The Florida Everglades are home to over 60 endangered species and provide drinking water to over 8 million residents in South Florida. These wetlands were once made up of more than three million acres, from Orlando to the Florida Keys. But today less than half of this unique ecosystem remains.
The effects of climate change and over-development of the land have destroyed thousands of acres of native plants and have driven some species to the brink of extinction – but there is hope to preserve the ecosystem, if action is taken. The Everglades need the restoration of freshwater flow, and two organizations are determined to make that happen.
I created an infographic explaining the effects climate change has had on the Everglades and the steps The Everglades Foundation and SeaWorld are taking to conserve and restore these precious lands.
I chose a green color palette to evoke the emotions of connecting with nature. I wanted to remind the viewer of the endangered swamplands. I chose to keep the palette monochromatic to keep the graphic cohesive and have a sense of continuity and flow. I know that there is a lot of information here and while I simplified it as much as I could, I think having a soft palette that isn’t hard on the eyes helps the reader scan through the information. Graphic design isn’t really my strong suit, so I didn’t want to risk overcrowding the image.
I chose a sans serif font because it makes the graphic feel like it’s targeted at a young audience. Climate change is a primary concern of the younger generation, for obvious reasons, and shareable infographics are very popular on Instagram and other social media, so I felt a font that could work on that platform and for that demographic would be the best fit. I was hoping to reach the new generation of conservationists.
We remember 80% of what we see but only 20% of what we read, so I made sure the numbers and the stats were front and center in bold. Even if the reader doesn’t read the rest of the statistics and information, they will remember the quick stand-out facts. I included small graphics around the facts and figures to give the brain something to associate with the numbers presented. I wanted to present the problem and then, in the same vein as solutions journalism, I wanted to provide information about actions that are being taken to slow and eventually reverse the damage that has been done.
Graphic References:
Graphic Template from Canva
Chambers, Lisa & Davis, Stephen & Troxler, Tiffany. (2015). Sea Level Rise in the Everglades: Plant-Soil-Microbial Feedbacks in Response to Changing Physical Conditions. 10.1201/b18253-7.
National Wildlife Federation. (n.d.). http://www.nwf.org/.
Paudel, Rajendra & Mahowald, Natalie & Hess, Peter & Meng, Lei & Riley, William. (2016). Attribution of changes in global wetland methane emissions from pre-industrial to present using CLM4.5-BGC. Environmental Research Letters. 11. 034020. 10.1088/1748-9326/11/3/034020.
The Everglades Foundation: Climate Change Action: United States. EF. (n.d.). https://www.evergladesfoundation.org/.
Wright, A. L., & Reddy, K. R. (2021, April 4). Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the Everglades: The Role of of Hydrologic Conditions. IFAS Extention . https://journals.flvc.org/edis/article/download/117979/115959/.
Other References:
Campbell, D. (2019, September 17). Why It’s Time for Visual Journalism to Include a Solutions Focus. Medium. https://witness.worldpressphoto.org/why-it-is-time-for-visual-journalism-to-include-a-solutions-focus-5be15aec3afc.
Dennison , B. (2017, March 28). Practical Visual Literacy for Science Communication: Blog. Integration and Application Network. https://ian.umces.edu/blog/practical-visual-literacy-for-science-communication/.
Fussell, G. (2020, May 16). The Psychology of Fonts (Fonts That Evoke Emotion). Design & Illustration Envato Tuts+. https://design.tutsplus.com/articles/the-psychology-of-fonts–cms-34943.
Parera, E. (2019, June 27). 10 Types of Visual Content for your Strategies on Social Networks. Postcron. https://postcron.com/en/blog/visual-content-strategies-for-social-networks/.
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