Camping for Connection
Bethel University wanted to host the National Day of Unplugging and run an event on campus. The goal of the campaign was to drive student participation in a variety of activities aimed at understanding phone usage and learning to unplug and set healthy boundaries with technology. I wanted to make my designs and activities approachable and make it possible for every student to participate. The activity decided for the campaign was a campout on the Bethel University lawn. The research started with conducting interviews with students about their phone usage. The interviews led to the big idea of students being unhappy with their current phone usage, but feeling like they weren’t sure how to detach from their devices. Another idea that led to the progression of the campaign was that students often detached from their devices while they were outside. More research was conducted on the effects of prolonged phone usage, and the impact of spending time outside. The designs display a fun mascot of Bigfoot to establish a fun feeling that doesn’t feel too serious. The posters, booth, shirts, and signage display fun bright colors to attract student attention and create unity between the designs and deliverables. The cardboard cutout of the mascot is meant to be placed around campus to create buzz around the event and drive student engagement. The journal displays a variety of reflection activities so that students can further reflect on their experiences throughout the event.
HOW DID WE GET HERE?
Besides basic research and interviews, many drafts and different approaches were taken to decide which designs were the best. From there, branding was created around the event theme to make a cohesive and fun activity.
