Managing land through strategic design planning

with Lands Advisory Board

What we did

  • Branding
  • Website
  • Accessibility
  • Digital Media
  • Branding
  • Website
  • Accessibility
  • Digital Media
VISIT THEIR WEBSITE
LAB Business cards. The cards are seen in two large stacks. On the top of the first stack is the back of the business card, which features the LAB URL, an illustration of mountains, lakes, greenery, and a tepee in the centre, and a photographic background of a lake adorned with hills on either side covered in trees. On the top of the second stack is the front of the business cards, with the LAB logo on a white background, separated by a deep blue section that contains all the information needed, such as name, title, and methods of contact. On the bottom left of the business card is an illustrated mountain.

What they needed

The Lands Advisory Board (LAB) helps more than 100 Indigenous groups reclaim and manage more than 400,000 acres of reserve lands and natural resources. 

After starting out on the West Coast, they’ve now spread to support groups across Canada. So it was time to grow the reach of their brand and website, too. They wanted to appeal to Indigenous communities from coast to coast.

About the Logo

The new LAB logo helps them stretch from coast to coast—literally. Their lettering now reflects a full Canadian landscape, from the Rockies and Pacific ocean to the prairies all the way to the Boreal forest and Atlantic waters.

The RC First Nations Land Management Resource Centre logo. The left side of the logo features the "RC" letter mark adorned with illustrations of the sun, mountains, lakes, and greenery, with the tepee in the centre of the R. The right side of the logo features the words First Nations in yellow, Land Management in blue, and Resource Centre in green.
An internal spread of the LAB Brand Guide. The left side features the LAB logo in all forms, including the black and white version. The right page features the primary and secondary brand colours, with their accompanying CMYK, RGB, and Hex codes.
The cover for the Lands Advisory Board & First Nations Land Management Resource Centre Brand manual. At the top of the manual, the LAB and RC logos are featured on a white background. The rest of the cover is part illustration, part photo, featuring a sunrise, mountain scape, and lake.
An illustrated image of the sun. The centre circle is yellow, with four sunburst tendrils facing the cardinal directions, surrounded by a deeper yellow circle. All this is surrounded by a transparent yellow circle, symbolizing the light the sun gives.

How we helped

We designed the new LAB brand from the ground up. This meant interviewing their staff, leading engagement sessions, and talking one-on-one with teams across Canada. Then we designed a range of print and digital materials, including their logo, website, templates, training, and an interactive map.

LAB Stationary. Included in the image is a letterhead and business card layout. The business card features the LAB logo, and a curved, deep blue section for the persons information on the front. On the back is a graphic that is part illustration and part photographed image. The illustration is the mountainscape, lakes, and greenery with a tepee in the centre, and the photograph in the background features a lake surrounded by lush green hills.
An iPad mockup of a presentation deck for the Lands Advisory Board. The main slide has a spot for a presentation title and subtitle, with an illustrated, muted background of a landscape featuring mountains, lakes, and greenery, with a tepee in the centre. To the right of the main slide, there are four smaller slides, one featuring a full colour LAB spread with the LAB logo, one featuring a circle graph, the third being the one we see enlarged, and the fourth being a general information slide on a white background.
An illustrative representation of a fish in light blue using wave-like shapes to create the body and tail fin.

Making a difference

The new LAB brand helps them engage Indigenous communities from coast to coast, with simple, consistent templates they can apply across their print and digital materials. Soon after they rolled out their new look, LAB reached a key milestone—their 100th First Nation signed their agreement.

Celebrating success

To help LAB celebrate the progress of the communities they support, we designed a distinctive award system of pins and plaques. We also worked with a consultant to help them set clear guidelines to judge and award recipients.

Two versions of the LAB Innovation Award from 2019. The awards are laying diagonally. The awards feature a layered resin top section. The first resin section features scenery from the LAB logo, including a tepee, a lakeside, a lush green hill, some trees, and a sun burst. Below that is the wooden section of the award, with the LAB logo burned into it. Below that it reads "2019 Innovation Award", with a hillside motif covering the bottom section, all burned into the award. The second award features the LAB logo in the resin section, on a light green background with an illustration of a lakeside at the bottom. The wooden section reads "Lands Advisory Board - 2019 Innovation Award" with a wave motif at the bottom.
A Lands Advisory Board pin. The pin is acrylic, cast on a metal backing, and features the LAB logo. The logo itself reads "LAB", and embedded within the logo is a scene including mountains, a tepee, a lake, some treesn and the sun in the top space of the B.

Making guidelines easy to use

We helped LAB convert a 600-page policy manual into a simple web app. Now, their guidelines are much easier for their staff to search, bookmark, and get live updates.

An iPhone mockup of the landing page for the LAB RC Lands Governance Manual. The background is an illustration of a sunrise over an expanse of green land. The page reads "Lands Governance Manual: A Guide to Best Practices for Land Governance". Under this is a yellow-green "Get started" button.
An iPhone mockup of the menu for the Resource Centre section of the LAB app. The phone displays a menu with white text on a green to blue gradient background, and lists the areas of the website available, such as "traditional land holdings" and "lands inventory and file management".
An iPhone mockup of the LAB RC app. The phone features the background section of the website, with a green header reading "Background". Below that is an image in an ovular shape with a mockup of a LAB guide inside of it. The page goes on to give details about how the LAB came to be.

Crafting a vibrant vessel

Their new website features Indigenous-inspired landscapes and illustrations. It also brings their materials into one hub, so they can easily offer online training, share complex info, and give staff access behind the scenes.

An icon inside of a yellow circle. The icon features a yellow sunset with trees and mountains infront of the sunset, and a green, grassy foreground. This is part of the LAB Indigenous Planning section.

Mapping their progress

An interactive map helps them track the progress of the groups they work with. At a glance, they can see how many First Nations are in a province or sort by population or reserve size.

“For over the past three years, the First Nations Land Management Resource Centre has worked with Design de Plume on several branding projects as well as a website redesign. We are pleased with the quality of work delivered and the assistance and attention to detail provided by the entire team. We appreciate all their efforts to support these projects and the positive working relationship built over this time.”  

 –Suzanne Winch, Senior Communications Advisor, LAB RC

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