OVERALL WINNER Cahan & Associates
ENVIRONMENTAL SELECTION Celery Design Collaborative
ENVIRONMENTAL SELECTION Distinc Design

AIGA San Francisco presents the Environmental Leadership Award, a design competition and a vehicle to raise awareness of environmental responsibility in the graphic design profession. It showcases solutions to the environmental impact of paper, ink, chemicals and other materials used in graphic design. Pieces are judged on design excellence and environmentally responsible production.

This year's jury met on October 16th and included Jim Ales, art director for the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Anne Telford, managing editor of Communication Arts Magazine and AIGA Medalist Michael Vanderbyl.

The winner of the 2002 Environmental Leadership Award is Cahan & Associates for their Maxygen annual report designed by Gary Williams. It includes illustrations by Jason Holley and photography by Ann Giordano, Esther Henderson, Ray Manley, Robert Markow and John Sann.

The small format book was printed on Vision Paper's 100% Kenaf stock using soy inks. Kenaf is a member of the hibiscus family and is related to cotton and okra. Kenaf grows quickly to heights of 12-14 feet in as little as 4 to 5 months. U.S. Department of Agriculture studies show that kenaf yields 6 to 10 tons of dry fiber per acre per year. That is 3 to 5 times greater than the yield for Southern pine trees.

Jim Ales noted that, in his opinion, this was the best designed entry of the competition. Anne Telford appreciated the beautiful illustrations and photographs and wondered if people might recycle the piece by framing some of the artwork included in the annual report. Michael Vanderbyl agreed, saying it was important that this year's competition winner exemplify a new commitment to design excellence and environmental sustainability. He remarked that it was comforting to see something that didn't come off crunchy or granola and could lead the industry toward larger projects for bigger clients that include eco-considerations. Our jurors expressed their hope that Cahan & Associates, and other designers doing annual reports, would use this successful model for future projects.

The jury also awarded two environmental selections. The first was awarded to Celery Design Collaborative, a Berkeley, California based design studio that has made a commitment to only working on environmentally sustainable design projects. Celery submitted several examples of their work in this year's competition. Each showed attention to sustainability and good design sensibilities.

The jury especially liked the wine label designed for ENO Wines and the Ecological Guide to Paper. Jim Ales noted that he often uses his guide as a welcome resource for specifying recycled content papers. Michael Vanderbyl noted that Celery's commitment to environmentally responsible design may limit their client base but their knack for finding good design solutions will serve them and the environment in the future.

A second environmental selection was awarded to Distinc Design of Los Angeles, California for their work with Aveda. The two catalogs submitted by Distinc show off Aveda's commitment to the environment within the framework of running a successful global business. Anne Telford mentioned that while not all designers are blessed to work with such green clients as Aveda, Distinc was able to capitalize on the opportunity by designing a beautiful product catalogue printed on 100/75 recycled content paper with soy inks.

A second Aveda piece used similar paper and printing methods. It was the unique nature of this piece caught the jury's attention. This self-audit and report is based on principles set forth by the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies. It represents a new breed of annual report where corporations present their environmental record and graphic designers have an opportunity to marry good design and sustainability. Jim Ales added that Dintinc hit the mark with this low impact yet visually stunning piece.