CAPS Unlock
Website design for an independent think tank. Making policy-heavy content clear, navigable, and accessible — for researchers and general readers alike.
CAPS Unlock is an independent Central Asian think tank based in Almaty. They publish policy research, run regional programs and events, and communicate complex topics like climate, trade, and education to a broad audience through articles, reports, podcasts and projects such as the Turn It Around climate cards.
Design a new website from scratch with a strong focus on usability and accessibility. The site needed to present dense, policy-heavy content in a clean, readable way, work equally well on desktop and mobile, and make it easy for visitors to find research, projects and events by topic or country. The structure also had to be flexible enough for the team to keep adding new programs, publications and formats without breaking the overall logic of the site.
Homepage — Desktop
The homepage needed to communicate the breadth of CAPS Unlock's work without overwhelming. A structured editorial layout surfaces the latest research, ongoing programs, and upcoming events in a clear hierarchy — giving returning visitors a quick update and new visitors a sense of what the organization does and who it's for.
Homepage — Mobile
A significant share of the audience reads policy content on mobile — often on the go, with limited attention. The mobile layout prioritizes scannability: compact cards, clear section breaks, and a navigation that stays out of the way until needed. The same editorial structure as desktop, adapted for a single-column flow.
All Events
Events are a core part of CAPS Unlock's public activity — conferences, roundtables, and regional programs. The events listing needed to handle both upcoming and past events clearly, support filtering by topic and country, and make it easy to tell at a glance what's relevant. Each card surfaces the key details without requiring a click to evaluate.
Event Page
The individual event page brings together all the information a visitor needs — date, location, agenda, speakers, and registration — in a layout that reads naturally from top to bottom. Related events and publications are surfaced below, keeping users engaged with the organization's broader work after they've found what they came for.
Blog
Articles and analysis form the core of CAPS Unlock's publishing output. The blog layout is built for long-form reading — generous line lengths, clear typographic hierarchy, and a clean reading environment that keeps focus on the content. Topic tags and author profiles provide context without cluttering the page.
Figma File Structure
The Figma file was organized around the team's ongoing use — not just the initial handoff. Pages are structured by section and flow, components are named consistently, and the layout system is built to accommodate new content types without requiring the structure to be rebuilt.
A website that makes CAPS Unlock's work findable and readable — for policy specialists and general audiences alike. Dense research content is presented without visual noise. Events, publications, and programs each have a clear home. The structure scales as the organization grows.
Policy content doesn't have to be hard to read. The design's job is to get out of the way.