Youth justice Network

Revitalize an organization’s brand identity in the fight for racial justice.

The challenge:

What do you do when the juvenile system isn’t safe, isn’t fair, and doesn’t work?- Change it.

In 1990, the Friends of Island Academy began defending young people’s rights. Originally founded by a group of educators named after the alternative high school on New York City’s Rikers Island, this passionate, dedicated team works to break cycles of incarceration and fight systemic racism by providing youth with the opportunity they’ve been denied.

Despite years of calls for change by the organization and other advocates, New York City has closed Rikers Island. It was indeed the beginning of a new era for both the city and the community as the Friends of Island Academy was ready to take on new challenges. Having needed an identity. A powerful website with a powerful message needed to translate their identity into a powerful website that balanced love and compassion with their radical fight for justice. Several different members of the organization wanted to be involved in the process, so the new branding reflected who they truly are and matched their vision of what they wanted to accomplish.

Brand Sprint-Story workshop

As part of a collaborative Brand-Sprint Story workshop, YJN was able to define its vision, values, personality, and the overall story of the organization, which enabled them to finalize the name for the organization: Youth Justice Network.

The result

We continue to update the Website and add small additions, to ensure that visitors always see the best possible version of the site. Once the new site was launched in 2019 it was met with a positive reception both from the client and the users.