A COMPANY in rural Dorset has been working to rebrand the United Nations Volunteers (UNV).

RT Brand Communications, based in Wimborne, beat global competition to secure a six-figure contract repositioning and modernising the way the brand communicates and operates.

With its head office based in Bonn, Germany, UNV was founded in 1970 and is part of the United Nations Development Programme. It mobilises 7,000 volunteers across the world, is active in 130 countries every year and has field units in 86 countries.

RT founder and strategic director Ross Thornley said: “I know we have made a positive difference to them and that is all that matters.

“This was a once-in-a-career opportunity and I am so pleased we managed to win it.”

He added: “Experiencing first-hand the very significant impact that UN volunteers make has been a privilege.”

The company has been working with UNV for 14 months, including a self-financed field trip to Nairobi, Kenya, to get a deeper understanding of the work on the ground, several visits to Bonn, and in-depth research with senior managers.

The aim was to simplify the UNV brand to make it more cohesive, to help increase international placement of volunteers, improve their morale and generate a wider understanding and awareness of voluntary work.

Jennifer Stapper, chief of UNV Communications, said: “Everyone involved in this project at UNV has recognised RT’s enthusiasm and expertise.

“Their passion for driving what was right for us helped navigate through the inevitable dips and challenges in a project as significant and wide reaching as this.

“Without their ability to simply articulate the value of a change it would have been difficult to maintain momentum and deliver.”

The new brand is being rolled out across the world over the next six months with a new website being launched at the end of 2016 at unv.org.

Mr Thornley was also invited to Vienna to address the annual meeting of the United Nations Communications Group.