OUGD603 - Sports Rebranding - Application

Once the 3 designs had been critiqued by others, I found that the most appealing logo was the same as the one I had chosen. This meant that the application process could then begin using the same design. For this I would be applying the logo to different promotional material and online branding, in an attempt to replicate the club's professional existing identity. This would include the design for the tickets, football kits, seating within the stadium, uniforms and online material etc.

I began the application process by first adding the logo to a mock up football jersey material. This would give the identity a clear visual example of how it might look on both the home and away shirts, as well as the black shorts. Applying the design in this way also made me think about the visual approach of the promotion and how it could later be used in advertising.

By applying the design to different aspects of the club's existing identity, it was possible to see how well the logo worked. This also made me think about how the audience would see the logo, depending on where it could be found. For example, this mockup was made as a way to introduce the logo to the players as they arrive on the pitch, which would as a result lift the spirit of the team.

Following on from the last mock up, I thought about how the identity could be incorporated into the location of the club. My first idea was to show the logo across the roof of Craven Cottage or the roof of the stands. However, this would have drawn attention away from the iconic history of the club and the ground architecture.  Therefore, I instead decided to create a mock up of the seating arrangements within the stands, applying the logo to the backrests of each seat.

OUGD603 - Group Critique on Research Led brief

Today's group critique allowed me the chance to get feedback on the research led investigation brief and the practical outcome produced so far. It was found that the layout could be improved so that the text is smaller on the publication when printed. It was also suggested that the material be better considered as this will improve the quality of the publication.

Therefore, I decided I would order the publication to be printed using a lower paper weight and recyclable paper, as this would put the publication into context as being environmentally aware as well as useful as a guide.

OUGD603 - Sports Rebranding - Developed Logo

After deciding on the content for the logo, the colour palette and the contemporary style to use I began making several different variations of the design. By changing small details and comparing styles during this development stage, it was easier to see which logos were most stand out. When designing each logo, it was evident that the black and white allowed the red to contrast in a striking way. When taking the thick black outline away the design became more minimal, allowing just two colours to contrast one another. This reminded me of the simple football logo designs of the early 1900s.

As a result of this fine tuning, the decision of the final logo could be narrowed down to just 3 final designs.

• The logo to the left was chosen for its subtle border, which gave the inner red shield a focus point in the design. By keeping the shield outline thin, the triangular shape in the centre and coat of arms are then more striking in contrast. 
• The centre logo made the design more encased, as the thickness would draw attention from the outer text to the inner icons. Having a black/red/black layering in this logo made each section contrast the next.
• The logo to the right was a compromise between the previous two, adding features of each in order to mix styles.

Finalised design

Out of all the designs I liked this version the most, based on it's colour layering and variation of stroke width. This made the icons within the design easier on the eye and the text more legible in contrast. As a result, I feel that this design encapsulates the historical background of Fulham F.C. and the familiar colours as well as architecture in Craven Cottage. Overall, this design is most likely to appeal most to fans and resonate most with those that are familiar with the ground or the team's back story.

OUGD603 - Sports Rebranding - Initial ideas

After researching into the 3 chosen football clubs, I decided that Fulham F.C. would be the best team to rebrand. This was because in comparison to the other clubs in the premier league the crest of Fulham was very simplistic and devoid of any details or traditional symbolism. Therefore, I began looking further into the history of the club, it's football ground and the crest itself. This way several details could be imagined for a rebranding of the club's crest, in a way that gives it stand-out visual identity and hints of tradition.

• the redesign started by focusing on the shield of the logo and how the colours could be manipulated.
• As the crests for football teams often correspond with the colours of the kits, it was essential to use the same colour palette found in the club's branding. (red, white and black)
• I also thought about the club's original designs and how this might influence the new logo. For example, several past FFC logos have featured the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham coat of arms (crossing swords).

When researching the past crests used for FFC, it was clear that the club had taken inspiration from the local identity of London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham (LBHF). It was also clear that the adaptation over the years was influenced by the fans, in particular the recognisability of the club in the premier league. The 1995 logo was made as a way to redesign the LBHF logo with more vibrant colours, whereas the 2001 version of the logo completely changed the identity so that FFC would become a more recognisable competitor in the league.

