This is the brand design for Escola + Natureza by the Brazilian design studio Polar. Escola + Natureza is an initiative operated by the Instituto Alana that aims to help children reconnect with nature and transform Brazilian school spaces to adapt to the era of climate change. The official website explains that extreme weather phenomena, such as heatwaves, landslides, droughts, and floods, affect the right to education as well as the health of students and staff.
This project is not simply a campaign to add greenery to schools. It is closer to a movement that connects research, education, and practice to help schools become places closer to the local ecosystem. The Instituto Alana’s Criança e Natureza program also emphasizes children’s right to experience nature in their daily lives and the experience of relating to nature within the urban environment.
Polar translated this message into a flexible visual system. The brand utilizes illustrations of Brazil's indigenous creatures, modular graphic elements, geometric masks, and a proprietary typeface. Rather than using nature as mere decoration, it is an approach that uses a graphic language to showcase the structure connecting schools, children, and the local ecosystem. Polar introduces this project as a visual identity initiative for the Instituto Alana, explaining that it has created a flexible system that links nature and education.
The impression of the identity is bright and approachable. Rather than remaining in an explanatory tone like an educational campaign, it visually conveys the sensations of nature that children can touch and explore. The forms of plants and animals, color fields, and patterns are designed to be combined across various media, serving as a foundation for expansion to suit the context of each school and region.
A key aspect of this project is that it does not consume "Brazilian nature" as an abstract image. By placing local species and regional ecosystems at the center of the visual language, it addresses the real-world issues of the climate crisis and educational spaces. Brand design goes beyond merely packaging the campaign's message; it functions as a tool that inspires imagination into what kind of environment a school should be.
Escola + Natureza simultaneously addresses the reality of children becoming distanced from nature and the reality of schools having to adapt to climate change. Polar's visual identity unravels these complex themes through an optimistic and vibrant language. It is a brand design that brings nature back into the learning environment, rather than viewing it as something outside of school.
More and Sources
