-first prototype that helped ARUA-SFS visualise the layout and test navigation before development.

Visualising Impact

Impact Areas are at the heart of the website, so we designed custom icons and an interactive infographic that presents projects, Sustainable Development Goals, Agenda 2063 goals, and project locations—all in a compact, mobile-friendly format that works just as well on desktop.

Adding Personality

To create a sense of connection between impact areas, we designed a light, flowing pattern inspired by sustainable food systems. These subtle details add warmth to the design, appearing across sections and as static elements on the sides of pages.

Making Navigation Easy

We used submenus to keep content structured and added filtering tools so users can quickly find resources and news. To bring in a human element, we chose authentic, unposed photos and even included voice notes—‘stories from the field’—where researchers share real-world impact.

We’re incredibly proud of this project and hope users find the website both engaging and useful!