In honor of its 75th Anniversary and 5-year Strategic Plan, American Public Gardens Association unveils its fresh new brand to carry the Association through another 75 years and beyond.
American Public Gardens Association has turned over a new leaf by creating a stronger, more inclusive brand to help raise awareness for the Association and its programs while promoting its membership and fostering partnership opportunities. Inclusive branding serves to support the Association’s national and international presence and in turn its member gardens. Ultimately, more effective and connected brand visibility will support the Association in championing its vision to create “a world where public gardens are indispensable.”
The Association’s brand refresh was spearheaded, vetted, and approved by Association leadership to ensure strong organizational representation and support for the long term. According to the Association’s Board President, Sabina Carr, “The past year has been a pivotal time for the Association in terms of leadership excellence, strong membership support, and communicating value. The refresh modernizes the brand and provides the Association and its dynamic programs with much-needed consistency for future growth and success. I’m excited about the results and think they are spot on.”
The Association’s new positioning strategy speaks perfectly to its overall goals and 5-year strategic plan: “The American Public Gardens Association is the leading professional organization for the field of public horticulture. Our commitment is to advance member success by encouraging best practices, offering educational and networking opportunities, and advocating on behalf of our members, programs and public gardens worldwide. Together we will work with our members to strengthen and shape the field, providing the tools and support industry professionals need to better serve the public while preserving and celebrating plants creatively and sustainably.”
Connecting, Protecting & Championing Public Gardens — To advance its goals, the Association will further connect and empower its members by nurturing community, offering more powerful networking opportunities, and providing regular updates on career opportunities and trends. It will protect public horticulture’s future by strengthening our pioneering stewardship programs that safeguard plant collections, respond to the threats posed by invasive species, and address the challenges of climate change and natural resource sustainability. These efforts will champion the role of public horticulture by strengthening its unified voice to advance the role of public gardens, improving quality of life for all. Ultimately, the Association strives to further assert itself on the world stage for the betterment of its member gardens and programs.
A Fresh Association Logo — A logo is more than a logo. Visual identity has power, and the American Public Gardens Association’s new logo is distinctive, identifiable, and packs punch. The logo’s simple yet intricate motif speaks to the collaborative and interconnected nature of the Association, its core programs, and the public horticulture industry as a whole. The clarity of one strong logo will add to the purpose and impact of the American Public Gardens Association, its programs, partners, and members.
More inclusive messaging — It is amazing what a little acronym can do (or not do). For years, American Public Gardens Association relied on the acronym APGA to carry its brand, formally and informally. This was successful for insiders in the know, but those outside of the Association’s general membership had to work to decipher its meaning. As part of the goal to advocate on behalf of public gardens, “APGA” will no longer be used to carry the brand. Maintaining the title “American Public Gardens Association” (shortened to “Association”) clearly defines the organization to insiders and outsiders alike. Increased public understanding fuels the Association’s purpose, enabling it to better support its members and causes.
Cohesive Program Changes — A unifying Association-wide logo has been adopted by the Association’s core programs in addition to simple, clarifying program titles that speak directly to their unique program objectives. The changes were designed to elevate the programs by communicating them more clearly and cohesively to the general public. The longstanding North American Plant Collections Consortium (NAPCC) has the new name that speaks for itself, Plant Collections Network, in addition to expanded program goals. Plant collections accredited by the Plant Collections Network will be referred to as Nationally Accredited Plant Collections. The Association’s Sentinel Plant Network and Plant Heroes Programs will now be held under the Plant Protection Program, an umbrella program that may adopt other protective programming in time. The Association’s emerging program, Climate & Sustainability Alliance, has also been given a clarifying title and logo.
The American Public Gardens Association’s Executive Director, Casey Sclar, emphasized the importance the Association’s overall program goals and new branding: “For many years, we’ve provided the highest quality professional development opportunities and programming. Plant conservation, plant collections, and the role our gardens play in stewarding a crucially needed environmental awareness are central tenets to our programs. Plants solve the great problems of our time and this all needs to be expressed with unity and distinction. Our new brand immediately displays this, while sacrificing none of the great work our members and partners have worked so long to build.”
New Logos:
(Formerly the North American Plant Collections Consortium (NAPCC)
(Encompasses Sentinel Plant Network and Plant Heroes)
