RECOUP-NY

Identity & Branding

Role: Visual Designer
Collaborators: Trauma & Global Mental Health Lab, Center for Global Mental Health Equity, NYC Mayor's Office of Community Mental Health, Human Sciences Research Council, King's College London
Year: 2021-Present

RECOUP-NY stands for Restoring mental health after COVID-19 through community-based psychological services in NYC.

There are many barriers to seeking and receiving quality mental health care in the United States, and the treatment gap disproportionately impacts marginalized groups. We believe task-sharing provides a critical avenue toward possible solutions to help build a more equitable and accessible mental healthcare system.

The RECOUP-NY project is a five-year research study that aims to build capacity within community-based and social service organizations to address mental healthcare needs and reduce barriers to mental healthcare by integrating culturally sensitive, evidence-based mental health support into existing systems of care. Launched by researchers at The New School and George Washington University, this study is funded by the National Institutes of Health, to test the value of Problem Management Plus (PM+), a scalable psychological intervention developed by the World Health Organization, in promoting the mental health of New Yorkers from communities hard-hit by COVID-19.

My Process

With a team that comprises of psychologists, psychiatrists, public health workers, civic employees, and researchers, I quickly realized that I did not share a common "industry language" with them. My initial challenge was to clearly communicate what I was talking about by showing them examples and building a familiar vocabulary that we all understood.
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Along the way, I was researching about the existing branding and identities of organizations that worked in a similar space. After a few meetings of comprehending the project and it's vision, I started designing the identity & branding for the project, which was followed by a website, various infographics, and streamlined communication templates.

Currently Ongoing

One of the most challenging yet fun parts of this journey has been the materialization of “cultural adaptation” processes, i.e. developing relevant research materials and tools which will be used for introducing mental health strategies by facilitating workshops with the lab members and community organizations.