As Mashable reports, The Logo for Human Rights, a non-profit organization, and jovoto, an online platform for the creative community, have paired up to crowdsource designs for a global logo to act as a symbol for human rights issues. Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, the UN High Commission for Human Rights, Chinese artist Ai Weiwei and four Nobel Peace Prize Laureates will select 10 finalists. Afterwards, the public will vote on a winner from those selected.
The interest in the contest from so many high-profile people underscores the prevailing belief today that brands have a tremendous power to change the world. And yet, while a logo will no doubt make an impact, the real test will be in how well these groups extend the brand after the winner is announced. As we often say at Interbrand, brands are more than just logos and if the goal of the contest is to create a symbolic global banner to focus and organize human rights efforts, it will need to create a clear-cut strategy to match.
Additionally, while the crowdsourced aspect of the campaign works well in this case, as it is likely to generate a lot of interest given the personal investment so many have with the subject matter, crowdsourcing can’t always replace the insight that experience can bring. That’s why, if The Logo for Human Rights is truly committed to its cause, it would be advisable to look to experts when moving to phase two. The last thing the Logo for Human Rights wants is to have an impressive logo, without anything else to back it up.
If you are interested in submitting your logo starting July 31, go here. Voting with commence August 27.