“Defending Lives” Booklet

Client: Amnesty International Australia

IMAGE: The cover of the Defending Lives: 2016–2020 at Amnesty International Australia booklet.

Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation that campaigns for human rights, and has 10 million supporters worldwide. The organisation was founded in 1961 by Peter Benenson, a British lawyer who was outraged by two Portuguese students being imprisoned for simply giving a toast to freedom. After half a century of promoting human rights and achieving groundbreaking victories, the organisation now spans the globe with a presence in over 70 countries.

In 2016, the Australian branch of Amnesty International, engaged me to design what is referred to as their “vision booklet,” since it outlines the key values and goals as guiding principles for the organisation to follow for their campaign work. The booklet was officially titled “Defending Lives: 2016–2020 at Amnesty International Australia” since it was designed to be the guiding principles of the organisation for the next four years.

The core values stated by the booklet are equality, justice, freedom, and human dignity. Which are achieved through the values of empowerment (i.e., building people power), persistence (i.e., being resolute in the pursuit of their goals), integrity (i.e., holding themselves to the highest standards), and courage (i.e., being fearless in upholding human rights). And the overall goals stated by the booklet were protecting and defending more lives, being an unstoppable movement, and inspiring outstanding passion and commitment. The booklet was designed to use beautiful full-page feature photography to help visually communicate these values. Along with paper notes with quotes from Amnesty International activists pasted throughout the booklet, to help demonstrate the importance of these diverse voices from the organisation’s volunteers.

IMAGE: The cover of the Defending Lives: 2016–2020 at Amnesty International Australia booklet.

IMAGE: The inside cover (featuring a photo of Al-Jazeera journalist Peter Greste returning to Brisbane after being held in an Egyptian prison for more than a year) and first page of the Defending Lives: 2016–2020 at Amnesty International Australia booklet.

IMAGE: The second and third page spread (featuring a photo of a candlelit vigil for Indonesians on death row) of the Defending Lives: 2016–2020 at Amnesty International Australia booklet.

IMAGE: The sixth and seventh page spread (featuring a photo of Amnesty International activists at the Saudi Arabian embassy in Germany protesting the flogging of blogger Raif Badawi) of the Defending Lives: 2016–2020 at Amnesty International Australia booklet.

IMAGE: The eighth and ninth page spread (featuring a photo of a Syrian girl holding her cousin at a tented settlement in Jordan) of the Defending Lives: 2016–2020 at Amnesty International Australia booklet.

IMAGE: An accompanying A1 poster for the Defending Lives: 2016–2020 at Amnesty International Australia booklet, summarising the key values and goals of the organisation.

It was an honour to be asked to design such an important document for an organisation that I have admired since I was young. Amnesty International is doing incredible work in standing up for human rights all around the globe.

Find out more about Amnesty International Australia at: amnesty.org.au

Project manager & communications coordinator: Samantha Hagaman, Amnesty International Australia.

Art direction & design: Jarren Nylund, Design Good Design Studio.