In the same way, I will aim to take inspiration from the club's history and recognisable iconography, while remaining true to the club's colour identity.

• After considering ways to alter the shield in the logo, I decided to take a different approach that redefined the shape of the crest. By adding a circular outer layer the design would give the brand a more contemporary identity. 
• As the current logo required viewers to know the club based on its initials, I thought about how adding the full title would give FFC more international appeal and recognisability.
• Without overcrowding the logo identity, one idea involved using recognisable imagery that would resonate with fans. Therefore, the triangular shape found within the grounds architecture and the Craven Cottage was used throughout several design examples.
• In order to include hints of tradition, I added the year the club was established and the coat of arms from several past logos. Creating this in a more simplified and less crowded way made the design minimal and easy on the eyes.

OUGD603 - Sports Rebranding - Research of Clubs

As part of a research brief into rebranding a sports identity, I will be looking at the history behind a team's emblem, as well as the uses of the design. This way it will be possible to understand best how the client's audience would want their teams branding to look. It will also help me to understand how the branding can be applied to specific forms of a club's identity. For example, the brief could also involve designing the identity with promotional, commercial and executive uses in mind. For a football team there are a number of different ways to apply their identity to a wide variety of formats. This includes the crest or emblem on the player's kits, the colour schemes used in their websites and the information printed on game tickets to name a few. Gathering a range of primary and secondary research will help to build up a picture of how a sports brand identity should look.

Football teams

When thinking about which team to rebrand, I began by choosing different Premier League clubs based on their crests. Burnley FC's logo contains a lot of details and mixed colours, Fulham FC's logo was very basic and AFC Bournemouth's logo features shapes that did not look correctly aligned.

Editing these logos, will require further knowledge of each club's history and the reason for the current logo designs. From here, I will be able to redesign the logos and choose a club that I wish to continue rebranding as a result.

Burnley FC

• nicknamed the Clarets for their claret and blue football kits 
• Stalk at the top of the logo refers to the Starkie family. It holds a de Lacy knot in it's beak and stands on a hill surrounded by cotton plants, which refers to the cotton trade in Burnley.
• The hand represents the town's motto "hold to the truth"
• The bees refer to the phrase "busy as a bee"
• The arrow in the centre represents the local river Brune
• The lion represents royalty, after they were the first team to have a monarchy visit their ground.
• The club originally used the latin phrase "pretiumque et causa laboris", meaning "the prize and cause of our labours".

Fulham FC

• Craven Cottage is the club's ground
• 1879 was the year it was founded
• Nicknamed the Cottagers, after the cottage located on the grounds of the stadium, which burnt down in 1888. This was rebuilt in 1903 and remains at the ground to this day.
• The club wears black and white kits
• The shield in the logo is reference to the original Fulham Metropolitan Borough Council's (FMBC) coat of arms.
• The FMBC coat of arms features crossed swords on a red background, in reference to the arms of the sea of London.
• The red used on FMBC is also were the current Fulham FC takes its red from.
• 1987 the club considers merging with QPR due to financial difficulty, however they are saved when Jimmy Hill stepped up as chairman of the team.
• 1997 - the club is bought by Mohammed Al Fayed.
• 2010 - Fulham make it to the final of the Europa League before being beaten by Atletico Madrid.
• Johnny Haynes was Fulham's best player and nicknamed the Maestro.

AFC Bournemouth

• The club was founded in 1899 as Boscombe St. John's Institute FC. 
• The club was renamed in 1923 to Bournemouth and Boscombe Athletic FC in 1923
• This was the name until 1972, when it becomes AFC Bournemouth (Association Football Club).
• The badge of AFC Bournmouth was first used from 1971 until 1981. 
• The idea of it was to represent progress, and features the supposed silhouette of Dicky Dowsett’s head, a player who became a prolific goal scorer for the club during 1957-1962.

