Designing a Visual Identity Rooted in Land, Culture, and Connection

The Ask

For the first-ever Global Congress of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities from the Forest Basins, we were asked to create a complete visual identity - a visual system that honored all territories equally while communicating unity, purpose, and a shared guardianship.

The Solution

So, what happens when cultures come together?

• They symbolically bring their worlds with them.
• They carry the animals that walk around them, the colors they wear, the textures of their tools and baskets, the plants that feed, heal, protect, and teach them.
• From the Amazon to the Congo, from Borneo-Mekong to Mesoamerica, every culture arrives with a universe of knowledge and a graphic identity built through centuries.
• And when these universes meet, something extraordinary happens: richness multiplies.

This was our starting point. We needed a visual identity capable of reflecting that wealth, the fauna, the flora, the materials, the symbols, the roots without flattening any culture, and without elevating one above another. A system where every territory felt seen, valued, and represented.

We approached the project with deep respect for the ecological and cultural diversity held within the world’s forest basins.

Our concept centered on interconnection between territories, between peoples, and between the living systems they protect.

To bring this to life, we developed a cohesive set of illustrations and a color palette inspired directly by each basin’s environment:

• Flora and fauna illustrated by hand to show the texture and detail present in each ecosystem.
• A color palette with diverse colors to represent the multiple peoples meeting in the Congress.
• Patterns and iconography inspired by the symbols each culture uses in their clothing, pottery, textiles, and beyond, striving for diversity and representation.

The Results

The result was not just a brand; it became a visual territory of its own, shaped by the same principles as the Congress itself: coexistence, reciprocity, and collective protection of Mother Earth.

The visual identity anchored the Congress’s entire communication ecosystem, from digital platforms and printed materials to stage graphics and documentation. More importantly, it offered a respectful visual narrative that reflects the values of the Global Alliance of Territorial Communities and demonstrates that a shared visual language can honor diversity. Over 500 people were in attendance, including more than 300 Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities from all over the world. All the comments were really positive about their experience at the Congress, and they mentioned that they felt represented, and that the visual identity reflects the richness of the tropical forests, identity and what they fight for.