Ethan Walker

Non-Profit Branding with Purpose

Ocean Conservancy is a nonprofit organization that works towards protecting the ocean from the greatest global challenges. As the Coronavirus pandemic has ravaged the population, missions such as theirs are struggling. Partially due to the urgency to focus on the larger issue on hand but also due to the fact that much of their fieldwork and political work that occurs in Washington, D.C. is being pushed aside. While the Coronavirus takes precedent, the global challenges that we face to protect the ocean will continue during and after. Because of this, it’s important to keep nonprofit organizations such as Ocean Conservancy running smoothly from operations to funding. I conducted research in two areas: what is currently being done and working in the ocean conservation sector, and what aspects of a nonprofit’s visual identity make it more successful. I discovered that a strong brand is often put aside to dedicate more funding towards an organization’s mission. However, in a sector that has more than doubled in the past ten years, it’s no longer a suggestion to have a strong identity. An improved identity leads to several benefits in this sector, such as increased brand recognition, a community, and increased funding. I have created a new extensive visual identity for the Ocean Conservancy, working to improve elements from the logo all the way to the imagery and voice that the brand utilizes. By redeveloping the visual identity I hope to solidify the Ocean Conservancy as a player in the nonprofit sector, allowing them to continue its mission through the current struggles that it and many other organizations are facing.