LAND OF HOPE

From Hope to Land of Hope

In 2014, the founder of DINNødhjælp, Anja Ringgren Lovén, sold most of her belongings and booked a one-way ticket to Nigeria. She met a severely malnourished boy named Hope, who was rejected by the community due to superstitious beliefs.

Anja's compassionate act of giving him food and water gained viral attention overnight, leading to the establishment of one of Africa's largest children's centers named Land of Hope.

Today, the center provides shelter, education, and security to 74 vulnerable children.

The cause outweighs the person 

What started as one Danish enthusiast's burning altruism has grown into a large, professional organization with a clear vision: a world where no child suffers from adults' superstitions. It is a significant goal that requires an international effort. Therefore, DINNødhjælp came to us with a request to rebrand their identity and create a stronger international profile that would better embrace the organization's size.

They wanted to shift some of the focus from Anja's personality to instead create more focus on the organization's work in Nigeria. Additionally, they wanted to reframe the negative label of "witch children" and make it a socio-political issue of uninformed superstition.

It is difficult to create the right international impact with a brand name that contains both ”Æ” and ”Ø”. Therefore, the first step in creating a new identity was to find a new name that would be both international and representative of the core of the cause. We kept coming back to the same name: Land of Hope.

A positive narrative in the fight against superstition

The new name ”Land of Hope” establishes the organization's work as a positive story of hope, love, and life rather than a negative story of despair and death, which was essential to the narrative. The recognition of the children's center is also important for the name's spread, as well as the name's significant symbolism. 

To emphasize Land of Hope's work and mission, the name also received a powerful tagline: United Against Superstition. It was all developed based on three core values for the overall brand: Care, Protection, and Education. Values that are both strong and robust but also loving and caring. A combination that makes up the heart of the final identity.

A powerful identity serving a greater purpose

The strategic work has resulted in a new, all-encompassing brand platform that clearly communicates Land of Hope's core message "United Against Superstition". Additionally, the brand platform includes a core narrative with crucial messages and values.

The strategic work has been condensed into a brand book "Book of Hope,", to align the organization's work and create a scalable brand so that everyone who joins Land of Hope is met with the same vision and message of their important cause.

Scandinavian minimalism and African heritage 

In the designers' work with the identity, there has been an active focus on the complementary contrasts in Land of Hope's work: strength versus fragility, boundaries versus freedom, colors versus darkness.

In addition to the logo, a large part of the visual identity is composed of a grid of 10 colorful symbols. Each represents a core value of Land of Hope, and when combined in various ways, they create a powerful and contrasting visual expression.

The icons are created using a creative fusion of Scandinavian minimalism and African heritage, drawing inspiration from African culture and the children's own drawings at the Akwa Ibom children's center. The design of each symbol is minimalist, modern, and timeless.

The visual components of the identity are clearly displayed on the organization's new website, in their brand book "Book of Hope," and on various merchandise.

Stronger Brand, Stronger Impact 

Land of Hope's new identity has put them in a stronger position to fight against harmful superstitions globally. The organization's new brand has given them the necessary visual tools to stand out and bring more attention to their mission on an international level.

Their launch video on Facebook and Instagram garnered 130,300 views, and they managed to sell merchandise worth 60,000 DKK in just six months, compared to 7,500 DKK per year before their brand transformation. Additionally, they experienced a 46% increase in donations.