Uniting To Combat NTDs
Women Deliver 2019
Delivering a multi sensory and fully branded event presence to leave lasting impressions.
The challenge
In 2019, Uniting to Combat Neglected Tropical Diseases (Uniting to Combat NTDs) invited us to work with them on the creation of a campaign and experiential presence at Women Deliver 2019, the world’s largest conference on gender equality and the health, rights, and wellbeing of girls.
Our challenge was to design a sub brand for the Women Deliver 2019 conference in Vancouver, BC.
This would need to clearly communicate the key goals of the messaging and reflect the parent brand. Design elements to be included - interactive exhibition stand, microsite, flyers, handouts & giveaways.
The event, at Vancouver Convention Centre, Canada was going to precursor an important year of driving awareness, as well as lead up to the 73rd World Health Assembly the following year in Kigali, so it needed to really elevate the client's voice.
As a global advocacy organisation with real influence and a key role in the global fight against NTDs it was paramount that this event worked hard for Uniting to Combat NTDs.
The process
We knew we had to nail the main conceptual design for the campaign and the stand before visiting Ethiopia to capture all the content. Having members of the team who had previously worked in Africa, and specifically Ethiopia, hugely benefitted this process.
The team planned and designed all of the creative experiential content and developed an overarching visual identity taking inspiration from Ethiopian jewellery and elements from the parent brand. We created a strong visual 'thread' which literally linked the diseases, the different design elements and any call to action. Along with bespoke content and innovative conceptual brand experiences we conceptualised the stand itself in 3d.
The shoot team traveled to Ethiopia, capturing content and interviewing women and girls about their experience with NTDs. In under a week they traversed the country moving from the capital Addis Ababa through Bahir Dar on Lake Tana and on to Tigray in the North before returning to the capital to fly home. It was an epic trip and one which will stay in the hearts and minds of our team, forever.
The event
After the team had worked tirelessly to make sure every detail was on-point it remained for our on-site team to oversee the installation and build of the stand at the Women Deliver 2019 show, and to roll out the audio-visual assets. The 'smell wall' was something we had great hopes for and it didn't disappoint. It proved a massive draw for event-goers and, as hoped, launched a thousand conversations. Petricor (the smell of rain on hot dry ground), cow dung, wood smoke, mango and stagnant water were smells we had to safely simulate over the duration of the event. We sourced synthesised smells using as many natural ingredients as possible and stored them in bespoke enclosures behind apertures in the main wall of the stand. Having never implemented a 'smell wall' before this was a voyage of discovery but one which proved hugely successful.
Outputs
Campaign design & strategy
Experiential stand design
Exhibition content production
Explainer films
Sensory wall
Bespoke microsite
Powerpoint templates
Life-size video portraits
Print & digital headers & flyers
Printable ‘worms & ladders’ game
Display & social video assets
Photography
