Habitat for Humanity International is a global nonprofit housing organization founded in 1976 by Millard and Linda Fuller in Americus, Georgia, working in local communities across all 50 U.S. states and in approximately 70 countries.[1] The organization’s visual identity is built around a registered trademark logo featuring three human figures beneath a sheltering roof, paired with the Habitat for Humanity wordmark.
Design and History
Habitat for Humanity introduced its current logo on May 2, 2005, as part of an effort to secure and promote a consistent image around the world.[2] The former logo, which featured two people with upraised arms sheltering a house, had served the organization for a number of years but was too similar to other marks to allow it to be registered and protected.[2] The new blue and green logo, featuring three people with raised and interlocked arms beneath a sheltering roof, provided for protective registration and established a unified look among all Habitat for Humanity affiliates.[2]
Prior to the 2005 redesign, Habitat affiliates had used a variety of different logos to represent their work, resulting in no single strong brand identity attached to the organization’s name.[2] The new logo was developed as a team effort that drew on suggestions from Habitat affiliates and national offices around the world, with Habitat’s international design team deliberately developing a mark that would transcend different cultures.[2] The redesign was informed by research from Interbrand, which found that while 90 percent of Americans recognized the name Habitat for Humanity, only about 10 percent recognized the former logo.[2]
Earlier logo iterations date to 1978 and 1989, with the organization having used distinct marks in those periods before the 2005 redesign.[3]
Meaning and Symbolism
According to Paul Leonard, Habitat’s chief executive officer at the time of the 2005 launch, the logo symbolizes volunteerism and the community spirit of neighbors helping neighbors. In it, three human forms stand united in purpose, their arms lifted to act on the world’s need for decent housing, not hanging idle as if the work were complete.[2] The rounded edges suggest a search for harmony, the universality of family and gentleness of spirit that springs from the hearts of Habitat partners.[2]
The roofline represents shelter, but also symbolizes the Habitat mission, under which people of all races, ages and religious beliefs come together for the common good. The three forms united together as one also represents the Trinity and Habitat’s Christian foundation.[2]
Typography and Design
Habitat’s name is prominently featured in the logo, with the wordmark set alongside the emblem.[2] The organization’s brand guidelines specify that the bright blue and bright green in the color palette, identified as PANTONE 638 and 382, should not be applied to the Habitat logo itself.[4] The traditional blue and green treatments of the logo remain in use alongside newer black and white expressions.[5]
Brand guidelines require a minimum clear space around the logo equal to the height of the “H” in “Habitat,” with an ideal clear space of twice that height.[6] The logo should not be modified, screened, tinted, outlined, or separated from its graphic elements.[5]
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