The Global Newborn Society aims to help reduce neonatal morbidity and mortality. Babies do not talk, or vote, and so, need help. This is a long page - we present our logo in all its detail. The central messages in all paragraphs listed below are linked and highlighted in red.
 
Our infant
Illustration
Challenges
Environment
           Sky
           Boat
           Ocean
Emotions
Gratitude

The childlike art in this logo shows a lovable little infant exuding innocent, genuine happiness. Infancy is a high-risk, but still an exciting phase of life. The smile on the infant's face engages readers; evolutionary and psychological adaptations evoke positive emotions in caregivers. By showing this baby with no skin color, and knowing that facial features such as those curly hair, prominent eyes, that cute little nose, and the long eyelashes are not always specific for geographic origin, ethnicity, race, genetics, or gender, the artist has stressed that most health problems of these patients are more likely to be related to physiological immaturity than to other factors. The yellow background of the feeding bib reminds of the happiness, hope, and spontaneity of this age. However, during critical illness, the risk of mortality of infants begins to approach that of 60-year-old adults. The little globe on the bib reminds us of the need for well-coordinated, world-wide efforts - the Robinson/Equal Earth-like projection suggests that babies need care all over the world. There are differing needs in the East/West and North/South but these regions do not always need to be viewed separately. We need to work together. 

For our logo, we broke with tradition and designed a human-centered, conceptual/editorial illustration instead of a more conventional linear or geometric drawing. We believe that this graphic presents our philosophy in a rational, comprehensive fashion; access to computers has brought a paradigm shift - a "copy and paste" is now all it takes to reproduce a depiction. We claim no expertise in designing logos, but each element here was still chosen after due thought. To some readers, this line of reasoning could look like a self-justifying explanation for a simple-looking schema. So, to convince you, we have exhaustively hyperlinked the content to external websites - we sang our hearts out without needing to repeat any of the known rhythmic rhymes. Links are useful for minimizing linguistic barriers in communication. We then performed a pilot study to ascertain whether plain underscoring or the use of blue color was better for  highlighting these links - this evaluation was needed because of the unusually large number of external links on this page. Colors worked better for unclear reasons; individuals do vary in their reactions and perception of information. Finally, we reviewed the abbreviations in the passage and had to remove most as these were actually slowing us down in scanning this site. This narrative is still no archival aviary; it remains a work in progress as is often the case while a case is still being made. If you see errors that we missed, please let us know!

Infancy should be a pleasant phase in life, but it can also bring challenges. We need to improve awareness, education, and possibly, develop mass-scale genetic screening programs. The first look at this logo baby evokes love and affection but a closer inspection may also trigger anxiety - do the external ears look 'simplified' without mature folds? Questions may keep arising - are the eyes too far apart? Upper eyelid retraction? Unusual eyelashes? A small nose? Is the upper lip too thin, or is the normal midline groove between the upper lip and the nostrils missing? Wide-open mouth? Congenital fusion of bones around elbow joints and in digits? Isolated 'minor' anomalies may not always be a reason for concern but if associated with multiple other birth defects, there may be a need for further evaluation. Globally, unusually-formed organ systems are one of 4 major causes of suffering in infants other than difficulties with the first breath, infections, and prematurity. In some regions, maternal use of illicit drugs with consequent neonatal abstinence syndrome is emerging as another cause of neonatal illness. Overall, timely diagnosis and management is needed to save these newborn infants.

The environment can be difficult for all, irrespective of age. The vulnerability of young infants can be seen in this logo in being alone in an open boat floating in an ocean. The lighter shades of blue in the sky look pleasant during good health. However, during periods of crisis, the same environment may appear lonely, featureless, and overwhelming. The world could then start looking indifferent. The sky is cloudless, the ocean is silent. It could well be a quiet zone, but what if it is not? Could this be the calm before, or the eye of, a storm? This is where we feel that we can make a difference by supporting the infant and the family. During illness, they struggle on multiple fronts.

The boat, at least for now, looks stable. The initialisms on the gunwale, the G, N, and S, are our pillars of strength: Global coordination, Newborn health, and Social organization. The black color of these letters reminds of iron and its strength. The cast metal shows some rough edges in the letters G and S, but not in N - it is the outside world that needs to shape up; it is the job of us adults to polish the cradle and ensure safety of newborn infants. The sharp, pointed end of the upper curveline of the letter G could hurt the infant, which is another reminder of the need for coordinated efforts to protect infants. This was one thought-process. Others did not find these letters so metallic but saw strings of a safely-wrapped neonate in a bow-tie swaddle that provided protective support. Another set of viewers saw the infant, despite all developmental limitations, as the guide and not a passive traveler. This driver was seen as standing at the bow, holding the handlebars of the watercraft. The right hand gripped the cross-bar connection in the letter G and the left held the lower offshoot from the spine of the letter S. The inward-pointing upper part of S could be a site for panoramic, introspective oversight. We request your forgiveness for us having knowingly played with names of different parts of the letters G and S; these hyperlinks to distant topics were chosen to describe some of the thoughts floating in our team. In addition to these  interpretations, there were more; one reader saw bonding; the infant was being carried on a parent's back as is the norm in many cultures. Another saw collaborative teamwork; the infant held her/his parent's spectacles to direct the field of vision. As in any organization, there were differences in interpretations but at the end of the day, it was the infant who was noticed first.

In the first look, most of us art novices did not find the ocean waves in this painting too deep or worrisome. Some in the room actually saw a musical beauty in the high-frequency oscillatory motion of these ripples, the “ocean swells”. There was no obvious surf but the angled mushy waves gave hope that the shore might not be far. However, if these waves were to collide in the deeper, dark blue oceanic waters, there could be dangerous turbulence. We know about these changes from from ships and satellite systems that track ocean hydrodynamics, and analogous changes can be seen in healthcare interventions. Temporal oscillations in thinking have been seen both at individual and organizational levels. Global coordination can help further with time- and region-specific insights. Scaling up is a proven way to reduce logistical costs - many large campaigns focused on vaccination, nutrition, and education have achieved laudable success. Working together can help find more, better solutions. And we must do so - integrated management is a recognized model for healthcare delivery. Implementation of the millenium development goals of the United Nations is an example; it provided a template for new programs to reduce perinatal mortality. A bold, transformative 2030 Agenda with 17 Sustainable Development Goals was then adopted. In goal 3, one section is focused specifically on ending preventable newborn deaths (#3.2.2).

Finally, a word about emotions. In this composition, three dimensions of participatory ethics can be seen: the impact of the individual, the organization, and the system. For us individuals, the red-colored boat signifies our affection for the baby. The unpremeditated deep alizarin crimson shade shows the intensity of these sentiments. Thinking about the organization, no marine corrosion was noticeable anywhere on the boat. This reminds us that family-centered care, when combined with lean management strategies to minimize wastage, can optimize health care processes. And last, the location of our message "Every Baby Counts" just below the waterline shows our social philosophy - we remain committed to philanthropy but if needed, also to altruism that does not always need to be visible. The shadow behind the picture points to a firm supporting wall built out of our adoption and commitment.  

This logo, a work of art, was a gift from Dr. Rachana Singh. Many who have tried to interpret it, find it inspirational. Quoting Shakespeare (Sebastian in Illyria, 12th Night, Act III, Scene 3; p105, line 15), we can no other answer make but thanks, and thanks, and ever thanks!