#EmpathyForMumbai | Campaign Design
A campaign to raise awareness about the city and its people
Project Summary | This campaign was designed as a fundraiser to disburse 5000 books of People Called Mumbai Children’s Edition to municipal school students and select NGOs
The Team | Anwesha Sengupta, Viraj Rane
My Role | Design Research, Campaign Strategy, Social Media Strategy, Event Ideation, Design, and Execution, Visual Design
Duration | 2 months
Tools Used | Illustrator, Photoshop
The Story Behind the Project
In an urban landscape like Mumbai, where every day is about getting through the day for most people, Mumbai, the city of migrants, is full of stories. This campaign was launched to help children engage with the finer nuances of everyday life that are often missed or even lost in the humdrum of city life. The tangible aim of the campaign was to disburse 5000 books of People Called Mumbai Kids' Edition to municipal school students and select NGOs.
Stage 1 | Re-Designing the Website Homepage
For a successful outreach, we needed a strong social media presence and for that purpose we had to come up with a unique and effective hashtag. #EmpathyForMumbai became the official campaign name.
A webpage was introduced to www.thepeopleplaceproject.com to inform the visitors about the campaign and directly take them to the fundraising page.
Stage 2 | Social Media Strategy
Once the hashtag was decided and the webpage launched, the first step was to spread awareness about the campaign. Leveraging The People Place Project’s followers on Instagram, we launched the first phase of the campaign there. Regular updates were made to inform our followers about the campaign and create engagement. What received the most engagement was the ‘Empathy Chain’ where the prompt was – ‘As residents of Mumbai, what acts of Empathy have you witnessed!’ Along with the story they were asked to tag people they knew and spread the word about the campaign.
The second phase of the campaign was to launch a photo contest that invited our followers to make an entry based on the theme of #EmpathyForMumbai
Stage 3 | Event Ideation
Event Partners
Once the word about the campaign was out, the next step was to plan events that could help with the outreach as well as raise money for the 5000 books, besides the pledges we were already receiving. The first step was to establish connections with media partners for outreach, venues to host events, and NGOs that could help with disbursing the books to municipality schools of Mumbai.
Target Audience
If we understand our connection to the city and its people, we can live harmoniously, responsibly, and symbiotically, If the youth of the city is allowed to explore the nooks and corners without hesitation and restraint, it can help them develop agency and become responsible citizens early on. The target audience for these events, therefore, were of the age group of 8 - 20 yrs olds.
Deciding The Events
But, it is easier said than done. And for that, the team came up with fun activities to engage them to learn while also having fun. The events included Book Readings, Story Writing workshops, Treasure Hunts and Guided City walks in never-heard-before localities.
The events were meant to foster connections to the city and its people. They had to be designed in a manner where the participants could be engaged to learn and introspect while also having fun.
Following the Brainstorm, we recognized that a lot of our ideas were centered around stories and sharing. This led us to finalize three events - Book reading sessions with the author of People Called Mumbai Children’s Edition, Guided Walks at Worli Koliwada, and a Treasure Hunt for Stories.
Stage 5 | Executing the Events
The Book Reading
Vinitha Ramchandani, the author of People Called Mumbai- Children's Edition, was always an ardent believer in the campaign and successfully conducted storytelling sessions with children of various schools, starting from 3rd Grade to 10th Grade. Every story was new learning for them. Some learned of a lifeguard at a beach who doesn't take money for what he does, while others learned of a food blogger and couldn't contain themselves on finding out that such a profession exists. On being encouraged to write letters to the protagonists of the stories, they responded enthusiastically, and it was apparent how much the stories had impacted them or changed their way of thinking.
The Guided Walk of Worli Koliwada
Kolis is arguably the first to settle and make the islands of Bombay their home. Although dwindling in numbers, they have remained here through the ages, as the islands eventually grew into the city of Mumbai. A close-knit community, the only place one can find them are their vibrant little villages or Koliwadas. One such Koliwada lies along the shores of Worli.
The team curated and conducted a walk through this village Encouraging them to explore this dynamic space tucked in the urban landscape of highrises, we designed a map and questionnaire to help them ask the residents about their life and story. At the end of the walk, the children were encouraged to interact amongst themselves and exchange their stories of the walk.
The Treasure Hunt
Through treasure hunts that take you running across town, much like the Grand Race but with much humbler routes, we created maps that made the participants witness hidden corners and magical moments. This was a hunt for stories of everyday people and every story learned was a new connection made with the city. The Hunt was explicitly designed to induce that through local transport, iconic spots in the city, hidden corners, and places of worship- to help participants discover a side of the town that they would otherwise not realize exists right alongside them.
To successfully design the Hunt, we conducted thorough research through several site visits, interviews with locals, route design, and intensive readings of hidden facts about the city.
Stage 5 | Concluding the Campaign
After running the campaign for 90 days, with a fundraising event held every alternate weekend, the campaign came to an end. We had raised the funds for 5000 books and now it was time to disburse it. We hosted a final storytelling session with the author at the school that AngelXpress works with.
Stage 6 | Reflections
With the fervent changes in our lifestyle, it has become more and more difficult for us to connect with the cities we live in. Preoccupied with our own selves, we often pass by thousands of lives without ever pausing to hear their side of the tale. This campaign was an attempt to rekindle this connection of the people with their cities by delving deep into the soul of the urban landscape and finding stories, moments, and relationships of people with their homes. Through the events, we attempted to bring to light the magic of ordinary people and their extraordinary stories. It aims to discover Mumbai through people's perspectives and expose the children of today to the city.
The tangible aim of the campaign was to disburse 5000 books of People Called Mumbai Kids' Edition to municipal school students and select NGOs. However, the intangible goals were more profound. This project was an endeavor to create awareness towards people and their stories in young minds.