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SPRYLAB sponsors ICOON for refugees app

Icoon for refugees App Hero Image

23.023

Euro crowdsourcing revenue  

65.000

Total circulation book

1.200

Symbols and photos

CLIENT

Since 2015, the Berlin publishing house Amberpress has been involved in refugee aid and integration and peace projects with ICOON for refugees.

FOUNDED

2007

HEADQUARTERS

Berlin

INDUSTRY

Publishing and Design

PROJECT

ICOON for refugees app

This project lies especially close to our hearts because with a small amount of tinkering, we were able to roll out a fantastic app that will help large numbers of people. ICOON for refugees helps refugees communicate. It’s a small book with 1,200 symbols and photos that was created to help people overcome language barriers. The book and the app are available for free and have been designed especially to meet the needs of refugees and enable them to communicate quickly in everyday situations.

About Amberpress

Design is the passion of Amberpress. Because good design speaks many languages and is understood worldwide. In its studio in Berlin-Mitte, the publishing house develops communication media, corporate design and book projects with a focus on cultural and educational projects. Its favourite project is ICOON. The picture dictionary is an expression of their penchant for clear design language and a great love of detail. Since 2015, Amberpress has been involved in refugee aid and integration and peace projects with ICOON for refugees.

Icoon for refugees App Menü Image
Icoon for refugees App Zeichen Körper

1,200 symbols and photos to help the communication process

The project was created by Gosia Warrink (author and designer of the book), Katja Koeberlin and Monika Pfau of Amberpress with the help of a Crowdfunding Campaign and was launched on the „Startnext“ platform. Over 350 supporters financed the project with about €23,000 in donations.

We decided to contribute to the project by turning the book into a free app for Android devices. Several of our employees volunteer with refugee aid projects in their free time and were able to confirm from personal experience how often language barriers stand in the way of someone getting the help they need. We are delighted to have been able to contribute to the “ICOON for refugees” project.

The money donated via the crowdfunding campaign enabled the project founders to print 30,000 editions of the book. The books will be distributed to the Red Cross and other aid organizations and volunteers in Germany and Europe.

Icoon for refugees App Zeichen Reisen
Icoon for refugees App Zeichen Gemüse

The app is available to download free of charge for Android devices

The app is available in 15 languages and can be accessed offline. It contains a simple menu in which different symbols are sorted according to category. There are symbols related to illness, such as polio, trauma and scratches, and symbols for objects of daily life, such as head coverings including hijabs or burkas. Of particular importance to the project founders was the inclusion of symbols for peace, democracy and law.

With SPRYLAB at our side, we managed to translate our successful picture dictionary into a practical and reliable ICOON for refugees app. The team quickly embraced our idea and enabled us to digitally reach more refugees and helpers in a short time.
Gosia Warrink Portrait
Gosia Warrink
Founder, Designer and Author

ICOON - Press reviews from over 100 international magazines

ELLE: “Europe is impressed! ICOON – a dictionary without words.”
GEO: “A universal interpreter that helps against speechlessness.”
DIE WELT: “Anyone travelling to a faraway country should have the global picture dictionary ICOON in their luggage.”
BÜCHER: “One of the five smartest non-fiction books of the year.”
GQ: “The Little Book of Helpfulness.”

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Arthur Silber Sprylab

Contact

Arthur Silber
Head of Development

sprylab technologies GmbH Keithstr. 2-4, 10787 Berlin
+49 (0) 30 23 62 58 95 34
hello@sprylab.com

Arthur Silber Sprylab

Contact

Arthur Silber
Head of Development

sprylab technologies GmbH Keithstr. 2-4, 10787 Berlin
+49 (0) 30 23 62 58 95 34
hello@sprylab.com

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