OUGD603 - Sports Rebranding - Brief idea

While thinking about different ideas for a rebranding brief, one particular subject came to mind. This was the rebranding for Everton Football Club in 2013, which aimed to produce a new logo for the club's badge. The club says the reason for the rebrand was because “complexity of the [old] crest made it difficult to reproduce for certain print, broadcast and digital media,” Therefore, the in-house graphics team at Everton FC came up with a new logo for the club, which aimed to simplify the design. However, this rebranding was met with backlash from the fans and after just one season the club changed the logo again. 

In order for the design to be simplified, the design team at Everton aimed to include less detail and eventually made changes to the overall colour scheme. What was originally a blue crest featuring laurel wreaths and the club slogan, became a more minimal and contained emblem. This was quickly substituted for a more favourable logo, which referred back to the original in an effort to compromise. 

What interests me most about this rebranding is the response from fans, as the design team hadn't considered the input of the club's supporters. The second rebranded logo in response to the backlash was then shown alongside 2 other variations for fans to them decide on their favourite. This made me think about how rebranding can create a refreshing new identity, but how it can also be received by its audience. Therefore, I am setting myself the task of rebranding a sports brand, in an effort to understand the complexities of designing an identity for a client.

OUGD603 - Youth Culture - Evaluation

As a result of the research led investigation, I was able to learn more about nihilism and how it has become a part of youth culture today. It became clear early on in the project that this subject would need to be thoroughly investigated as it revealed several different interpretations and forms of nihilism. From this, I was then able to learn more about humanism, existentialism and other philosophies relating to nihilism, which subsequently would influence the publication and it's aims. I found that during the early stages of the project, nihilism was somewhat difficult to visualise as one particular thing. Therefore, creating several initial interpretation of positive and negative nihilism would allow for critical review during feedback sessions.

These interpretations were well received during the initial stages, however it was also clear that the visual approach was very much focused on the rejection of religious values rather than authority as a whole. As a result of this, the investigation shifted and I began looking at more general forms of authority rejection. This also provided me with the idea to create something that could both resonate with young audiences and inspire them to pursue success. As nihilism focuses on the rejection of meaning and purpose, I found that this was relatable to many young people who may be under pressures in their lives. Therefore the research began compiling stories of inspiration people and how they overcame difficult times in their lives, to eventually reach success.

The idea to create a publication then brought about more content to be used for the project. This included primary research into volunteer work, scientific discoveries and personal stories, which would as a result inspire the readers to think about what interests them in life and what they wish to achieve. I found that choosing a limited colour scheme that was primarily black and white allowed the publication to stay open to interpretation and symbolise the opposite forms of nihilism. Overall, the publication was able to reflect some of the realities of life, as well as the reasons to make use of the time we have. This is what I believe would influence the young audiences in a way that makes them question their own meaning and purpose. Providing several examples of dedication, passion and generosity could influence young people to find meaning in their lives through pursuit of these things, and furthermore benefit themselves and the people around them.

OUGD603 - Youth Culture - Outcome

For the cover of the magazine I wanted to incorporate some of the initial ideas that began the project, as some of the visual approaches to nihilism were well received during critiques. I decided that the use of the Virgin Mary image could be a good image to use because the barbed wire halo gives the image a more sinister feel. As the aim is to attract a student audience, I felt that this aesthetic would be recognisable to some. Being inspired by the content found on social media, particularly Tumblr, the front cover sums up the general theme of the publication. The word 'opportunity' had been highlighted as the magazine aims to resonate with young audiences and inspire them to seek out more prosperous opportunities in life. Giving audiences a brief overview of the content on the cover page would make it easier to quickly see what it involves, rather than having to pick it up and skim through. The title 'Optimus Pessimus' came from the latin translation for optimism and pessimism, something that I think works appropriately for the content.

The general aesthetic of the magazine was to visualise opposite sides of nihilism, which would as a result give the audience different points of view. It is also left up to the viewers how to interpret each section, as the colour scheme does not apply negatively or positively to each spread. Instead the black and white is used almost as a metaphor for interpretation. Sections that one viewer might find insightful may not be to another viewer, however the range of stories gives the publication variety of interests.

