Graphic dictionary helps refugees
PR dla Zagranicy
Paweł Kononczuk
13.05.2016 16:26
A graphic dictionary created by an artist of Polish origin living in Germany is helping refugees communicate when they arrive in Europe.
Refugee children hold up a sign that reads 'Please don't give up on us!', as they protest against being housed in an air tent in Duesseldorf, Germany, 12 May. Photo: EPA/FEDERICO GAMBARINI
Puls Biznesu reported that the idea of the book was to give a people an opportunity to communicate abroad in a universal language - pictures.
Gosia Warrink’s dictionary, called ICOON, was published in 2007. An upsurge in interest came following a TV interview with the artist. The German Red Cross expressed interest and the author was bombarded with requests from charity organisations.
Through crowdfunding, Warrink found the resources to finance further editions. Soon 30,000 copies of ICOON For Refugees were published and 20,000 more followed.
In time the dictionary got new pictures, replacing less relevant ones, like golf, with symbols of head wear, tuberculosis or halal, for example.
An ICOON application can be downloaded from Google Play. Plans are being made for a new edition for children. (ab/pk)
Source: Puls Biznesu