← All projects
/ Crop Production & Climate Change
Revealing connections in a large dataset
Doing
Description
The selected dataset deals with global crop cultivation of the four most important crops for human nutrition. These are the crops rice, maize, soybeans, and wheat, which are often referred to as the 'Big Four' of the world's most important food sources.
Concept, Research, Visual design and Interaction design, Data analysis
/ Dataset
The dataset includes data on crop yields, harvested areas, and production quantities of wheat, maize, rice, and soybeans.
Crop yields are derived from production data divided by the harvested area and are measured in tons per hectare. They depend on factors such as genetics, sunlight, water, and nutrients.
How can I make the connections within the extensive dataset visually comprehensible through the application of shape, color, and organizational principles?
/ Main questions
# 1
How much cultivation area is available to the listed countries?
# 2
How much crop yield is produced per country?
# 3
What is the relationship between crop yields and geographic location?
# 4
Is an increase in crop yields observable?
# 5
Has the agricultural area increased over the years?
# 6
Are differences in individual products discernible across continents?
/ Initial Sketches
From the variables available to me and the guiding questions created from them, I ultimately realized that my visualization would need to consist of a map and a timeline with various interactive elements, through which I could separate data.
For the shapes of the visualization, I decided on squares, as they could very well represent the agricultural lands and the crop yields of the plant. In terms of colors, I oriented myself towards the colors of the plants, and for the geographical location, I chose a color palette ranging from a light yellow to a cool blue.
/ Visualization and Development
For the representation of the map, I initially chose the view of the data in my dataset from 2016, as these were the latest measured data in it. For this, I grouped the data so that the harvesting areas, yields, and production quantities for corn, wheat, soy, and rice could be displayed in squares for each country.
Next, I moved three of the rectangles in different directions to achieve the desired view that the fields should convey. For the view of the timeline, I chose the time variable, which I displayed on the x-axis, and the value of the plants, which moved the uniformly sized rectangles to the y-axis. In the course of the process, various views emerged, which I gradually refined.
/ Interactive elements
/ Style Guide
