IAVA (Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America) is the country’s first and largest nonprofit organization for veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Its mission is to improve the lives of our newest generation of veterans, providing support in health, education and employment. IAVA enlisted Landor to create a stronger, more appropriate identity—one that captured the spirit and youth of its tribe. Ours was a dual assignment: to design IAVA’s overall identity and identities for its various initiatives and “squads.”

Capturing the uniqueness of the organization and the dynamism of its members meant celebrating IAVA’s grassroots nature and diverse member base. Our design also needed to have credibility in every situation, from community activism to political advocacy.

Made up of the organization’s initials, the word mark is reminiscent of the military ribbon bars awarded to service members. But the true genius is in its flexibility—inviting members to personalize the logo to suit their needs.

We leveraged this bold attitude for Pathfinder, IAVA’s career resource. The “A” echoes the IAVA logo while simultaneously suggesting upward mobility.

Read the full case study with juror comments here: [http://www.aiga.org/case-study-iava-visual-identity/]

“People who serve their country in the military deserve an organization they can stand behind. The IAVA logo is a huge step toward a visual understanding of our veterans’ needs in contemporary context. I was especially excited about how veterans can use the logo as tattoos or stencils.” —Cameron Campbell