Green, Leafy, Eco, Enviro, logo design

Green, Leafy, Eco and Enviro

As an exercise during the development for some branding work, I did a little bit of research (and I do mean little) to find some examples of 'Green' logos. Not just the colour of the brand, but logos that are trying to represent themselves as eco, enviro, earth friendly, with planets, blades of grass, trees and many, many leaves.

I asked a few colleagues which were the ones that actually stood out from the crowd, and it wasn't the sharp tips of the leaves and trees and check-marks-- it was the solid color (not necessarily green) and bold shapes. The less words the better. The more unique the better.

It was as though things had come full circle (again) and what would have seemed cool, hip, cutting edge, socially responsible, and innovative, just three or four years ago, has become dated, easy, replicable, mass, and even boring.

One thing that really resonated with me about a post I read on TheBestLogo.info was about the "black and white" test: What will the logo look like when you can't put the exact colour in the leaves, or show off that swoopy gradient? How will it look when you send it through a fax machine?

Where do you think Green/eco/planet/enviro/organic/recycle-type logos are going? Comments?