Tree Aid unveils ‘Resilient by Nature’ new logo and visual identity
The international development charity’s new visual identity is centred around trees and people thriving together. Tree Aid partnered with forpeople for a pro bono identity refresh, including a logo change and website branding.
The rebrand aims to highlight Tree Aid’s work of empowering communities across Africa. The new logo melds trees, people and growth to represent resilience and purpose. The colour palette enhances the simple, clean icon with deep greens, bright creams and browns with pops of sky blue and orange. The hues were taken from the natural landscape of West Africa and Ethiopia, where Tree Aid works.
Forpeople created textures and patterns derived directly from nature. Rubbings and photographs came from real tree bark, shea nuts and foliage to incorporate tactile elements into the design.
“The new identity’s elements, from organic textures to the bold logo, all stem from the simple idea that when people and trees grow and work together, remarkable things can happen,” says James Addison, creative director at forpeople. “We even experimented with translating real bio-electrical signals from trees into digital patterns, literally letting nature contribute to the design.”
The textures are brought to life through a unique digital texture generator, which uses the ‘bio-electrical pulses’ of living trees to emulate the ‘heartbeat’ of nature. These subtle gestures reflect the trees and tree products—like shea butter and soap—central to Tree Aid’s four-decade impact.
Between designs, photography of the visual identity highlights people and impact by amplifying voices and stories from the communities Tree Aid serves. Videos and photos show real people in their communities, showcasing their villages, forests and the work they do.
