Human Rights logo

A few months ago I was appointed as a jury member of an amazing global design competition. The aim: to create a universally accepted logo for human rights.

Peace has its symbol. Religions have their symbols. Global non profits and corporations also have their all-present symbols. But universal human rights, which have become part of the human struggle for freedom and dignity, still don’t have a universally agreed upon logo.

A staggering number of logo ideas have been submitted: 15,369 in fact. The was followed by an open vote which narrowed down the submissions to 100. Out of those the jury chose the 10 you see above.

Now we’re into the final stage: you can vote for your favorite out of the 10 finalists.

Goto the the competitions site now and submit your vote: humanrightlogo.net.

A while ago I was interviewed by Design Made in Germany magazine on this subject. I was asked: why do human rights need a logo? I said that..

..maybe because we need a shorthand expression for this evolving concept of universal human values. In the not too distant past, and even today, national pride or other narrow allegiances are deemed to be more important that human rights. As universal human rights gain more acceptance around the globe, a simple symbol can cement the meaning of these rights and emphasize their universality.
Brands and their symbols are also an emerging language. In a more complex world with many choices, many media and information overload, simple symbols are like now words for direct, efficient communication.

You can read the rest of the interview here.


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2 responses to “A universal logo for human rights: vote for your favorite now”

  1. Lowfields Avatar
    Lowfields

    Important idea. I guess I’d vote for the Blue Flame or maybe the shield…

    But half of them look like icons from 1970s Olympic games, while others seem to be confusing “rights” with “peace” – not sure that the message is the same.

    The “equal arms” has a nice meaning, but the visual seems more like a map icon for a historic monument.

  2. Farah Avatar
    Farah

    I like the idea of creating a logo for human rights but is there even an agreement on what are ‘universal human rights’ or more contentiously, who has the authority to apply them? i’m sorry but i don’t believe that the Western definition of human rights is ‘universal’, especially since they apply it so inconsistently and only when it’s to their advantage. example: the US publicized the legitimacy of entering Afghanistan as pushing for human rights, especially women. after 10 years and countless deaths, can we really say that they had human rights at heart? Anyways good luck with the project and I hope to see a day where human rights really are universal, bring people together and aren’t used as a political tool.