Including several inspirational quotes throughout gives the viewer small pockets of advice to think about. From this, they are then more likely to look further into the stories or philosophies.

As the publication is made up from research, I decided to make body text a main focus so that the findings could be shared with others. This also meant consideration of each spread's layout, particularly those that involve a lot of text. Most of the information used in the magazine had been written first hand, whereas other areas include exerts from articles and books around nihilism.

In the volunteer section of the publication I wanted to include an interview from primary research, that would make volunteering more appealing to viewers. Volunteering had repeatedly appeared in suggestions for life experience, and was something that many young people involve themselves in.
Volunteer work would also give viewers a different outlook on life, as the satisfaction comes from helping others as well as the environment.

It was important for the publication to show the extent of nihilism and how it can create chaotic situations in society, more specifically, the way in which nihilism exists in UK gang culture. Within recent news there has been a significant increase in gang violence and knife attacks across the UK. The behaviour of these individuals can be seen as an extreme case, and therefore warn viewers to avoid this destructive form of nihilism.

Following on from the gang culture section is a personal story relating to UK knife crime, and how one man is working to tackle the issue. This spread follows on from the previous because it gives the viewer an alternative approach to destructive nihilism and what can be done to tackle this in a positive way. As a result, the spread gives viewers more insight into the reasons young people involve themselves in crime. Including a personal account such as this makes the publication more relatable to those who may find they resonate with the story. As a result, the audience who can relate may have a reason to reconsider their opportunities and life choices.

By including scientific discoveries such as this, the viewers are given an example of how humans fulfil their time by exploring and finding out more about our universe. As found in the research, nihilism can be a result of existentialism. Therefore, discovering new things about ourselves and our world can occupy our interests and give us our own meaning/purpose. Offering discovery as a section gave viewers a small example of how science can be one avenue to exploration.

Relating to the last spread on discovery, I included information on the Greek philosopher and scientist Aristotle. This gives a more personal account of how someone dedicated their time to finding out more about the universe. This may also encourage others to pursue science or philosophy in the hopes of making a big discovery, such as Aristotle did.

In order to connect with the youth audience, I looked into inspirational people that may have at some point in their life overcome a difficult time. One story that stood out to me was boxing athlete Anthony Joshua's. This was because he had previously risked losing a shot at his career, when he was arrested for intent to supply class B drugs. However, he overcame this time in his life and it inspired him to push himself further to achieve some of the highest honours and athletic titles. This may resonate with young audiences as boxing is often seen as a sport that helps people turn their lives around. Anthony Joshua has today become one of the most inspirational athletes and a role model to the youth of today. Therefore, I think this spread would work well to inspire it's readers who may need encouragement in their position.

In relation to Joshua's perseverance, I felt that the publication would need a female story for female audiences to connect with. For this the next spread focused on J.K. Rowling's story of hardship and achievements. Many of the experiences that Rowling went through in her life can be relatable to young audiences. Therefore, they may find inspiration in her drive for success as well as her contributions to charitable organisations as a result.

One final message to leave with the readers is the summary of the findings and what I believe to be nihilism from a positive perspective. Accompanied by a map of Europe, the viewer can imagine the possibilities in their life and the places they may travel to in the time they have. It also gives readers a summary of the spreads so they can see that they are only a small set of examples in a large world of opportunities. Though it leaves the audience with the freedom to do what they want with their life, I feel that it does so by encouraging them to seek out new experiences, make meaningful connections with people and enjoy what makes them unique.

OUGD603 - Statement of Intent (final version)

During the course of extended practice, my aim will be to understand how design is used commercially and professionally by studios and agencies. Exploring a range of media, printing options and digital formats, I plan to build a portfolio of work that focuses on branding identity and promotion.

Some of the themes I plan to look at over the course of the year include societal values, sports promotion and interactivity. Having previously explored some of these ideas before, I feel that building on them while exploring new areas will provide me with the chance to better understand the commercial use of design in a professional context. Furthermore, I plan to use these investigative topics as a way to show employers or potential clients the ways in which I interpret a brief and produce work accordingly.

