THE INVISIBLE DISASTER
Omaha is one of the most segregated cities in the country. North Omaha is home to a predominantly Black community where a coal plant continues to belch pollution across nearby neighborhoods.
Despite sustained community pressure, the local utility repeatedly promises and delays a meaningful transition away from coal.
Long-term effects of pollution are known and felt by residents of North Omaha, but the most harmful part is also the hardest to prove: airborne particulates and heavy metals are largely invisible.
EXPOSING THROUGH PRINT TECHNIQUES
There was no clear, shared way to visualize the plant’s reach, no method to show the damage on a neighborhood scale.
The identity system was built to function as both message and method of measurement. Using pH-sensitive ink, the mark and campaign materials act as a literal litmus test: the red in the palette becomes visible, then brightly saturated over time as it’s exposed to the plant's pollution.
EVERY TOUCHPOINT A CALL-TO-ACTION
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Brand touchpoints placed throughout the community don’t just communicate urgency—they begin to document the spread of pollution.
The logo combines a pictorial mark and wordmark into an isometric, geometric building form, giving the campaign an architectural presence that feels industrial and immovable, like the structure itself.
A halftone texture nods to grassroots protest graphics while keeping the system reproducible and print-friendly.
Retaining the full, specific call-to-action, "Tear Down the North Omaha Coal Plant," was essential. The work needed to remain unmistakably targeted, even as the visual evidence spread.
A COMPREHENSIVE SYTEM
(PERFORMING ON DIGITAL AND PRINT)
In digital environments, the system continues to behave just as it would in print.
On the website and landing pages, the same striking color palette gradually emerges as users remain on the page and engage with the content.
This motion design mimics the same feeling of contamination, of exposure accumulating.
