Concept & mission

The mission of Friends of Tryon Creek, in partnership with Oregon State Parks, is to inspire and nurture relationships with nature in our unique urban forest. Tryon Creek is a small watershed located in Southwest Portland, Oregon, with acres of land, miles of trails, and a nature center that hosts a multitude of educational efforts. It began as protected natural area in 1970 and continues to be a leader in the community for environmental education, volunteer efforts, and supports a growing community of beneficial urban living. The friends of Tryon Creek is a nonprofit group that is devoted to protecting, connecting, and nurturing future generations. The Friends envision a collaborative, creative and engaged community where people and wildlife thrive in relationship to each other and Tryon Creek State Natural Area.  The Friends impact on this special place and the people connected to it, now and in the future, inspires fun, action, well-being, ecological and community health.

As Outreach Intern for the Friends of Tryon Creek, I was able to take part in many aspects of the digital and print promotional needs of the park and its activities. I started by promoting the park with a curated instagram and social media feed that informed the general public about current activities and opportunities. After meeting with the board of directors and the whole staff, there was a motion to re-brand this nonprofit in order to elevate its visual identity to match the high quality of everyone's efforts involved. Creating a new system for the park involved digital web design, social media promotion, print promotion, updated maps and collateral, environmental signage, way finding, and some apparel for the nature center store.

print

This branding system includes a print suite that satisfies the needs for this nonprofit to stay connected with the community and clearly communicate with all intended. By offering the staff new business cards, custom letterhead, colored envelopes for newsletters, and even custom name tags for the staff and its volunteers, the Friends of Tryon Creek can continue to protect and inform about our natural watersheds

digital

The Friends recently started an instagram account that has driven park attendance and volunteer opportunities. By posting relevant content to the community on a personal basis, the park can begin to interact with visitors and their friends. Along with a custom snapchat filter, the digital advances of the park are aimed to market towards the 18-25 year old person who may want to interact with the park differently than its usual attendants.

wayfinding

By creating a system with a large bold type treatment, the system is designed to stand out from a distance and remain readable on a wooden sign, window vinyl, or park maps. Along with applying the new system to practical use, The Friends of Tryon Creek plan to use the new logo in merchandise and other partnerships with the Oregon State Parks.