Logo for Global Poverty & Climate Change NGO

Carbon Offsets To Alleviate Poverty (COTAP.org)

Carbon Offsets To Alleviate Poverty (http://www.cotap.org) is an early-stage nonprofit whose mission is to enable individuals in developed countries to simultaneously tackle two of the world's biggest challenges: climate change and global poverty. Cotap will transparently match individuals’ carbon offset purchases to forestry projects in least developed countries. Cotap’s goal is nothing less than ruthlessly cornering the forestry carbon market for the purpose of transferring unprecedented wealth to the most economically disadvantaged people on earth. Along the way, Cotap will restore landscapes and resolve the forestry carbon finance gap. On an annual basis, Cotap aims to eventually catalyze millions of tons of validated carbon sequestration, hundreds of thousands of planted trees, and millions of dollars in wages to hundreds of thousands of villagers who live on $1 per day. Unlike models which involve loans, grants, matched savings, or guarantees, Cotap involves wages.

Individuals in developed countries who are concerned about both global poverty and climate change. They are familiar with other global poverty alleviation entities with which COTAP.org seeks to be associated, such as:
http://www.redcross.org
http://www.care.org
http://www.mercycorps.org
http://www.oxfam.org
http://www.usaid.gov
http://www.worldbank.org
http://www.unicef.org
http://www.amnesty.org

Further, we seek a logo which is aligned with these respected entities whose disarming nonprofit status is coupled with uncommon commercial sophistication:
http://www.kiva.org
http://www.acumenfund.org
http://www.rootcapital.org

We seek to differentiate against the many for-profit and climate-only offset brands which have come before us. A good list can be seen at: http://www.co2offsetresearch.org/co…iders.html . Specifically, we want a brand look/feel which is light years away from that of http://www.TerraPass.com and http://www.Carbonfund.org .

The logo will be a consumer-facing lifestyle brand that is consistent with these attributes:

* Leads with the poverty theme, *not* the climate change theme. OK to incorporate both, but understand COTAP seeks to stand out with its brand, and hence logo, because of its equal focus on poverty alleviation.
* Global, conveying our dual social and environmental mission to a wide range of cultures
* Serious and professional yet an approachable, warm/fun personality
* Confidence-inspiring, yet not stuffy and aloof like a bank or foundation
* Non-religious & apolitical
* Emotional aspirations for empowerment, connectedness, and hope. No guilt or doom and gloom.

Two known concerns with existing design we'd like you to resolve:
* plus/cross not recognized as a T when used as such, people read CO+AP and say "....COAP." So try to pull the plus/cross out of the acronym or make a symbol/logo that better integrates within the name.
* plus/cross perceived as Christian, we're not religious. How can this be avoided while maintaining association w/Red Cross and/or aid in general (a strong preference)?

* Focus energy first on a powerful core logo, then on its incorporation with the brand name.
* No loud greens, blues, or combinations thereof. Too played out in this space.
* Prefer earthtones, greens/tans/browns not unlike those currently used.
* Either start with what we got and refine it, or start from scratch. Up to you.
* No hackneyed depictions of trees, leaves, planet Earth, stick people, the African continent, or polar bears. Maybe for roots, hands, and wildlife.
* Won't rule these out, but if you try it’s got to be so stunning it overcomes any clichés.
* We obviously like the plus sign (a la Red Cross) as a symbol of int'l aid.
* We also like WWF.org's use of the panda, bonus consideration given if you can pull it off with a unique, misunderstood, and under-appreciated animal like the hyena, wildebeest, etc.
* Not too many colors, should lend itself well to having a monochrome version.

Logo must lend itself well to:
* Being a favicon
* Being a standalone square bumper sticker (like http://www.hrc.org ) and to being put on schwag such as coffee travel mugs and credit card beer bottle openers.
* Being distinctly recognizable from a distance

Variations:
* Preference, but not a requirement: logo can serve as one of the letters of the brand (i.e. the ‘C’ or ‘O’ or ‘T’) as is currently done with the plus/cross sign as the T.
* Variations with logo both incorporated into and left outside the acronym/brand name, with and w/o full name, and with/without ‘.org’ part.