One nation, under trees.
Founded in 1875, American Forests stands as the oldest conservation nonprofit in the United States. With a pivotal role in establishing the U.S. Forest Service and advocating for legislation supporting forest fire prevention and management, the organization has left an indelible mark on the conservation landscape.
Organizations like American Forests are experiencing a growing sense of urgency amid accelerated warming and missed targets to slow the rate of emissions. For them and the planet, everything is at stake.
Challenge
Despite its rich legacy, American Forests is often misunderstood as simply a “tree-planting organization”—a perception far from reality. Correcting this misconception is central to helping American Forests tell their story about how they address today’s challenges through forest-focused solutions—both traditional forests and urban forestry—that both combat climate change and advance social equity. And, as a membership organization, it’s essential to the continuous growth of its members.
This requires raising awareness of their broader work in coalitions, partnerships, legislation, job creation in environmental fields, and innovative projects like the Tree Equity Score initiative, while strengthening public understanding of their identity, mission, and impact.
Approach
We conducted research, interviews, and a thorough audit of the website, its content, user behavior trends, analytics, design, brand messaging, storytelling, and a peer and sector audit. We conducted issue framing research as well to help guide the messaging and positioning of its content. This gave us a comprehensive landscape of where American Forests is today, and where it needs to shift its communication, as well as shaping the information architecture, user experience, and design of the new website.
We followed this with a workshop to explore the needs of its audiences—from volunteers to policymakers to journalists. We also explored its strengths and drivers of credibility across its work, partnerships, brand, communications and messaging, and culture.
INSIGHT
Unify a fragmented experience
American Forests’ previous website was divided into siloes that made the organization feel as though a single strategy didn’t connect its different programs, initiatives, and projects. To address this, we created connected pathways across the website and developed a conceptual model of how users experience the site, driven first and foremost by the organization’s “Why.” From there, content is built upon their drivers of credibility, addressing “What” the organization does and “How” they do it. With this foundation set, visitors should easily be able to self-identify as “Who” they are and then take action based on their needs, goals, or position to get involved.
INSIGHT
Leading with the right frame
To establish a consistent brand narrative for American Forests’ social equity work, we conducted framing research that revealed four key insights:
Balance Urgency with Efficacy — While some “crisis framing” communicates urgency around climate change, these messages must be balanced with specific solutions and examples of successful policy changes or tree planting programs to avoid hopelessness.
Guide People to Difficult Topics — Rather than using divisive facts about climate and racial equity, frame communications around equal opportunity for all to increase support and keep audiences engaged as topics become more challenging.
Encourage Systemic Action — Since American Forests advocates for systems-change, messages need systemic calls-to-action like supporting policies or officials, balanced with individual actions like donations.
Explain Everything — When discussing social and racial equity, take time to explain the inequity’s causes and implications, as audiences without complex understanding may fall back on subconscious biases.
VISUAL DESIGN
An overhaul of American Forests’ image
After a series of collaborative workshops, the design team created a revitalized visual identity system for American Forests, drawing inspiration from timeless design principles with a contemporary take. The identity system comprises a new logo and typefaces, a vibrant color palette, topographic maps, data visualizations, and photography that tells the story with natural beauty and relentless optimism.
Significance
Since the re-launch of the website, American Forests has more than doubled its media coverage, and it continues to raise more money year-over-year, establish new programs and partnerships, and positions them for their 150th Anniversary in 2025.
My Role:
- Developed the project plan and our approach to research, strategy, messaging, and design, and oversaw its implementation across the project.
- Conducted a brand and website assessment to create a baseline for our understanding of user behavior, analytics, storytelling, content organization, and developed goals for a new website.
- Contributed to leading interviews, surveys, peer research, and workshops to help us learn about the client’s audiences, goals, strengths, and values.
- Co-authored the user experience, digital, and content strategy that guided our approach to design, issue framing, and a conceptual model for communication design.
- Provided strategy and oversight during the development of the sitemap, information architecture, and user experience design phasess.
Other Contributors:
- The agency’s design team created a new logo and identity system as well as the visual design of the website.
- The agency’s engineering team developed the website on WordPress.
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