Last year, we collaborated with two design student teams from Loughborough University in the UK. These students were challenged to work on open source project briefs. Team 1 focused on non-code contributions, while Team 2’s brief was to create a unified documentation experience, giving them a chance to apply their design skills to real-world problems within the open source ecosystem.

We reached out to Loughborough University School of Design and Creative Arts because there is a real need for non-code contributions in the open source ecosystem. Design thinking, which goes beyond the code to consider the user experience, is paramount if we want open source to thrive and gain ever more widespread adoption. Each team tackled a unique challenge that reflects the growing need for design thinking in open source, where developers have traditionally led, but where a better user experience is now urgently needed.

This post celebrates their thoughtful work, sharing reflections from their design journey, and invites others to consider contributing to open source projects!

Interested in checking out the project briefs yourself? The briefs are open for anyone to explore, think about, and attempt to solve. Whether you’re thinking of ideas, writing them on a napkin, or developing your solution, there are no limitations to your creativity here! Get the briefs here (PDF).

Team 1: Improving design approachability in open source

Project brief: Increase designer participation in open source projects and contributing non-code contributions.

Objective: Help improve how designers engage with open source projects by lowering barriers to entry and encouraging more meaningful design contributions.

Team members: Mirunaalini Alagarajah, Giridhar pabbati, Jiarui He, Lechen Zou, Clara Lin

Check out their project presentation!

Reflection from the team

What was it like working on a real open source design challenge?

This project really challenged us as a team, testing our collaboration, adaptability, and time management skills. Tackling a real client brief helped us engage more deeply with the problem and understand its real-world context. Working with Canonical was particularly motivating, as it gave us the sense that our efforts were contributing to something genuinely impactful.

What surprised you most about open source?

As a team, we realised we hadn’t truly thought about the various barriers designers encounter when engaging with open source projects. We also found it fascinating that many designers are quite protective of their work, which makes open sharing a real challenge. It created a unique tension –everyone wanted to learn from others, but few felt comfortable giving their work away for free.

What design decision did your team focus on and why?

We used insights from our user research to guide our design direction, ensuring that each decision was grounded in evidence. Prototyping allowed us to test various design details and components, which helped us refine our approach and gain a much clearer sense of direction. As a team, we brought diverse backgrounds and skill sets—those with stronger design experience naturally took the lead in developing and refining the visual aspects of the project.

How has this experience influenced how you think about design and collaboration?

On reflection, there were many possible directions we could have taken, but in hindsight, grounding our decisions in user insights and continuous testing helped align the team around a clear vision. Regular client feedback was invaluable in refining our approach and ensuring we stayed true to user needs. Additionally, leveraging each team member’s strengths allowed us to work more efficiently and make the most of our diverse skills. Overall, it was a valuable experience that taught us how to collaborate rapidly and effectively to address a real-world brief.

Team 2: Unifying Juju’s documentation ecosystem

Project brief: Improve the accessibility, clarity, and cohesiveness of Juju’s documentation to enhance user experience and encourage adoption.

Objective: Reimagining how users discover and learn about Juju (Canonical’s open source application orchestration engine for the deployment, integration, and lifecycle management) by improving the documentation experience. 

Team members: Sharvari Rai, Bavraj Virdi, Xinya Wang, Siying Fan, Qingwan Yu

Check out their project presentation!

Reflection from the team

What were your first impressions about the problem space?

When we were first introduced to the project, our initial reaction was that the brief felt highly technical and complex, with unfamiliar terms like charms, operators, and Kubernetes. As none of us came from a technical or programming background, the documentation space felt like a challenge for us was the learning curve of diving in and understanding what is in the documentation and what it means. We struggled to identify a clear starting point and to understand the overall purpose of Juju beyond the jargon. Since the platform is mainly aimed at developers, it was difficult at first to relate to or imagine user needs. Despite that, this initial confusion actually helped us empathise with potential users facing similar barriers, and it highlighted the importance of clarity and structure in the documentation. 

What was your approach to designing a more unified documentation experience?

Our approach began with breaking down the brief into simpler terms and mapping the current documentation ecosystem so we could better understand the challenges. As a team, we created personas for both new and experienced users, which helped us think about different entry points and the level of guidance each group might need. We then sketched user journeys to highlight pain points and challenges. From there, we focused on developing a single, structured information architecture with clearer pathways for learning and troubleshooting.  The aim was to allow users to move confidently between different sections without having to relearn how to navigate each time. 

What were the biggest challenges your team encountered during the project?

The main challenge was the steep learning curve of immersing ourselves in the technical complexity of the Juju ecosystem and its vast open source documentation, especially since most of us came from non-technical backgrounds. We had to quickly grasp the product and its entire linked ecosystem. As direct access to real users was limited, we relied heavily on secondary data, community forums, and the creation of personas to accurately map realistic pain points. Our constant goal was to balance technical accuracy with the required user-centred clarity, which pushed us to fundamentally rethink how developer documentation can effectively guide users without overwhelming them. 

What skills or takeaways are you bringing with you from this experience?

This project was a major lesson in how to embrace and navigate ambiguity. This was a truly crucial learning experience when dealing with an unfamiliar domain, evolving product documentation, and diverse stakeholder needs. We significantly strengthened our ability to translate dense technical research into clear, actionable design recommendations. We also honed our communication and collaboration skills as a team, successfully aligning our user-focused vision with Canonical’s roadmap. Most importantly, we learned that user advocacy is vital even in highly technical environments, and that our focus is ultimately on humanising complex systems.

🎉Congratulations to both teams!

We would like to thank and congratulate both teams for their creativity, thoughtful research, and commitment to enhancing open source experiences through design. They approached complex, open-ended problems with maturity and curiosity, and their outcomes were both inspiring and practical. 

Their fresh perspectives also reminded us of the value of questioning assumptions and looking at familiar challenges through new eyes, reinforcing how much we as practitioners can learn from emerging designers.

We hope these projects have not only added valuable work to their portfolios but also opened doors to future engagement with open source communities. We encourage them (and any other designer out there) to continue exploring open source, contributing through design, and helping shape more inclusive, user-friendly technologies!

Interested in running a project like this?

Are you part of a university looking to bring open source design into your curriculum? We’re looking for academic partners who want to give students meaningful, real-world experiences while contributing to the global open source ecosystem.

Reach out at opendesign@canonical.com

Learn more at Canonical.design

Join the Canonical design team

We’re looking for designers who care about craft and how systems work under the hood. At Canonical, design sits at the intersection of UX, engineering, and open source where we shape cohesive, accessible experiences across cloud, desktop, and IoT products.

If you enjoy solving complex problems and turning technical depth into clarity, explore our open roles: canonical.com/careers