New Roots
For African Communities
It all started after one of the founders lived in Kenya for a while — and saw the terrible conditions that local children on the streets are living under. He initiated a system of help by founding the non-profit association New Roots to build an orphanage in the country. It’s going to open its doors in 2022 and will welcome orphans and other children whose parents are not able to take care of them.
The logo project for New Roots equips the charity with a visual voice and aims to help them raise funding in Germany and across borders. The central motif of the organization: hope. With its vibrant colors and the African Acacia tree as a key element, the branding stands for the theme of rooting, growing, and flourishing.
Services provided:
Branding
Graphic Design
Developing the Logo
Here, you see some of the drafts that the association and I have discussed in two concept rounds. The main objective was to visualize what these “new roots” lay the foundation for: a strong new life. Being taken on by the orphanage, the children will not just have a new shelter but also receive care and access to education. A new life begins.
Some of the concepts play with showing the roots while others focus on the tree growing out of them — which should be recognizable as African and be found in Kenya.
Final Logo and Logo Variations
The team has agreed on the logo version with the African Acacia tree that literally grows out of the “New Roots”. I further refined its outline: instead of a limiting frame above the tree’s crown, the sky is now open — a symbol for hope and potential. The word mark is written in uppercase and lowercase letters, referring to the orphanage as a place where grown-ups and litte ones come together.
Different formats and media, different logo versions: primary/stacked, horizontal, and logo icon. With them, New Roots is well-equipped to show itself in all sizes, e.g. on their website, Social Media channels, on print collateral, or other outlets.
Colors
The brand colors are based on the values that New Roots represents — the courage to act, inner strength, radiant hope — and bring forward the lively culture of Kenya. Blue and yellow are the primary hues while green and red are suitable for emphasising features.
Applications
Photo credits:
Header photo — Annie Spratt
Insta feed 1 — Mariola Grobelska
Insta feed 2 — Doug Linstedt
Insta feed 3 — Mariola Grobelska
Insta feed 4 — Mariola Grobelska
Insta feed 5 — Thorsten Messing
Insta feed 6 — Mariola Grobelska