Reframing Forestry Standards for People, Planet, Purpose

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Client
Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)
Themes
  • Collaboration for Social Change
  • Climate Action
  • Leadership
  • Education
  • Circular Economy
  • Forestry
Services
  • Creative Direction & Design
  • Motion Design
  • Video Production

The Challenge

FSC’s Principles, Criteria, and Indicators (PCI) form the backbone of its Forest Management Certification—setting the global benchmark for what responsible forestry really means. But these standards are complex, and the revision process is long, technical, and often misunderstood.

Our challenge was to transform dense policy language into simple, engaging stories that show not just what the PCI are, but why they matter. With just a few seconds to spark interest and understanding, these videos needed to inform and inspire trust, clarity, and connection.

The Solution

We created a concise, visually engaging video series to bring FSC’s complex PCI to life. The first video offers a high-level introduction to what PCI are and how they shape global forest stewardship. The second focuses on the heart of FSC’s social values. Our creative approach makes these concepts accessible, relatable, and relevant to a diverse global audience.

The Results

Most-watched

video on FSC YouTube in June 2025

1000+

organisations reached through member education

How do we change the message from compliance to connection?

At Future by Design, we turn complexity into clarity and policy into powerful storytelling.

When FSC asked us to support the multi-year revision of their Principles, Criteria, and Indicators (PCI), we saw an opportunity to reframe the conversation around responsible forestry.

We asked: how do we make them matter to a wide range of stakeholders, from forest managers and Indigenous communities to NGOs and policy-makers?

We started by stripping away the jargon and focusing on what’s human. Through sharp motion design, emotive storytelling, and a clean, accessible visual style, we brought FSC’s standards to life as values in action.

To tackle the social dimensions of the PCI, we led with people: workers, Indigenous communities, and families whose lives depend on forests. The result is a series that explains the standards and builds trust in them.

A word from the Creative Director

For these animated explainer videos, we didn’t want just stylised characters—we wanted the entire world around them to follow the same illustrative language, creating a coherent and immersive visual universe.

We also moved away from a strictly literal visual narrative, opting instead for a more figurative approach. We aimed for a more imaginative storyline, giving us the freedom to create visuals that reflect the spirit of the narrative and hold the viewer’s attention.

Another key difference was the use of 3D perspectives and parallax effects, which added a sense of depth and flow between scenes, pulling the viewer further into the world we created.

World Building

Character Design

It’s always a pleasure working with Future by Design – they helped take our vision for a sustainable future for our forests by bringing magic and accessibility into our standards with beautiful imagery.

Jannicka Murphy

Policy Outreach Manager, FSC

Project Credits

Creative Direction

Future By Design

Illustrations

Ourshack Studio with Veronika Vieyra

Animation

Future By Design