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Anti-bullying Innovation – New Typeface Forces Bullies To Think Twice

Digital, Interesting Thingsno comments

Anti-bullying innovation – new typeface forces bullies to think twice

Cyberbullying is a widely discussed global issue that hasn’t faced many tangible solutions. A new digital tool has been invented to tackle most common forms of hate speech by blurring or rewriting words that are meant to harm and humiliate others.

Over a third of bullying today takes place online, with the number rapidly increasing (UNESCO*). As online learning and virtual classrooms are becoming the new norm, cyberbullying is a big issue for the youth.

The Polite Type is a font that has been taught to recognize and rewrite hate speech. In practice, the font automatically blurs hateful words or replaces them with more inclusive ones. TietoEVRY, the company behind this initiative, wants to promote online equality and raise discussion about ways to stop cyberbullying.

“The Polite Type supports our vision of creating a safe and equal environment with digital solutions. I hope that our cause acts as a wake-up call for all audiences to consider how bullying could be tackled, ” says Kia Haring, global head of communication and sustainability at TietoEVRY.

A simple solution for a complex problem

At launch, the beta version of The Polite Type covers nearly two-thousand words in English and can be freely downloaded and installed on any computer. The font has been created together with Finnish teenagers. As an open-source font, it can be further developed by any individual developer or organization. The creative partner behind the idea is TBWA\ Helsinki.

“We wanted to create a tool to remind people that being polite and respectful should be the default option both online and offline. Cyberbullying and hate speech are universal issues and it demands enormous courage for our client to open this pandora’s box. The Polite Type is still far from being a finalized product and alone will not solve the problem, we know that, but it’s a start. We believe that leading by example encourages others to join the cause and maybe in the future, The Polite Type will be the default font in all online platforms,” explains Mikko Pietilä, Executive Creative Director from TBWA\Helsinki.

Global co-operation delivers an innovative solution

TBWA\Helsinki is part of TBWA\Worldwide that is globally recognized for their innovative and tech-centric approach, such as the hands-free handle to prevent the spread of infections.

“Because cyberbullying and microaggressions are hard to monitor, we wanted to help parents and professionals by creating a typeface that blurs and in some cases autocorrects offensive words and phrases as they are typed. Diversity is a multi-layered topic, but it can help us learn to be more understanding of each other. At its core, diversity is innovation,” says Doug Melville Chief Diversity Officer from TBWA\ Worldwide.

The project was carried out together with The Children & Youth Foundation in Finland and the digital studio Great Apes. The first to introduce The Polite Type as a resource for teachers and pupils is HEI Schools, a global network of early education centers based on the Finnish educational model. The designer behind the font design is Mika Melvas.

(*) According to UNESCO / Behind the numbers: ending school violence and bullying (2019) / ISBN – licensed under 978-92-3-100306-6. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000366483. The present work is not an official UNESCO publication and shall not be considered as such.

Read more and download the font here.

Nikhil Kashyap : Copywriter Content Creator

CopyWriter, Digital, Interviews2 comments

Nikhil is a copywriter/ content creator from Bangalore. He’s more an introvert and can appear to be reserved initially. Cycling and photography are two of his interests that’s perused actively. His dog cookie plays a vital role in his life. In short, he’s a proud foodie, avid reader and a person who has a keen interest towards the spiritual side of life. 

Why are you into Advertising?
I have a strong aversion to routine. The fact that each day in advertising holds something different is the main reason for me to be in this profession.  

Did you attend school Communications School or BMM or Literature..?
I did my BA in Journalism, and yes Literature was one of the subjects which I studied during the course of my under graduation. 

What makes a good writer?
It’s been 5 years since I’ve taken up writing as a profession. I will need a few more years of experience to answer this question with absolute confidence. As of now, I personally feel a good writer is one who keeps his/ her/ other writing simple, thoughtful and impactful.   

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The North Face (Spec Work) : Miami Ad School

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Brand: The North Face
Campaign Title: Change The Face Of It
Advertising School: Miami Ad School, Mumbai

Copywriter – Khushali Bhansali
Art Director – Vidhi Agarwal
Art Director – Siddhant Karale
Art Director – Nihal Bambulkar

Description/Synopsis:
Panty Wall. Smell Of A Fat Chick. Girlfriend Skiing. Lady Wildcats. These are not just some random derogatory terms stringed together by us. These are, in fact, just a few of the many sexist terms, slangs, and phrases you will hear in the outdoors. These terms, obviously, were coined by men. They are names of rock climbing routes, a skiing technique, and female athletic teams respectively, making the outdoors an uncomfortable space for women.

