At the intersection of institutional communications, data storytelling, and design. I learn by doing, and enjoy sharing what I've created along the way!
Selected Work
Global Reach
A look at the countries my work has reached.
About
I am a digital communications and information design specialist who works at the intersection of technology, data analytics, and information design. I've helped institutions, including UN agencies and government ministries, translate complex, high-stakes work into clear communications that reach the people who need to act.
Good communication isn't just about making things look nice; it's about ensuring the right message lands with the right person. Sometimes that's a national report. Sometimes it's an interactive data story for a public audience that has never read a policy brief in their life. The work changes, but the core question stays the same: who needs to understand this, and what do they actually need to see?
Most people think being informed means keeping up with what's broken: the war, the crisis, the headline of the day. That's real, but it isn't the whole picture, and it rarely tells you how anything actually works. Understanding how a policy affects you, how a budget gets spent, or how a system is supposed to function takes a different kind of communication, one built to explain rather than alarm. That's the gap I work in.
Organisations frequently invest significant resources in thorough research and detailed analysis, yet they often stumble at the final step: communication. When this aspect is treated as an afterthought, the findings get misunderstood, ignored, or never reach the people meant to act on them. That's where I step in, turning finished analysis into something the intended audience will actually read and use.
I've worked this way for the UN Resident Coordinator's Office, the Department of National Planning, and Verité Research, where communication had to hold up under real scrutiny, from ministers, from the public, from people who'd stop reading at the first confusing paragraph.
It started in 2021: a flyer I designed for United Nations Volunteers Sri Lanka ahead of the Youth Community Leadership Initiative (YCLI)'s launch during National Youth Week, before I'd have called any of this a career. There's a short recap video from that week, if you're curious where it all started.
Outside of client work, I'm probably deep into a game, out on a run, or making something just because I felt like it. A few of those things live on my notes, if you're curious.
Information Design
Report & Publication Design
Digital & Campaign Communications
What I Do
I collaborate with research organisations and institutions to communicate their work effectively to the public. Scope and pricing available upon request.
Download Services GuideTurning complex datasets into clear visual narratives. Bringing clarity to data through interactive web experiences and static visual systems.
Designing institutional publications with the reader in mind. Ensuring complex policy and research documents remain accessible, engaging, and highly professional.
Strategic digital outreach and content creation. Bringing institutional campaigns and events to life across multiple platforms for maximum audience engagement.
Writing
Notes on my decisions during the work: what I tried, what failed, and why the results turned out as they did.
Six iterations of a teardrop, a hero image that changed twice, and why pulling back at the end was the hardest call I made on the whole project.
Read on Medium
Building a premium Sri Lankan export identity. The client needed a brand that felt ancient, classic, and rooted in heritage, entirely avoiding generic tourism tropes.
Read on MediumData Storytelling
In 2023, the fertility rate was 1.97 births per woman, reflecting a historical decline influenced by family planning initiatives.
Where the money comes from, and where it goes. The Sri Lankan government budget made legible in one view.
2,252 reported cases. Each petal is 100. A broken lotus, because some numbers deserve more than a bar chart.
A personal piece. On navigating uncertainty without a map, and what it looks like to slowly find your footing.
338 initiatives that shaped Sri Lanka in 2024. Each dot is one effort to strengthen communities or inform policy, visualised as a spiral.
Heroin, cannabis, methamphetamines, all rising. The breakdown behind Sri Lanka's drug enforcement picture.
Arrests climbing. Treatment access flat. The widening gap between punishment and care, in one chart.
Arrests have climbed across every presidency. Record cannabis and heroin seizures under Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
Case flow by province, and what it reveals about a system still built around punishment more than rehabilitation.
NDDCB Centres handle more than half of all rehabilitation cases. A look at who's doing the work, and who isn't.
Reception
The line from my most recent formal review, alongside a few unprompted notes from people who came across the work.
Chatura showed great dedication and delivered quality work within a limited timeframe. He was a reliable team member who remained professional, flexible, and supportive throughout.
Read the Cyclone Ditwah storyGreat work! I've been trying to find proper articles like this capturing the true extent of the disaster, and this is the best I've found so far.
Read the Cyclone Ditwah storyI checked your work on Medium — "I Built a Data Story About Cyclone Ditwah." It's super impressive, great work.
View The Shadow WarI'm reaching out to you after seeing your project, The Shadow War, on Reddit and your GitHub.
Get In Touch
If you're working through data, an upcoming report, or want to think out loud about how your organisation communicates, I'm open to that conversation. The best projects I've worked on started with a problem, not a finished product.
For project inquiries, consulting requests, and collaborations.
consultchatura@gmail.com