How can diversity and inclusion become a special feature of a brand? This was the question our students from the Bachelor Brand Design and the Master Brand Innovation dealt with in an interdisciplinary practice project.
But it was not just a matter of reconciling two courses of study – initiated by Michael Kress, the project on the topic of “inclusive brands” grew into a mega-project with many partners from the business world, all of whom were interested in the ideas and concepts of our students.
Part of the project were on the part of the industry:
The students approached the goal of researching what awareness exists within companies on the topic of inclusion and to what extent it actually represents an advantage for the brand in different ways. They were completely free to choose the medium in which to develop and present their findings. They worked in teams under the direction of Michael Kress and Prof. Ansgar Eidens, for example, on the creation of films, platforms for an inclusive working world and guerrilla campaigns for more attention around the topic.
The result, for example, was a touching film portrait of Tabo Hartog, Pia Uhlig and Emily Groth from the Brand Design course:
Katrin Zschirnt (BIHA Hamburg Consulting für Prävention, Inklusion, Rehabilitation (FAW)), Iris Kamrath (Arbeit und Leben DGB/VHS Hamburg e.V.) and Sven Neumann (Elbe-Werkstätten GmbH) were the main contact persons for our students and were enthusiastic about their approaches and projects during the final presentations.
But that’s not all, the project is going into the next round in the summer semester: events with the EAA (Einheitliche Ansprechstellen für Arbeitgeber) and the Integration Office of the City of Hamburg are coming up!
We would like to express our sincere thanks for the successful collaboration on a project that gave our students the chance to reflect on human needs, apply their creativity to concepts with real social impact, and in the process gain many insights into the work on diversity and inclusion in business.
