Following up on Metel Ma Shelta, meet Lama Shehadeh, one of the three designers behind this brilliant campaign which has now made the local news.
If you have been hibernating in some faraway cave or accidentally slipped in a coma for the past few days, allow me to assist you and get you up to speed. To learn more about the campaign, how it came to life, what is to be expected and get to know Lama's two best friends and Metel Ma Shelta co-creators, jump to Cleaning Up Our Streets... And Minds.
And now finally, introducing Lama Shehadeh, a graphic design student also minoring in business administration at the American University of Beirut. Growing up, she was immersed in the world of visual arts and from an early age she knew she would become a designer one day.
Lama Shehadeh
"I come from a family that has an insight on arts. Both my parents are architects and my mom draws with coal and chalk."
What drove you to study graphic design?
I just had it in me ever since I was 6. Whenever I had a group project I wanted to be the one who's responsible for the design part. I took a personality test when I was 15 and since then I knew that I was meant to become a graphic designer.
Where do you get inspired for your projects?
Basically it's design books. I usually flip through and random things that are happening with design can sometimes inspire me to create something new.
What is your most inspired project? Why do you consider it to be your favorite?
I think it is a book jacket I did for the story "Alice in Wonderland". I created the illusion of hole inside the book. I had to cut every page, it was like a stack of 70 sheets. I also had to come up with techniques to make it look deeper. I put a lot of effort and thought to it.
What areas of design interest you the most? Print? Multimedia? Etc. and why?
I lean more towards print (Corporate Identity and Publication). Print is so precious to me. I enjoy doing it, thinking about it, and applying it. What smells better than a book? A book that you got to design yourself.
What in your opinions are your best qualities as a designer?
I would like to think it is originality and the ability to respond well to criticism.
Your worst?
Not enough patience.
If you hadn't been a designer, what profession would you have chosen?
Architecture.
If you were stranded on a desert island with only one item, what would it be?
My phone.
What design softwares you cannot possibly survive without?
Adobe Illustrator.
Are you a MAC or a PC and why?
MAC it's really practical.
If you were a font, which would you be and why? Helvetica Neue. It's elegant and clear. It also comes with a variety of weights (light, ultra light, bold…)
Outside of design and visual arts, what are your hobbies?
Swimming and traveling.
You are one of the creators behind the Metel Ma Shelta campaign. Why do you feel it is important for you, as a designer, to use your professional skills for social work?
Sometimes we might all have the urge to change and tackle certain social issues. As designers we learn to come up with original ideas that draw attention. It also teaches us the right way to communicate with our audience in order to achieve maximum effectiveness.
Metel Ma Shelta has allowed you to meet your audience up close and personal. How does it feel having your work touch your audience directly and be part of this direct interaction? Do you enjoy it or do you prefer the creative side of your work, when it is just you and your computer?
Of course I'd prefer the interaction especially when it comes to awareness campaigns because the whole point is to affect your audience.
How do you think this campaign changed you as a designer? Did all the exposure you got affect the way you plan to pursue your career? Did you learn new skills and qualities about yourself which you would like to focus on?
This campaign gave me a huge responsibility as a designer. Now that we've set certain goals in this campaign we can not stop here. This has inspired me to pursue this type of campaigns throughout my career instead of being purely corporate. Of course now that it is more interactive I would have to focus more on social skills.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
I would want to open my own design studio. Hopefully I would've launched by then (or be a part of) a campaign that works on achieving women's rights in Lebanon and the Arab World.
Social, environmental, political, you name it; there have been campaigns of any form and shape, all over the place these past few years.
Some popular, some less. Some effective, some not as much. Others, unfortunately and despite the best of intentions, got twisted and turned into jokes. Very popular ones. But jokes nonetheless as Brofessional Review rightfully noted, such as the whole "Shu we2fet 3layeh" campaign by Bank Med(here, here and here) parodied so many times (here is one of those times) or even "Cheyef 7alak". These are only two of so many issues tackled in the media to raise awareness on various subjects including driving and road safety, women's rights, children's rights, racism and even tourism with the now notorious "Don't Vote For Me, Vote For Jeita Grotto" tag line.
In any case, the purpose of this post is not to assess these awareness campaigns, but just to note that successful or not, these were led by organized activists, NGOs, private companies, or even the government.
But I have to say, I have not seen any campaign launched by unknown, independent students go viral as quickly as Metel Ma Shelta (متل ما شلتا)!
Please, understand, it was not the work of a university department, a club or even a class project. It was this idea that three young people started, and which unravelled into a nation-wide phenomenon! Well, nation-wide on social media so far.
But Metel Ma Shelta (متل ما شلتا) could take the whole country, if not the whole Arab world by storm. At least this is what Mohamed Olaymi, Nadine Razzouk and Lama Shehadeh hope for.
