Berlin 2030 klimaneutral

Berlin plans to become climate-neutral by the year 2045 and hasn’t articulated any concrete measures for reaching that goal yet. That’s too little, too late. “Berlin 2030 klimaneutral” aims for more. The central demand is that Berlin pledges to achieve net zero emissions already in 2030 – of all greenhouse gases, and not just of carbon dioxide. The initiative calls for legally binding commitments. Furthermore, the implementation should take social justice into account and prioritize reduction over compensation.

Communication and design studio aufsiemitgebrüll worked on the strategy and visual identity for the initiative. The key visual shows a pencil dingbat dealing a blow to a fire, symbolizing that civic participation can help tackling the climate catastrophe, even if it’s as seemingly insignificant as signing a petition. The message “Es ist nicht zu spät” exudes confidence. From aufsiemitgebrüll (translated):

Climate change and its catastrophic consequences leave many people feeling powerless. The awareness that the fight for the climate is a marathon and not a sprint demotivates many people. In response to this feeling of crisis fatigue, we call out to the climate friends of Berlin with a feisty grin and bright eyes: IT IS NOT TOO LATE!

The typographic voice of “Berlin 2030 klimaneutral” is VC Henrietta, and more specifically, mostly the bold weights from its condensed range. Designed by Kyle Benson of Very Cool, these were made available via Future Fonts only in June 2022. For text, Henrietta is supported by Nudge, another Future Fonts release by Benson.

All materials from poster and flags to the website are in red and green. While this color combo is striking, there’s a reason for why it’s not used more often: quite a lot of people, especially among males, suffer from red–green color blindness. Luckily, the color choice didn’t hamper the campaign’s success. Last week, it was revealed that 261,968 Berliners signed the petition – much more than the required seven percent of the electorate – clearing the way for a referendum in early 2023.