Carleton College Sustainable Futures
Creative & Art Direction | Design
Photography:
Ackerman + Gruber
lllustration:
Struggle Inc. (Cody Hudson)
Website:
Doug Bratland
Visual identity and asset development for Carleton's sustainability initiatives.
Goal
Tout Carleton College’s climate action leadership and build excitement in a move away from carbon neutrality toward more impactful sustainability goals.
Design Challenge
Develop a unique name and distinct, brand-aligned visual identity to support a positive messaging campaign around this pivot, rather than skepticism over a policy change.
Deliverables
Name; visual identity, including logo, illustrated icons, and colors; website; social assets; posters; email announcement; and stickers.
Moodboard
I drew inspiration from Swarthmore College's To Zero by Thirty-Five net zero campaign, which used a defined color palette, set of environmental graphic icons, and duotone imagery. I also wanted to find an illustrator to partner with who could avoid cliché environmental graphics, while also creating a sense of DIY energy.
Color Palette
This sub-visual identity uses select brand colors, including Carleton's primary blue and maize, plus a mix of vibrant secondary colors (green and cyan), and a few brand neutrals. The goal was to have this feel brand-aligned with Carleton's parent brand, bold, and also natural-leaning.
Photography
Ackerman + Gruber captured many of the people who drive Carleton’s sustainability efforts, including students, faculty, and staff. These populated the new website and social assets.
Logo & Illustrated Icons
Struggle Inc. (Cody Hudson) created both the logo and icon set. "Sustainable Futures" underscores Carleton's forward-looking approach to climate action and incorporates "sustainable," a key SEO word.
I chose an illustrator with a unique, handmade style to evoke the tangible action each person in our college community has in this work. I wanted the visual design to underscore that this work isn't neat and tidy, but is impactful. These icons represent our infrastructure work (including our passive housing), educational efforts, and community participation in shared climate action goals.
Results
- In the first two days the redesigned website was live, the site received 28% of the traffic compared to the previous year (2,915 views Oct 24–25, 2024 vs. 10,478 views October 1, 2023–September 30, 2024).
- The announcement was sent to nearly 30,000 people and had a click rate of 6.2%, double the education industry standard (~3%).
- Carleton was one of six institutions awarded an inaugural Second Nature Climate Luminary Honor in February 2025.
- Carleton was recognized for embedding sustainability and climate action into its core mission with a new Carnegie Elective Classification for Sustainability (March 2025).
