The GECKO framework (Gathering, Evaluating, Chunking, Knowing, and Optimizing)
provides “containers” into which any product developer can place user-focused design and architecture
activities. The structure provides a map – showing us how we can build products that enable people
to find and use information so they appreciate the experience.
Information Architecture students and volunteers applied the GECKO framework in
reshaping www.plainlanguage.gov, a Federal resource for government communicators and citizens.
Developed by volunteers who cared about clarity in communication, the site suffered from an early-Web
architecture. It was time for a change.
Thom Haller led two student groups (undergraduates at Johns Hopkins University
and adult students at USDA Graduate School) through a user-focused process for developing
communication products (GECKO).
Learn more about how GECKO serves as a framework for developing effective
communication products.
