Comprised of forest landowners, conservation experts and public and private entities, Keeping Forests as Forests is an organization dedicated to ensuring the long-term economic and ecological vitality of southern forests. With over a dozen stakeholders bringing various perspectives, the organization needed a compelling, unified identity with the power to shift the perception of working forests and generate a groundswell of support for its cause.

We immersed ourselves in the world of a forest landowner, traveling with over a dozen Keeping Forests as Forests stakeholders to a tree farm in Newberry, South Carolina. From that visit, we gleaned crucial insight into the needs and concerns of a private landowner. We focused our approach on clearing misconceptions around timber harvesting and illuminating how working forests connect to everyone, from the city to the countryside. To enhance clarity and ownability, we shortened the organization’s name to Keeping Forests.

The abstract brandmark symbolizes the plurality of Keeping Forests’ partnerships; many perspectives are found in a form that could be viewed as a pinecone, a family tree or even a pineapple, which symbolizes hospitality. Paired with a color palette derived from the natural pigments found in southern forests, the visual identity represents continuous, evolving growth. For added balance, Keeping Forests’ brand voice is assertive, confident and optimistic, drawing in supporters and getting them energized around a common cause. As a result, the Keeping Forests identity is both visually and verbally distinct, compelling and persuasive.