6What is abr<strong>and</strong> ?It would be impossible to imagine the modern world withoutbr<strong>and</strong>s. From airlines to computers, from fruit drinks to clothes,from football teams to hair shampoo, our choices are informedby br<strong>and</strong>s. There are many definitions of the word ‘br<strong>and</strong>’.David Ogilvy, famous advertising copywriter <strong>and</strong> founder of theinfluential advertising agency Ogilvy <strong>and</strong> Mather, defined it thus:“The intangible sum of a product’s attributes: its name, packaging<strong>and</strong> price, its history, its reputation, <strong>and</strong> the way it’sadvertised.”The rebr<strong>and</strong> of <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Life</strong> coincides with the rebr<strong>and</strong>of DSM – the first for forty years. The new DSM br<strong>and</strong> promisesBright Science. Brighter Living. At <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Life</strong> westrive in our own way to make continually evolving scientificinsights available to the ultimate benefit of the poorest<strong>and</strong> most disadvantaged populations of the world.Two newbr<strong>and</strong>s !
WelcomeA new look – an unchanging commitmentThis year, <strong>2011</strong>, sees the 25th anniversary of <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Life</strong>. Wecelebrate this significant milestone in our history with the launchof a new <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Life</strong> br<strong>and</strong> – one that illustrates our move froma focus on vitamin A <strong>and</strong> sight to the vital role played by multiplemicronutrients in promoting health <strong>and</strong> preventing hidden hunger.This is the first issue of our magazine to reflect our new look<strong>and</strong> feel. As we celebrate 25 years of service in the field of micronutrients,we look back to where we have come from <strong>and</strong> lookforward to where we need to go. For despite our achievements inthe first quarter-century of our existence, our work in the worldis more vital today than ever before.The founding of <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Life</strong>The <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Life</strong> Task Force, as it was originally known, commencedoperations on 1 April 1986. Its objective was to helpcombat xerophthalmia – the eye disease caused by vitamin Adeficiency from which approximately ten million young childrenin developing countries suffered at the time. The 1986 <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong><strong>Life</strong> Annual Report estimated that every year, one million of thesechildren lost their eyesight. Of these, it noted that two-thirdsdied after a short period.A direct response to requests from the World Health Organization,the creation of <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Life</strong> was part of a much widerapproach to tackling vitamin A deficiency, which had been identifiedby the 37th World Health Conference as one of the five mainnutritional problems in the world. The initial activities of <strong>Sight</strong><strong>and</strong> <strong>Life</strong> included the provision of scientific <strong>and</strong> technical support,free distribution of vitamin A capsules for emergency situations,<strong>and</strong> financial support for selected research programs.“Our work is more vital todaythan ever before”Over the past 25 years, our focus has broadened to encompassthe entire spectrum of micronutrients, reflecting advances in scienceon the one h<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> the increasingly recognized burden ofconcurrent multiple micronutrient deficiencies on the other. In2007, marking our 21st anniversary, I wrote in our Annual Reportthat we still faced the problem of two billion people worldwidebeing affected by hidden hunger. Further, I noted that it was unacceptablethat approximately one third of all children under fiveyears of age worldwide were stunted <strong>and</strong> almost 50% anemic,while at the same time some 155 million school-age childrenwere overweight or obese. These problems cannot be addressedby concentrating on vitamin A alone. Hence the widening of ourfocus to comprise the entire range of micronutrients.Our new logoThis exp<strong>and</strong>ed focus is expressed by our new logo, which symbolizesthe multiplicity of micronutrients essential for a healthylife. Whereas our original logo was based on the letter A <strong>and</strong>the human eye, clearly linking vitamin A with eye health, thisnew one puts <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Life</strong> at the nexus of better nutrition <strong>and</strong>health. Whether this means growing the evidence, sharing information,advocating, promoting partnerships, or capacity buildingin the micronutrient arena, the message is clear: <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong><strong>Life</strong>’s mission is to build bridges for better nutrition focusing onlife, using a multiplicity of approaches <strong>and</strong> interacting with awide range of stakeholders.We hope that you too will like the new logo <strong>and</strong> also enjoy thenew look <strong>and</strong> feel of the magazine. Our intention was to createa publication that retained the scientific rigor for which our organizationhas always been known while presenting the contentin a more accessible <strong>and</strong> compelling manner. The <strong>Sight</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Life</strong>team welcomes your feedback – please let us know what youthink, as the magazine is produced not for us but for you, thereader.⇢
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