These three best friends are the brains behind Metel Ma Shelta (متل ما شلتا). We had a little chat with Mohamed and Nadine as they let us in on everything, and a tad more.
It all starts in Beirut, where these students study and live.
Meet Mohamed Olaymi, a third year graphic design student at the American University of Beirut. Born and raised in Riyadh, this Syrian national then moved to Lebanon to pursue his education at the AUB. Originally from a "business oriented family" as he says, he considers himself to be the "odd artist in this equation", however clarifying his family is "very supportive" of what he does and remains his "biggest fans".
His best friend and classmate at AUB is Nadine Razzouk. This middle child has "no history of artists or designers in the family" either, and just like Mohamed, somehow, she ended up studying graphic design at one of the most prominent universities in the region.
So how did they come up with this unusual campaign?
"As we were strolling along the streets of Hamra we have encountered people littering. This came as a shock to us, in a beautiful country such as Lebanon that is considered to be the citadel of modernism in the Middle East, to still encounter such mess" explains Mohamed. "We perceive that as a horrific crime and our objective is to spread awareness throughout Lebanon and to initiate a law that prohibits people from littering. We're hoping the government can take a serious look at this problem and design a solution for it" he adds.
"Our main objective is for people to think twice before littering again" continues Nadine; "on the long term, our campaign's goal is for a law to be implemented to fine people who litter".
Needless to say, these young activists are strong-minded and very determined to see their campaign succeed.
Their plan was simple: They "didn't want to print papers and stick them all over the streets because we knew people have become immune to this type of campaigning" explains Mohamed, "nor did we want to distribute flyers which will eventually be trashed. We wanted to bring something new to the table, something no one can turn his head away from. It hit us like a lightning bolt, MONEY!".
Both agree that interactive campaigns which engage their audience directly in an active form are more effective. "We wanted to raise awareness about littering but we wanted our campaign to be different in the sense that it tackles the lebanese citizen on a microlevel. The person is interacting with our campaign so we are hoping it triggers something in each one of us" notes Nadine.
Mohamed proceeds to clarify how Metel Ma Shelta (متل ما شلتا) goes that extra mile: "Distributing phony money on the street was the perfect solution. It requires the target to bend down, pick it up, flip it, and read it. All this probably takes 30 seconds. Most awareness campaigns lose their audience after 5 seconds, we're being able to captivate them for approximately 30 seconds which is an achievement on its own!"
The concept is quite simple really; a fake 10,000 Lebanese Pounds bill with a note on the back: "Just like you picked up this money, you can pick up garbage on the street".
But fake money costs real money and it came as no surprise that Mohamed, Nadine and Lama were financing and executing this project themselves, with the help of their families.
Apparently, it was all worth it since faculty and peers at AUB, as well as relatives "were all ecstatic to hear we were doing something this genuine" reveals Mohamed.
"After we had printed our first 100 copies, we wanted to ask our peers and friends and of course our teachers about it so we tried it in our department at AUB and it caught everyone's attention. Everyone has been so supportive! We are truly thankful because if it weren't for their excitement we probably wouldn't have gotten this much attention" continues Nadine.
The campaign went viral in a matter of days, and the three friends are still "in a state of shock". They did not expect such a massive reaction from the public and of course, they are hoping to keep the momentum going until a law is drafted. "We hope that with the help of the media we can get our politicians to finally implement this law against littering" says Nadine.
Their enthusiasm is utterly contagious and they plan to tackle other issues close to their hearts once this one comes to term.
So what is next?
Beirut was the first city targeted simply because it is where they live and spend most of their time but these tenacious designers have already reached Tripoli, Bhamdoun and Kaslik, and they hope to cover the entire Lebanese territory soon. Mohamed even plans to cross the border and export this campaign to Syria as well.
Usually when a movement becomes that popular among students, it catches on quickly in other countries and when asked if they had plans to collaborate with students abroad and expand the campaign's outreach, both were open to the idea.
So can we expect money-rain to pour on all Arab streets soon? Who knows.
In the meantime, "it's raining cash over Beirut City" laughs Mohamed. "Most of the reactions were extremely positive and encouraging. A few critics have exclaimed that we are littering by distributing flyers on the floor.
We respond: We have created a campaign that is attractive enough to be surely picked off the floor. We're not worried about that at all! We never find our flyers on the floor, they're picked up seconds after we distribute them. Some decide to throw them in the trash. Many decide to keep them and distribute them in another street, and a few place them back on the ground for someone else to stumble upon them. We're currently putting a video together that sums up the different reactions we have encountered. So stay tuned for that".
