Information

About weVird

Making Rare Diseases Visible
Through Visual Storytelling

WE VIRD (We Visually Introduce Rare Diseases) is an interdisciplinary research and design initiative dedicated to transforming the way rare diseases are understood through visual communication. By combining design research, visual identity systems, and scientific knowledge, WE VIRD seeks to make complex medical conditions more recognizable, memorable, and accessible for patients, healthcare professionals, researchers, and society.

What Are Rare Diseases?
Although each rare disease affects only a small number of individuals, more than 300 million people worldwide are living with one of over 7,000 identified rare diseases.

There is currently no single universal definition of a rare disease.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes rare diseases as conditions that affect a small proportion of the population but collectively represent a major global public health challenge.

In the European Union, a disease is considered rare when it affects fewer than 1 in 2,000 people.

In the United States, a rare disease is defined as one affecting fewer than 200,000 individuals nationwide.

Although individually uncommon, rare diseases collectively affect approximately 3.5–5.9% of the global population, making them a significant yet often overlooked healthcare priority.
Sources: World Health Organization (WHO); European Commission; EURORDIS – Rare Diseases Europe; U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Why Do Rare Diseases Remain Invisible?
Patients living with rare diseases frequently experience delayed diagnosis, limited treatment options, insufficient public awareness, and social isolation. Many healthcare professionals encounter these conditions only rarely during their careers, making diagnosis and communication particularly challenging.
Beyond medical complexity, many rare diseases lack a clear visual identity capable of communicating their characteristics in an understandable and memorable way. As a result, awareness, education, and public engagement remain limited.

Our Mission
WE VIRD believes that visual communication can bridge the gap between scientific knowledge and public understanding.

Our mission is to explore and develop effective visual methodologies capable of representing rare diseases through meaningful visual identities. By translating complex medical information into accessible visual language, we aim to foster empathy, improve recognition, facilitate education, and encourage collaboration among patients, families, healthcare professionals, researchers, designers, and educators.

Current Research
WE VIRD is currently being developed as part of the doctoral research of Babak Safari, PhD Candidate in the Doctoral School of the Polish-Japanese Academy of Information Technology (PJAIT), Warsaw, Poland.
The ongoing research investigates how visual identity design can contribute to improving awareness, communication, and understanding of rare diseases. A central objective of this work is the development of a dedicated visual methodology specifically designed for the representation of rare diseases.
The website serves as an evolving research platform where concepts, visual identities, case studies, and research findings are continuously developed and shared.

Looking Ahead
The long-term vision of WE VIRD extends beyond research.
The project aims to establish an international platform dedicated to the visual representation of rare diseases by developing distinctive visual identities, educational posters, exhibitions, workshops, digital resources, and interactive tools.
Ultimately, WE VIRD seeks to support patients and their families by increasing visibility and understanding, assist healthcare professionals through clearer visual communication, encourage interdisciplinary collaboration, and contribute to a future in which rare diseases are no longer invisible.