Hi! I'm Azariah Acheampong, a third-year graphic design student. I specialise in branding to raise awareness of social issues. My website showcases how I create impactful brands to address various societal challenges.
I created branding for a platform that aimed to reduce loneliness among university students. The aim was for it to raise awareness and offer ways for students to connect and chat with others. The core of this brand was an app, where students could talk anonymously with peers from their own university or nearby ones. For instance, a student from Nottingham University, could chat with those from Nottingham Trent. This platform resembled blind online friendship dating—it was voice-only, no cameras, and calls ended after five minutes unless both parties agreed to continue. You could connect by sending and accepting requests. The goal was to create comfort through anonymity.
In a group of three, including Athena Purcell and Anisha Thapa-Magar, we created a campaign and event to highlight Black men’s mental health during Men’s Health Month and Black History Month. The whole premise of the event and campaign is to encourage men to speak up about their mental health issues. In the Afro-Caribbean community, mental health is not taken seriously, and our aim is to bring awareness to this cause. To make it less intimidating, we partnered with Toca Social, an interactive football company. In essence, we combined something unfamiliar (mental health) with something familiar (sports).
In this group, I took the lead in typography, motion graphics and advertising for the event.
For this project, I aimed to design branding for a new youth club. I’ve noticed a decline in youth clubs, and my mom often talks about how they were the go-to place when she was young. Unfortunately, we don’t have as many anymore. Youth clubs used to be great hangouts for kids who didn’t have much money. They were also valuable for teenagers to learn new activities. On Twitter, there are discussions about how ethnic minorities and people from poorer backgrounds are often perceived similarly, with limited opportunities for personal growth.
I believe that developing uniqueness and confidence comes from stepping out of one’s comfort zone and trying new things. However, many people from working-class backgrounds may not have the funds to explore different activities. So, I want to create branding for a youth club with the goal of helping teenagers get to know themselves by trying out new activities and hobbies, which would be offered at discounted or reduced rates.