Digital Design Studio
We help climate tech and conservation teams turn complex environmental data into products people can actually use: research, UX and UI, product strategy, and design through build. Everything we make starts with what's best for the planet.
Who we work with
We work best with people who care as much about the ecosystem as the interface: climate and ecology teams of any size, anywhere in the U.S.
Carbon, energy, water, and nature-based solutions teams shipping their first product or their next big release.
Land trusts, watershed groups, and restoration teams that need tools for volunteers, field crews, or the public.
Growers, nurseries, and land managers putting soil, plant, and climate data to work.
Parks departments, universities, and labs turning research and open data into something people can use.
Teams packaging climate projections, biodiversity, or ESG data into dashboards, APIs, and reports.
Organizations that need a clear, trustworthy product without an enterprise agency budget.
Services
Start with the one that fits where you are. Many projects begin with discovery or an audit and grow from there.
Design-only engagements for teams with engineers in place. We find out what your users need, then design it and hand it off ready to build.
End-to-end delivery when you need a working product, not just a mockup. One team from the first sketch to launch.
For teams with an idea, a dataset, or a grant, and a lot of open questions. We help you decide what to build, and what not to build yet.
A focused outside look at a product you already have, or ongoing design leadership without a full-time hire.
Our work
Our own products are our portfolio. They're live, people use them, and they show how we work from research to launch.
Live · Strategy, Data Architecture, Design + Build
A climate-ready plant data platform: 28,000+ species, county-level distribution, and climate projections, used by 280+ developer accounts.
Read the case study
Live · UX Design, Illustration, Development
An interactive companion planting chart and bed planner for 60 vegetables, herbs, and flowers. Case study coming soon.
Try the toolWhy us
Climate and ecology products are hard to design well. The data is messy, the science is nuanced, and the people using them range from field biologists to first-time gardeners. We've spent years on both sides: designing digital products, and restoring real landscapes by hand.
Ryan, our founder, brings 5+ years of professional product design experience, and merges his love for ecology with his passion for design. He's a certified permaculture designer, so when your product talks about native ranges, climate projections, or invasive species, we already speak the language.
How we work
Interviews, research, and a close look at your data, so we solve the right problem.
A clear scope, success measures, and a plan everyone agrees on.
Flows, prototypes, and UI, tested with real users before anything is built.
Development in short cycles, so you see working software early and often.
Ship, measure what's working, and keep improving.
Ways to work together
Every engagement is scoped and quoted after a free discovery call, so you know the cost before any work begins.
A UX audit or a discovery sprint with a set scope, timeline, and price. A low-risk way to start working together.
A defined product, feature, or redesign, scoped and quoted up front, with clear milestones along the way.
A monthly retainer for continuous design, advising, or development, when you need a designer on the team without a full-time hire.
Questions
Yes. The Digital Design Studio works remotely with teams anywhere in the United States. We're based in Cleveland, Ohio, and happy to meet in person when it helps.
That's our focus and where we do our best work: climate tech, conservation, agtech, environmental data, and mission-driven organizations. But if your product helps people or the planet, we'd like to hear about it.
Both. We can design and hand off to your engineers, or design and build the product ourselves, from front end to APIs and data pipelines.
Every engagement is scoped after a free discovery call. Sprints and projects are quoted up front, and ongoing work is billed as a monthly retainer. You'll always know the cost before work begins.
Yes. Urban Permascapes LLC has two practices: native landscape design and implementation in Cleveland, and the Digital Design Studio. Both share one mission: making climate action local and doable.
Start a project
Share a little about your team and your product. Ryan will reply within two business days to set up a free discovery call.
Prefer email? Write to info@urbanpermascapes.com.