Every weekday on my commute, I sit at a certain traffic light, and I can’t ignore the piles of blankets and boxes in my peripheral vision – someone’s makeshift home. And while January forecasts in Baltimore have been mild thus far, it’s heartbreaking to think that no matter how many blankets are piled up or boxes are assembled together, that it is no substitute for a roof and four walls. Easing my foot off the brake, I mentally express my gratitude, and continue driving.
Most of us lucky enough to have a place we call home will never have to experience or understand the fine, delicate line that separates us from them. Often the assumption is that those unfortunate souls did something to cause their misfortune – they’re drug addicts or they can’t commit to a job. What is often not realized is the events that can occur, over which we have little to no control, that can change a life.
Recognizing this disconnect, Durham, N.C.-based McKinney took an unconventional approach to helping Urban Ministries of Durham educate the public on issues of poverty and homelessness. UMD helps meet emergency needs for food, clothing, and shelter; and helps those who are homeless secure a home and the resources to stay there. Taking a cue from popular online games such as Farmville and Mafia Wars, McKinney team members created Spent, an interactive game that incorporates social media to raise awareness about these issues.
Developed entirely gratis in 2011, Spent forces the player to make all-too-real decisions that can lead to a downward spiral of poverty. The site has been featured on CNN, NPR, ABC News, Fox News, Mashable and The Huffington Post. AIGA – a professional design association – published a full case study, including results, here.
Try playing. You’ll soon see that $1,000 a month doesn’t go very far. When faced with tough choices, like between feeding your family or fixing your car that provides transportation to work, that thin line between us and them becomes a mere seam.
In writing this column, I’ve been made aware of how designing effectively for social change today means much more than a propaganda poster. There will always be those nuts and bolts two-dimensional necessities – the annual reports, websites, the letterhead. Let’s create more engaging experiences, where real connections may be made. Spent is effective because of its empathetic approach, and because it’s not the expected homelessness ad. By mirroring the corporate world’s interactive campaigns, partnerships, and promotional tie-ins, social change and nonprofit organizations can become, well, more social. And the more people aware, the greater the chance that someone will take action.
