Talent Works 2021: Tackling Social Injustice
Following the events of the past year and a half our Talent Works 2021 programme has provided creative digital support to organisations who's audiences have been hit hardest by the pandemic and issues of social injustice.
During the past 18 months, organisations from all walks of life have been impacted by the pandemic and influenced by social injustice movements. Increased pressures on mental health, global movements such as Black Lives Matter, and changes to the labour market, have reignited the need for communities to come together in support of equality and routes out of poverty.
The Anti-Racist Educators Network, ATD Fourth World, Black Connection, Centre for Advancement of Development and Human Rights, The Feminist Library, Passion For Reducing Type 2 Diabetes, Plan Zheroes and Time & Talents, have all been involved in this year’s cohort, as they strive to have a positive impact on society and support their local communities in times of injustice.
THE ANTI-RACIST EDUCATORS NETWORK
TAREN, The Anti-Racist Educators Network, was founded by passionate teachers, lectures, researchers, parents and activists with a wealth of educational experience, who have come together for one purpose - to support educators to eradicate racism in the education system.
Working with Megan Firmstone, BA (Hons) Public Relations, Elliott Highmore, BA (Hons) Fine Art Painting and Kelly Jones, BA (Hons) Graphic Branding and Identity, the project brief called a PR strategy in order to highlight the relaunch of their website and interactive resources.
By creating a campaign to support the website relaunch, they were hoping to increase traffic to the website and raise the profile of TAREN. They also set up the website to allow for data collection so that they would be able to apply for funding and grow the team.
BLACK CONNECTION
Community organisation, Black Connection, is the UK’s first social network aimed at Black, Queer men aged 50+. Initially set up in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, their aim is to build a community that helps to reduce isolation, increase social capital and focus on the mental health and wellbeing of its members.
Founder of Black Connection, Dennis Carney spoke about how the network has been “a real lifesaver” and he is passionate about the community being an accessible, safe space for all.
Over the last year, they have organised and delivered a diverse range of social events that promote positivity, community, visibility & connection for group members. They joined the Talent Works programme seeking the creation of a templated website, social media assets and a promotional video to bring more attention to the events and activities being held and the support available.
Partnered with Autumn Byam from BA (Hons) Film Practice, Ryan Chowdhury a BA (Hons) UX Design student and Dendzi Ntambwe from BA (Hons) Advertising, the studio sessions were collaborative and fuelled with creativity. Dendzi describes how the goal of the project was to give Dennis “the base and the building blocks… [to take the brand to the next level]”
Dennis was thrilled with the outcomes of the project, “what has massively impressed me is that they communicated directly with me to find out exactly what it is that we wanted and they ticked all the boxes, I am so proud of them”
TIME AND TALENTS
Also focusing on the effects of loneliness and isolation, Time and Talents’ Team-Up Take-Part programme is on a mission to connect people. Time and Talents is a lively community centre in the heart of Rotherhithe, supporting people of all ages through fun and friendship. Their community programme is a critical part of the organisations work with the local area, members are befriended through exercise and sport and spend weekly one-to-one sessions together trying out a new activity.
The main requirement of the brief was to produce a promotional film that would outline how the Team-Up Take-Part programme works as well as its benefits to encourage people to get involved.
Students, Mariella Driskell, from BA (Hons) Film and Screen Studies, Phoebe Adams, of BA (Hons) Design Management and Verity Woolley, from BA (Hons) Fine Art Painting, worked closely with the Time and Talents representatives over the course of the project.
The team also produced an in-depth social media report for Time and Talents which outlines how the organisation can move forward with their online presence and engage more people with the programme.
“The programme has given me an excellent opportunity to work with like-minded creatives who are also professional, entrepreneurial and passionate in their work. I learnt to work with clients which has made me more confident to seek this kind of work myself and to prove my ability to my clients, my teammates and my Talent Works peers.” Mariella Driskell, BA (Hons) Film and Screen Studies, LCC.
2021 Talent Works has been supported by Trust for London’s Stronger Voices Programme, LCC would like to thank all of the organisations, charities and students involved in this year’s programme.
Related Links
The Anti-Racist Educators Network
ATD Fourth World
Black Connection
Centre for Advancement of Development and Human Rights
The Feminist Library
Passion For Reducing Type 2 Diabetes
Plan Zheroes
Time & Talents
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