Having an interest in sports design and having background knowledge of different games, may prove to be a useful starting point for some of my projects. This will help me to begin a search for inspiration and find examples of existing sports design, during research stages throughout the year. I chose to pursue this as an option as it could mean improvements to my portfolio, both visually and academically. Making necessary design choices and assessing the outcomes of these projects will help to work on improving certain areas of my skill set, while learning new skills along the way.

OUGD602 - HAWRAF blog 3

Listing target clients

I particularly liked this list of clients made by the studio, as it allowed each member of the team to rank their dream clients and list how achievable each of these were. I found this interesting for a number of reasons. Firstly, I think that listing goal clients in this way can give everyone perspective on where their level of skill currently is. It also gives each person the opportunity to show others in the studio the types of clients they have an interest in, an thus a glimpse of their personality and way of working.

This can be beneficial to a studio team as it leaves open the opportunity to work collaboratively on projects that multiple people may be interested in. A list such as this could also make it easier to attain these goals, as you could work with similar clients that may be easier to contact.

OUGD602 - HAWRAF blog 2

Rules/Ideals

This set of rules that the studio goes by can be used as a reminder for dealing with and communicating with potential clients and other studios. This could prove to be a useful list of rules to follow as it points out how to avoid being exploited by clients and how to make it clear of your own intentions and demands.

OUGD602 - HAWRAF blog 1

Client based questionnaire
This questionnaire stood out to me on the Google drive because it shows how to connect with new potential clients and understand what contributions they could make to a business. In the same way, this questionnaire made me think about the types of questions that are likely to be asked by a studio when applying for jobs. This could prove useful in the near future when preparing for an interview at a studio or give some insight into the types of roles that are expected of clients.

[HAWRAF] Discovery Questionnaire

These are questions we ask potential clients after it is clear that there is a possible project, but prior to sending a proposal. Ideally, it gives us enough information to decide whether to move forward with a proposal and, if so, what the timeline and budget for that proposal should be.

*Whenever we can, we should try to introduce ourselves at the end, after having the appropriate information to cater our story and offering to the potential client’s needs.

ABOUT / TEAM

Who are you? What is your role?

How long have you been there?

How long has the company been around? What’s its story?

How big is your team? What does it team look like?

Any other stakeholders or decision makers? What will their input look like?

How have you worked with vendors/studios in the past?

GOALS / CHALLENGES

What have you done so far? What has worked? What hasn’t?

What are your challenges?

What are you trying to communicate?

How would you measure success for this project?

GENERAL

Who are your primary and secondary target markets?

What’s your budget?

Where is your funding coming from?

Timeline?

BRAND

Do you have an established brand?

Art direction? Photography?

WEBSITE

FUNCTIONALITY

Who is using this site? What for?

Do you see this as a starter apartment, a 2-3 home, or a 10-year mortgage?

What does it need to do?

E-COMMERCE

How many sales do you do through your site per month?

How would you measure success for your site?

TECH STACK

Do you have a domain, and if not is there a domain you have in mind?  Subdomain?

If you have a domain where is it registered (follow-up, need info)?

Do you want to own the domain or do you want us to purchase and manage it?

Is the site already hosted? Do you want to host it or do you want us to handle hosting?

Have you used a CMS before?  Which & Preferences?

OUTRO*

We talk about ourselves.

OUGD603 - Youth Culture - Development 2

I had several different ideas in terms of how each spread might look. As the publication would contain different stories, inspirations and themes, I thought it would be best to first consider the layout of each page and then decide how the content could be reflected in the design. For the most part, the black and white layout would allow the images or designs to communicate themselves visually.

One example of this is shown in the 'Inspire' spread, as it allows the body text and titles to sit comfortably around the image. The black square around the image of J.K. Rowling subtly makes the image more prominent in the spread, while the text revolves around this.

Other pages such as this one contain their own colour palette, as this made them more unique and relative to the story they reflect. As the story mentions particle acceleration, I wanted the spread to visualise the motion and pattern made by the Large Hadron Collider. Therefore, I looked at several maps, plans and example videos of the structure so that I could understand how to best describe its function through graphic format.

