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This site is designed to inspire the viewer as well as
provide a workable process template to those responsible for the
design and dissemination of health information to underserved
populations.
IDENTIFY THE ISSUES:
(What is the information gap you are trying to fill?)
The key to grass root intervention is the ability to listen and
clearly identify the issues. Effective information design is the
direct result of a planned strategy of gathering data from
written target populations using focus group methodology and
community outreach. Identifying the core issues which your
program is designed (and not designed) to address will help
alleviate confusion, promote collaborative synergy and generate
a strong sense of creative purpose for both staff and funders
alike.
FUND AND BUDGETING A PROJECT:
(How much is enough?)
Determining the scale of your creative project will help to
detrermine a rough budget. The amount of funding will depend on
the levels of public, private, community resource, and
collaborative support which your project is aligned with.
Creative sub-contractors will need to work for considerably less
than scale and printers will need to find ways to reduce your
costs. For community level intervention to work you need to
maximize dollars and creative output to match expressed
community needs and include a dissemination strategy/costs in
your budget.
TAP INTO AVAILABLE ARTISTIC RESOURCES:
("Only the best will do")
Knowing the creative resiources available to you is critical in
designing an art-based grass root intervention program.
Effective information design requires an experienced and
dedicated team with a creative peace corp mentality. Talented
artists are generally available to not-for-profit organizations
for pro-bono work but to be truly effective they must
participate in the entire development process including the
focus groups and then bill accordingly. They must also be
willing to accept rigorous evaluation of the creative product to
determine its pre and post launch effectivesness in the target
population.
IDENTIFY ARTISTIC MENTORS TO TRAIN THE NEXT GENERATION OF
APOSTLES:
(Who will do?)
Sustainability is the key to developing a community level
intervention strategy on any social issue. Developing a reliable
reservoir of creative professionals interested in making a
difference is the first step. However, the importance of
mentoring the next generation of designers/artists in mastering
the fundamentals of cli is just as important. Young designers
should be brought into the entire design process as apprentices
and trained by example in listening and analysis skills. Every
organization that commits to embracing the CCfH creative
development process is bringing an innovative and highly
participatory design strategy into their culture and will need
to train both mature artists and apprentices in the how tošs.
MANAGING A CREATIVE PROJECT AND STAFF EFFECTIVELY:
(What is the right formula?)
To be effective an information design organization or any
organization responsible for developing targeted health
education materials will need to have highly experienced
administrators with both the fiscal and capacity building skills
necessary to plan and execute a comprehensive intervention
program. If you want to be successful in maximizing your dollars
as well as hitting the target population with a creative
intervention program that works you should review your own
internal resources or seek out resources with strategic
planning, traffic, and production skills which are critical to
keeping creative projects on track. If you donšt have them you
will need to look into your local community for help before
taking on the proposed creative challenge.
MEASURE AND EVALUATE RESULTS/COMMUNITY RESPONSE:
(What do most funders want?)
Build accountability in from the outset by including the most
appropriate levels of evaluation and outcome measurement into
your work. If you are not familiar with how or when to apply
this science-based strategy theses resources are available from
universities and graduate social science programs for a nominal
fee. The historic problems associated with artists for hireš
either misinterpreting or ignoring critical input data and then
missing the intervention target can be reduced or eliminated by
including a concise evaluation plan from the start. If the
creative professionals or artists involved in your community
level intervention program do not want to work within this type
of structured creative development process - DO NOT HIRE THEM -
or at least they should not be considered for key roles. Art
which is not accountable is not effective in the information
design arena. Funders from both the public and private sector
will often require this type of program oversight and if they
donšt you should propose it anyway. |
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