Dear Air France – It’s not my fault.

Having spent a lot of my adult life traveling and working abroad, I’ve usually make an effort to try different airlines when I can. And because of that I’ve been on some interesting, stressful and adventurous flights… but the worse experience in recent memory has been the service I received on Air France. You’d think … Continue reading Dear Air France – It’s not my fault.

The characteristics of a ‘design thinker’

I normally see lots of emails asking to “beautify” things at work. It’s one of the biggest insults to designers, a profession that looks to not only make things aesthetically pleasing, but ultimately functional and useful whether it’s in technology or communication. It’s a discipline that spans all areas because at its essence is not … Continue reading The characteristics of a ‘design thinker’

OCHA hosts UN Designers Group in Geneva

A few months back, I wrote about how Geneva is a melting pot of communication professionals with plenty of active groups meeting to exchange ideas, challenges, and solutions to a constantly evolving field of work. I’m proud that ITU brought together the UN (graphic) designers group late last year with an inaugural meeting in November. … Continue reading OCHA hosts UN Designers Group in Geneva

Pamplona: the centre of infographics and pintxos

Last month I was in Pamplona, Spain where the world-famous running of the bulls takes place. While the bull running doesn’t show up until mid-July, the city becomes host to Malofiej, an infographics world gathering, in March. It wasn’t a surprise that infographics weren’t the first thing on the tip of people’s tongues when I … Continue reading Pamplona: the centre of infographics and pintxos

Charts don’t explain themselves

It’s a scary fact of life these days that people take figures and numbers at face value, and consider them authoritative when it comes from the “source” or by the media, yet a lot of times they are taken out of context to serve a purpose like selling an idea or a service. Maybe it’s … Continue reading Charts don’t explain themselves

Smart yet simple messaging works every time

Finally got through another annual from Communication Arts -  what I really like about the 2013 advertising annual is that the ads featured in the magazine are simple yet engaging. There’s nothing better (and harder to do) than an idea that is smart and makes you think about what’s being communicated. Rather than skimming through … Continue reading Smart yet simple messaging works every time

Geneva’s network of communication professionals

Geneva’s international community is a big network filled with various organizations, of different sizes, working on issues from environment, technology, social justice, to humanitarian relief. With so many actors trying to work together, it’s a no-brainer that there are tons of meetings and networking opportunities to collaborate and cooperate. While some people might think meetings … Continue reading Geneva’s network of communication professionals

Media: Thanks for the news about Ebola – now what do I do?

In the last few months, Ebola has been on people’s minds especially those who are working to curb the spread of the virus and providing humanitarian relief to the millions of people that could be exposed in the three main countries: Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. $13.5 million from CERF is largest for single crisis … Continue reading Media: Thanks for the news about Ebola – now what do I do?

The first unified theory of branding

There’s a lot of talk in the business, marketing, and communications world about branding, strategy, and design but not always (well, most of time) in the same breath. There seems to be rift between the right and left side of the brain so it was a such a surprise to find a book that bridges … Continue reading The first unified theory of branding