*** From the Archives ***

This article is from September 6, 2005, and is no longer current.

Creativeprose: We Can Make a Difference

As I’ve followed the news of Hurricane Katrina, I’ve been reminded how overwhelming natural disasters are. People in the midst of them experience terror, pain, confusion. People viewing the devastation from outside feel shocked and helpless. I lived through a disaster, the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake in northern California. While its scope was much smaller than Hurricane Katrina’s, the basic responses of the survivors and the larger world were the same.
Natural disasters bring out something else in people: the urge to — even the need to — make a difference. After the ’89 earthquake, volunteers formed bucket brigades to fight fires and directed snarled traffic through streets without functioning stoplights. People who had food and water shared with those who weren’t so fortunate. Donations came in from all over. Helping others gave everyone a sense of control, something that’s badly needed when Nature reminds us how tenuous normality can be.
It’s time to take control of Katrina’s aftermath. Of course, you can give money, time, and materials to many organizations, such as the Red Cross and AmeriCares. (Before you do, check with your employer. I found out that creativepro.com’s parent company, PrintingForLess.com, would match my donation, so I doubled my giving power at one stroke.) But you don’t have to stop there. As a creative professional, you can offer unique assistance.
For example, folks at The Chopping Block, a New York studio, created Displaced Designer. This site is a clearinghouse where creative pros whose livelihoods have been disrupted by Katrina can post their needs and be matched with anyone with extra office space, even if it’s just a "handful of square feet from which to start to work and continue to earn a living."
At press time, individuals and companies from 11 states have posted on the Offer a Desk section of Displaced Designer. Please visit the site and participate, if you can.
Another example: The AIGA is collecting information from Gulf Coast designers in need and from those who can help. AIGA member Terry Stone (no relation to me) is chairing an AIGA relief task force. To take an active role in the task force, write to [email protected]. If you attend the AIGA Design Conference in Boston next week, look for the special session on how to help colleagues affected by Katrina.
I’m sure there are other creative pro-oriented relief efforts I haven’t heard about. To spread the word, go to "Respond to this article" below the Vox Box icon on the left-hand side of the page, and post as much detailed information as possible.
It’s important that we not give in to feelings of helplessness. Just remember, we can make a difference.

  • anonymous says:

    Please check out this website… I have been watching this grow from/by “net” (friends) professionals. It is heartwarming.
    https://www.homesforkatrina.org/

  • anonymous says:

    I’m thrilled to see all the wonderful things that the design community is doing for the folks hit by Katrina. I had another idea that I thought I would share…(now, please note that I am not a designer myself so please forgive me if this idea seems silly or trite or tacky or anything else that I may not be aware of!) What if designers and artists collaborated to send art (maybe even posters??) to the survivors so that they’d have something to hang in their new or temporary housing? You know, something to make their new place of residence feel a little homier . . . .

    Thanks for reading!

    Sara Jane Todd
    Peachpit–Essential books for the creative community

  • Terri Stone says:

    If you’re looking for a way to help Katrina survivors financially while wearing your support on your sleeve, you can buy a T-shirt designed by a collective called B-L-A-N-K by going to https://www.cafepress.com/b_l_a_n_k.

    The How Magazine newsletter says, “The Boulder, CO-based design firm Moxie Sozo has launched the Hurricane Poster Project, which is soliciting poster designs from creatives across the U.S. and abroad. The posters will be printed in limited editions and sold online, with proceeds going to the American Red Cross. Contact Leif Steiner at 303-506-2320 or [email protected].”

    If you’re a creative pro dispaced by Katrina and are looking for work, go to https://www.postkatrinatalent.org/ and post your resume. There are also links to people offering computers for you to use while creating your resume.

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