"Some other critics said 'we're not obliged to remove the trash off the street, we should promote not throwing it in the first place'. Our reply is that not only do we mean to literally pick up the trash, but also symbolically. We ask people to obliterate the trash through spreading awareness".
Nadine goes on to explain that they "have studied the campaign and know that it is strong enough for it to not be ignored so the flyers are not staying on the floor".
So who are these young creators, really?
We took them on a one-on-one interview, just to pick their brains a little.
Mohamed
"We are three witty designers eagerly trying to change the world making it a better place. This is our responsibility as the future generation".
Mohamed Olaymi
What drove you to study graphic design?
I always had a passion towards arts, I'm a painter myself, and I realized graphic design integrates so many forms of art that I intended to explore. I also wanted to master the art of visual expression.
Do you have any mentors (professors or others) and did they influence you in any way when you came up with this campaign?
Of course, almost every teacher has put us one step closer to this campaign. I would like to add that in AUB a course is given, "design in the community", as part of the graphic design program in order to teach students how to create awareness campaigns. So every little angle of our campaign is actually planned thoroughly and not coincidentally.
Who is your favorite designer or visual artist? Andy Warhol.
Where do you get inspired for your projects?
We were actually inspired by the streets of Hamra.
If you hadn't been a designer, what profession would you have chosen?
Painter.
If you were stranded on a desert island with only one item, what would it be?
My phone.
What design softwares you cannot possibly survive without?
Adobe Photoshop.
Are you a MAC or a PC?
MAC, it understands my language.
Outside of design and visual arts, what are your hobbies?
Singing along to every song played on the radio.
So you do realize you guys are becoming more and more famous now. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
In 10 years I'm hoping to be an established designer that changes the world. And of course, Hollywood. (laughs)
"We are full of life, happy and want to make a difference. And most of all we are best friends".
Nadine Razzouk
What drove you to study graphic design?
I was actually a psychology student but i didn't find myself there. i wanted something where i could interact with people and not just on a personal level.
Do you have any mentors (professors or others) and did they influence you in any way when you came up with this campaign?
Our teachers were so supportive, and if it weren't for their constructive feedback throughout this campaign and our courses we wouldn't have made this much of an impact.
Who is your favorite designer or visual artist? Man Ray.
Where do you get inspired for your projects?
I usually go to bookstores on Saturdays and just lurk there and flip through books.
If you hadn't been a designer, what profession would you have chosen?
I would probably be a psychologist.
If you were stranded on a desert island with only one item, what would it be?
My laptop.
What design softwares you cannot possibly survive without?
Adobe Illustrator.
Are you a MAC or a PC?
MAC, it's so much practical.
Outside of design and visual arts, what are your hobbies?
Traveling and hula hooping.
So you do realize you guys are becoming more and more famous now. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
I see myself as the next Oprah Winfrey of Graphic design!
This survey is a bit long, but the questions raised and the solutions proposed are quite interesting. The main benefit I think is the mere fact that the questions alone "forces" us to think about certain issues to tend to forget in our daily lives.
And in case you don't have the time to follow through with the Survey, here's the main information to remember:
Climate change is happening now, it is among the biggest threats to humanity. What does it mean?
Every day many of our activities consume a lot of energy and emit greenhouse gases (GHG) in the air. These gases act like a thick blanket over our planet and heat the Earth, which leads to species and people threatened by drought, changes in rainfall, altered seasons, and more violent storms and floods.
Because of Climate Change…
The 3 billion people who live in poverty around the world will be the hardest hit by climate change, with a risk of starvation due to declining crop, prolonged drought and high temperatures. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that climate change may have caused more than 150,000 deaths in the year 2000 alone.
More than a million species worldwide could be driven to extinction by 2050. In the Galápagos Islands, penguin populations have halved since the early 1970s because of extreme weather conditions.
Climate change is related to the way we live, the way we move around, what and how we consume. Daily life habits, such as heating, cooling or lighting our homes absorbs a lot of energy and also emits huge amounts of GHG. For example, clothes dryers account for up to 10% of home-energy use. Transporting goods around the world, accounts for 50% of the diesel fuel consumed in cities. Even what we eat is important: producing a kilo of veal emits the same amounts of GHG than driving a car for 220km!
Here are some solutions!
Being at home:
• Use energy more efficiently at home to reduce your emissions: turn off electric devices and lights when not using them, sort wastes, choose low-energy bulbs, etc.
Getting around:
• Rather than driving your car every day, try other ways: walk, ride your bike, and take the bus or the train.
• Use car renting and car sharing systems that reduce GHG emissions.
Getting food and eating:
• Buy in priority seasonal/organic products that need less energy to be produced or grown.
• Develop collective urban gardens to grow vegetables locally.
