New RVA sticker shows UR committment to city

A recent article in The Collegian by Ben Panko suggests that the new RVA stickers are a "desperate and unnecessary attempt" to fit in. As the owner of a Richmond RVA sticker, which I display with pride on the back of my computer, and a big supporter of RVA Creates and its mission, I have to whole-heartedly disagree.

The RVA brand was created by a coalition of many organizations that come together under the umbrella "RVA Creates."

On its website, the coalition describes itself as "a collaborative effort between Venture Richmond, the city, universities, business holders and more than 100 other stakeholders to create a stronger identity for Richmond." It calls this effort "an open source experiment in identity and creativity that the community can own."

We are a greater part of the Richmond community than we think we are. Panko's article demonstrates that he clearly believes that, as well. So why shouldn't we join in on this greater initiative to create a new, inclusive identity for the city of Richmond?

Panko tries to claim that by creating our own RVA sticker, we are implying that we felt excluded before.

If anything, the University of Richmond is seen as exclusive rather than excluded, and our attempt to integrate our identity as a university to the new, greater identity of the city demonstrates that we are reaching out and becoming a more central part of the community.

My favorite piece of the RVA Creates branding project is just how inclusive it has made itself.

RVA is a simple, accessible, and malleable branding of a complex city that leaves room for anyone to own it and make it theirs. In fact, that's the point.

Just look at the RVA Generator on their website.

This tool allows anyone to upload his or her own picture to put inside the RVA logo. I procrastinated a little too much making my own logos.

Contribute to the inclusive and creative process of creating a new identity for Richmond and comment with your own creations.