Meet Lia Kim, the creative using design to change the world for the better

One of the driving forces behind designer Lia Kim is her passion for making a positive impact. As a youth representative at the UN Department of Global Communications, she uses design to bridge cultural divides, foster empathy and promote connectivity. “I firmly believe that good design has the power to bring people closer together,” she says. Her project Legal Alien Passport aims to help people understand the struggles immigrants face when adjusting to life in a new country.

Visually, Lia takes inspiration from the “vibrant energies” and multicultural environments of her South Korean birthplace and New York, where she currently lives. Alongside her digital work, Lia loves to incorporate physical elements in the hopes of increasing emotional engagement. Responding to the Great Pacific garbage patch between Hawaii and California, Lia created a poster that features “patches” which, when peeled off, feature an image of objects commonly found in the ocean, alongside information raising awareness. Once every patch is peeled off, a pertinent message remains: ‘The Ocean Needs Us’.