Practical Action is an international development organization that uses practical technology to help people in poor communities build better lives. It is a rebranding of ITDG, the Intermediate Technology Development Group, and I worked on the annual report for its South Asia office from the first year under the new name in 2005 until 2010, handling both the design and the illustration.
Each year had its own theme, which gave me a fresh way to tell the story of the work across the region:
2005/6: Introduction. The first report under the new identity introduced Practical Action to its South Asian audience, with illustrations built around hands and simple tools.
2006/7: Partnership. Every character on the cover relates to a specific project in the report.
2007/8: Region. The focus widened to South Asia as a whole, using the paisley, a design motif common across much of the region, as a recurring accent.
2008/9: Mandala. A mandala of the people Practical Action works with, radiating out from the organization’s logo. Each figure was tied directly to a section of the report.
2009/10: Peace. Sri Lanka had just emerged from a civil war, and the report focused on peace and reconciliation.