Using a mixed colour palette of blues and reds, the design was able to show how particles are smashed together from opposite ends of a machine. The different hues and shades work well at showing how the machine produces different particles when the existing ones combine together.

OUGD603 - Youth Culture - Development 1

I began designing the spread in a black and white format so that the publication would show opposite ideas of nihilism. However, this did not mean making black an indicator of negativity or white of positivity. Instead it would serve as a concept for the spreads, and the colour's visual properties would be left up to the viewer to interpret. As nihilists do not believe in the concept of good or bad, I felt that a black and white colour palette would work well to instead reflect opposition. The stories within the publication would also reflect ideas of positivity and negativity, making it more appropriate to the layout.

Using the sans serif font, MicroSquare Bold, I included a list of the sections in an contents page at the beginning.

To match this bold lettering, I used Avenir Light for the body text. This was the best option for contrast, as it could work in paragraphs and remain legible at heavier weights.

Avenir black oblique was used for the quotes, as this highlighted the letters on the spreads and helped to summarise each story.

The publication would still have hints of colour, though it would primarily be in the images used for each story. The page numbers would also be accentuated by subtle dark blue dashes. This design idea runs consistently throughout each spread and gives the pages small detail consideration.

OUGD603 - Youth Culture - Content Info

Interview with Sam Bannon
One section I wanted to include in the publication was about volunteering. I wanted this because several research sources suggested that volunteer work was one activity that can benefit both people and the planet's wellbeing. It is also said that volunteering brings satisfaction to those who participate because it gives us a sense of community and we thrive off helping others.

For this section I wanted to interview a friend of mine who volunteers quite often in Aberystwyth and Liverpool. I hoped I would be able to find out some insight into volunteer work, how young people can get into it and what purpose it can have to someone.

Nihilism page 1

Nihilism is the rejection or lack of belief of life having meaning or purpose. Nihilism is most often associated with Friedrich Nietzsche who argued that its corrosive effects would eventually destroy all moral, religious, and metaphysical convictions and precipitate the greatest crisis in human history.

The skeptic has no illusions about life, nor a vain belief in the promise of immortality. Since this life here and now is all we can know, our most reasonable option is to live it fully.  – Paul Kurtz

Humanism

Some believe that a higher force created the universe and that we live our lives under the influence of good and evil. They believe this world to be part of a bigger plan that is waiting to be discovered. A humanist view is different. They believe in natural phenomenon, rather than everything having a purpose or meaning.  Instead, humanists create meaning in their own lives, whether it is through family and friendship, ideas and goals set for the future or to care for the natural world around us.

They believe these purposes in life to be unique to each person rather than universally the same purpose. We understand these purposes through the influences of our parents, our environment and our connections. As individuals we have our own tastes and preferences, as well as hobbies and goals. All of these are ways to bring us satisfaction in creativity, curiosity, intellectual capacities or our emotional lives.

Faron Alex Paul 

Faron Alex Paul, a knife amnesty activist appeared in recent news for his fight against young people carrying knives. Faron’s scheme involved meeting with knife carriers and exchanging their weapons for gift vouchers. He explains the reason for his activism was due to personal experiences with knife crime, having been stabbed a total of 18 times during 2 separate incidents. Faron’s story and many like this continue to inspire the youth as well as the communities most affected, giving young people a chance to reconsider their opportunities and avoiding life threatening situations.

‘If I didn’t know about him, that knife would still be on the roads right now. Do you know what I mean? Touch wood, it could have been used by now, so we need more people like him. People don’t want to live this life. People are forced to live this life. That’s what people need to understand.’ Because the police, they ain’t no good support, they’ll probably point the finger at me. I leave my house and within two minutes they’ll search me anyway and find it with me. Not everyone has the same opportunities. You know, family, love, all of that stuff.

‘­The way I see it, if the knife isn’t on the street then it can’t be in someone’s hand, and if it can’t be in someone’s hand then it can’t stab someone.’