But, in order to encourage and inspire the next generation of female explorers, The North Face has decided to Change The Face Of It, forever.

Supernova Design | Brand Film

Creative, Digital, TV Spotsno comments

Project Description
Through intelligent strategy, beautiful design and memorable storytelling, Supernova helps wonderful products and services shine brighter so they can change the world. This brand film is a luminous explosion of colorful goodness, celebrating our studio’s passion, philosophy and feline namesake.


Supernova Design is a boutique design and animation studio founded by sisters Asavari & Shaivalini Kumar so they could join forces and make awesome work together while living far apart. Their remote team comprises of a multicultural collective of artists that are spread across India, US, Denmark, and Columbia. Combining expertise in communication design and animation direction, Supernova has created award-winning independent short films along with work for clients like Youtube, Google, Slack and Adobe. – www.supernovadesign.net

Creative response from a Finnish retailer to Finns working from home half-dressed.

Digital, Interesting Things, Internationalno comments

Creative response from a Finnish retailer to the most unexpected clothing phenomenon of spring – a collection of half-formal outfits for Finns working from home half-dressed. 

Comfort loving Finns took full advantage of the possibility of working half-dressed and local retail chain Prisma responded to this unexpected phenomenon by creating a special collection that combines formal upper parts with less formal bottoms into striking outfits. Ultimately the supporting campaign by TBWA\ Helsinki evolved into one kind of a phenomenon itself and helped to multiply sales of both, home and business wear, in the challenging times for retailers.

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Spotify Match : Miami Ad School

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Kindly note that this is SPEC WORK and has not been commissioned by the brand. It has recently won a Gold Medal at the Golden Award of Montreux.

Advertised brand: Spotify
Advert title: Spotify Match
Advert Type: Innovation, Digital, Experiential
Advertising School: Miami Ad School, Mumbai, India
Art Director: Ria Kulkarni
Copywriter: Palak Kapadia, Yashashree Samant, Apaar Singhal
Synopsis: Over 76% of Americans drive alone to work every day. That’s 115 millions cars on the road and accounts for one-third of the country’s air pollution. People don’t like to carpool because sharing a car with a stranger can feel awkward. And the planet bears the brunt of that. So we thought – what better way to connect strangers than a shared love for music? We create a Google Maps integration on Spotify that uses pre-set ‘Home’ and ‘Work’ locations to identify drivers going along similar routes. We then compare their Daily Drive playlists and match them over common music preferences. Encouraging them to carpool, we not only get them to listen to Spotify in the car but also use music to help save the planet.

Spotify (Spec Work) by Miami Ad School

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Brand: Spotify
Campaign Title: Trojan Jammers
Advertising School: Miami Ad School, Mumbai.
Copywriter: Anisha Chavan, Nagma Dhingra
Art Director: Nihal Bambulkar, Kanchi Undevia
Mentor: Deep Chhabria & Siddhi Ranade

Description/Synopsis:
Americans love listening to the radio while driving. The task at hand is to make them switch to Spotify’s Daily Drive playlist which is a complete package including music, podcasts, and news. We realized radio glitches and bad frequencies make people switch off the radio instantly. We’ll take advantage of this insight by creating Spotify’s Trojan Radio Jammers. A Trojan Radio Jammer is a low power radio station made out of a transmitter, an antenna, and an audio source. So, we will take these jammers and jam the radio signals on some of the busiest streets in America. As it’s cheap and easy to make, we will place it in plain sight and drop hints to indicate it’s Spotify’s doing. Lastly, by using the old principles of radio, we will leave a direct radio message in favor of Spotify.

The North Face : Spec Work by Miami Ad School

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Brand: The North Face
Campaign Name: Voice of Exploration

This project was created for One Show’s Young One’s Brief Awards and has secured a merit position.

Description: Our beliefs are formed by what we see and hear around us, and in the great outdoors while one gender is celebrated on it, another is barely ever seen. For the women who defied this norm to scale mountains and cross oceans, their voices always got silenced amidst the blaring noise.

The North Face vows to make these voices heard with the help of one voice that guides all expeditions – Google Maps. In a collaboration with Google Maps, the GPS voice on Google maps is replaced with voices of famous female explorers using past recordings and AI.

A voice that has reached millions now emboldens the voices that couldn’t.

Credits
Copywriter: Apaar Singhal, Yashashree Samant
Professor: Deep Chhabria, Siddhi Ranade
Advertising School: Miami Ad School Mumbai