Spreading awareness about the spread

with the Invasive Species Centre

What we did

  • Print Design
  • Illustration
  • Digital Media
  • Video
  • Motion Graphics
  • Print Design
  • Illustration
  • Digital Media
  • Video
  • Motion Graphics
VISIT THEIR WEBSITE

What they needed

One of the biggest threats to the natural beauty of Canada are invasive species that come in and devastate native plants and wildlife. Each year, our nation spends more than $2.2 billion to eradicate invasive fish, insects, vines, and much more. The Invasive Species Centre works to spread awareness about how we can all protect Canadian land, waters, and wildlife. They needed a spectrum of materials and custom illustrations to better explain how to identify invasive species—and help stop them from spreading.

The cover of the 2017 Invasive Species Centre Annual Report. The cover features several diamond shapes lined up in a pattern on the left side, some of which include imagery such as rocks, lush greenery, and a lake. The right side of the cover reads "Invasive Species Centre Annual Report 2017 Fiscal Year"
The cover of the 2018 Invasive Species Centre Annual Report. The cover features several landscapes, one rocky, one lakeside, one forest, and one night time, all within diamond shapes that are placed so their corners line up with each other at the centre. The cover reads "Annual Report" and "2018 Invasive Species Centre" with the ISC logo below the text.
An interior spread of an annual report for the Invasive Species Centre. The spread features one page titled "Invasive Species and our cities: economic impacts on municipalities" which features information about what the impact of said Invasive species have on our economics. The right spread is titled "Aquatic Health" and details a registration report about aquatic herbicides.
An icon featuring a Silver Asian Carp with a strand of DNA above it in black and off white.

How we helped

Blended with their brand. To help spread the word about the spread, we created many eye-catching annual reports and fact sheets. Our work blended beautifully with their existing brand, with rounded geometric shapes and scenic photography to celebrate the natural beauty they’re seeking to protect. 

Illustrated the issue. The first step in stopping the spread is knowing how to spot an invasive species. So we designed realistic, scientific illustrations of Asian carps, which are featured in many materials, websites, and museums. We also refreshed the related website, including illustrating a custom map that shows the sobering reality of how these invasive fish have spread across the great lakes for the last few decades.

Keeping the message moving. We created animated videos and social templates full of practical tips for how we can all help protect our ecosystem, from how to handle firewood to how to boat in a new area.

Specifically, the Grass Carps Awareness video was very well received by the Invasive Species Centre and shared both on their socials, website and on Bell Fibe TV. On YouTube it received 104,000 impressions and on Facebook it received 160,000 views. In 2022 it received a SO GOOD Award by the RGD in Ecology and Sustainability design. 

An iPhone mockup of an Instagram post by the Invasive Species Centre. The post features a large yellow sign in front of a lake surrounded by trees. The sign is a pair of binoculars spotting a bird, with a large arrow pointing down behind the image.
An iPhone mockup of an Instagram post from the Invasive Species Centre. The post features a large yellow sign in front of a lake. The sign is of a large fishing boat casting a net, with a large arrow pointing down behind the image.
A large yellow sign meant to be used on a lake. The sign features a graph showing the relation between cost and invasive species. The graph is trending downwards, and there is a semi-transparent system of lakes behind the image.
A large yellow sign meant to be used on a lake. The sign features a pair of binoculars spotting a bird, with a large arrow pointing down behind the image.
A large yellow sign meant to be used on a lake. The sign features a large fishing boat casting a net down into the water with a large arrow pointing down behind the image.
A large yellow sign meant to be used on a lake. The sign features a warning that fish may jump out of the water and into an occupied boat.
A large yellow sign meant to be used on a lake. The sign features a fisherman casting their line from a boat in the water with a large arrow pointing down underneath the image.

Making a difference

Our work in this area has helped raise awareness of a troubling threat. You can spot our designs and illustrations in museum exhibits and information sessions across the country. And our animated videos have been well received and continue to be featured online to help inspire others to join this critical cause. Check out a sample video about Grass Carp.

A fact sheet about the Economic Impacts of Invasive Species. The fact sheet is packed full of resources, graphs, and statistics about how Invasive Species impact our lives.
An image of a display dedicated to the awareness of the invasive Asian Carp. There are two pictures hanging on the wall, one of a Grass Carp, and one of a Big Head Carp. These images are pointing out the important identifying characteristics of each fish. To the right of the images there is a display of a sea lamprey.

Invasive Carps

Xenocarp Canada is a subsidiary of the Invasive Species Centre and a platform that shares insights on xenocarps such as how to spot an invasive carp or how to report a sighting. We had the opportunity to create scientific renderings of the species which have been used in museums and marketing alike. We also completed a refresh of their website with an interactive carp timeline and fully animated instructional videos.

An illustration of a Big Headed Asian Carp. The carp is silver in colour with tinges of pink, and the eyes are extremely low on the face. The three fins on the bottom of the fish are silver towards the body and black at the tips, as is the dorsal fin and tail fin.
An illustration of a Black Asian Carp. The carp is black in colour with a golden sheen to some of the scales. The eyes are very low on the face of the carp, and the fish has 3 fins on the bottom of the body, one dorsal fin, and a short black tail fin.
An illustrated image of an Asian Silver Carp. The carp is silver all over, with two bottom fins. The fun closest to the tail is tucked close to the body, whereas the bottom fin towards the centre extends further from the carp itself. Its eyes are very low on the face. The tail fin is a deep silver that lightens further from the carps body.
An Illustrated image of an Asian Grass Carp. The carp is white in colour with a tinge of green towards it's top, where it gets more scaly. The carp has two fins on the bottom of it's stomach, one grey towards the tail, and one yellow towards it's centre. The eyes are low on the face, and it has one fin on the top of it's body. Its tail fun is deep green with a flare of yellow towards the tip.
A macbook mockup of the Asian Carp Canada website. The website features a page reading "meet the invaders" with each of the four different types of Asian Carp to look out for. Below that reads "Spotted a Grass Carp?" with a resource to report where abouts the person has seen the invasive fish.
An icon in a blue circle with a black outline. The icon features 4 different illustrative species of Asian Carp that get smaller as they go. One is nearly black, the second one is a greenish-grey, the third is silver, and the fourth is nearly white.
An icon in a blue circle with a black outline. The icon features a large net with a lightning symbol for electricity in red over top of it.
An icon in a blue circle with a black outline. The icon features a land mass with a pointer symbol in the top right, marked as an area where the Asian Carp is present.
An icon in a blue circle with a black outline. The icon features an Asian Carp in a fish tank with a large prohibited symbol over top of it.
An icon in a blue circle with a black outline. The icon features two pieces of paper, one being a checklist with both items checked off in red, and the other being a paper with a large warning sign and text underneath.
An i-Pad mockup of the Invasive Species Centre website about the Asian Carp. The title of the page reads "Asian Carp Timeline" and shows how the introduction of the Asian Carp to our lakes has grown over time.
An iPhone mockup of an Instagram post from the Invasive Species Centre. The post features a lake system with images of several lake creatures such as a snail and a prawn.
An iPhone mockup of an Instagram post from the Invasive Species Centre. The app is in dark mode and features a post showing a Silver Asian Carp in a cooler on ice.
An iPhone mockup of an Instagram post from the Invasive Species Centre. The app is in dark mode and features a post showing a map of a lake system with Asian Carps placed in the lakes that the fish are present.

“We couldn’t be more pleased with the work done by Design de Plume to bring this vision to life.”

-Rebecca D’Orazio, Invasive Species Centre

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