Knife crime

Kamali Gabbidon-Lynck was just 19 years old when he was chased into a hairdresser’s in north London and stabbed to death on the evening of 22^nd February 2019. Metropolitan police say another man, aged 20 was shot and stabbed in the street having been involved in the same incident. Incidents like this have in recent discussion sparked debate about the causes of rising knife crime in the UK and particularly the capital. ­One thing that has been agreed upon is at the heart of all these crimes there is a deep nihilism relating to an unstable home life or influence at an early age.

With cuts to government funding and policing across the UK there has been a struggle in tackling the issue, especially among schools in England. However, national debate over recent months has begun to pressure the government into finding a solution to the crisis. This has inspired several activists to take action and public figures to speak out against the violence. Through the power of social media the voice of the affected communities has become more prominent and with this more consideration of young people’s lives.

Discover

Located at the particle physics laboratory CERN in Geneva, the Large Hadron Collider takes its last particle spin on December 3^rd 2018. The machine was created with the intention of recreating conditions that were formed during the seconds after the big bang. Since 2015, the accelerator has smashed together approximately 16 million billion protons. For now the Large Hadron Collider remains quiet as it undergoes improvements over the next two years, before restarting in 2021 when it will reach its peak energy at 14 trillion electron volts.

Scientists believe that over time this project will reveal particles that are yet to be discovered, and give us further insight into theories of existence. Discoveries such as these could eventually provide us with the knowledge needed to sustain our planet and push boundaries further in an effort to understand how we arrived at this present moment in time, as well as where we will go in the future.

Overcome

In March 2011, Anthony Joshua was pulled over by police after speeding in Colindale, North London. He is charged with possession with intent to supply a class B drug, after he is found with eight ounces of cannabis in his car. The offence Joshua was charged for carries a maximum 14-year sentence, but he is instead given a second chance by the judge. He is suspended from boxing and was ordered to serve 100 hours’ unpaid work on a 12-month community order.

Despite Joshua’s early years, he went on to win gold in the 2012 London Olympics as a new comer to the international boxing scene. Since his return to the sport, Joshua continued to impress fans after defeating world-renowned heavyweights such as Wladimir Klitschko, Dillian Whyte and Alexander Povetkin. To this day Anthony Joshua holds titles in IBO, WBA and IBF world heavyweight records, with a boxing record of 22 – 0.

J.K. Rowling

In February 2018 one of the world’s best selling book franchises of all time hits 500 million sales, with copies being published globally, in 80 languages. In 1997 the first in the series was released in the UK, titled Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. The franchise quickly became a best seller in bookstores and eventually one of the best selling book franchises of all time. Prior to the success of the books however, author J.K. Rowling had lived a very different life.

Growing up in Gloucestershire, Rowling always knew she wanted to be an author. She recalls times in her childhood when she would constantly write stories and read them to her younger sister Dianne. Her mother and father however, saw Rowling’s passion for writing as little more than an amusing personal quirk. They believed this was not a financially stable option to pursue and for sometime, it was not. At Age 15, she found out her mother had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. This was a difficult time for Rowling, made worse only by the death of her mother a decade later.

"Certainly the first story I ever wrote down (when I was five or six) was about a rabbit called Rabbit. He got the measles and was visited by his friends, including a giant bee called Miss Bee. And ever since Rabbit and Miss Bee, I have wanted to be a writer, though I rarely told anyone so."

After moving to Portugal to teach English to students, Rowling met and married television journalist George Arantes. Together, they have a daughter named Jessica in 1993, following a miscarriage in 1992. After the couple separate at the end of 93’, Rowling moves back to the UK with her daughter and finds herself at one of the lowest points in her life. Living off welfare for two years as a single mother had given her experience, which helped define her political activism in later life.

In 1998, Warner Bros. buys the film rights to the first two “Harry Potter” books. After the first film’s release in 2001, the franchise grew exponentially into the well-known and highly amended franchise it is today. When she’s not creative writing, Rowling enjoys political involvement, working with charities and donating money to greater causes. Her books, “Quidditch Through the Ages” and “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” have given proceeds to anti-poverty charity Comic Relief. J.K. Rowling to this day continues to write and inspire millions to never give up on their dream, but to be humble and patient. Her story not only reflects the harsh realities of life but also highlights the importance of perseverance, commitment and passion.