Ogallala Commons first iteration of an organization logo was crafted in 2004, featuring two arrows and a circle. These basic symbols evoked two foundational realities of OC’s mission: doing project outreach along the long north-south axis of the Ogallala Aquifer region (from White River, South Dakota in the north to Midland, Texas in the south), while also reaching west to the Rocky Mountains and east to the river braided prairies east of the Midwest. An updated 2006 version of the logo still featured the arrows and the circle, along with the words Ogallala Commons running horizontally between the two arrows. It seems a lot like the old Santa Fe Railroad logo.
At last in 2009, a graphic designer from Munday, Texas (Kacy Latham) crafted the official OC logo—with two circles, two arrows, and three colors (blue, green, and reddish-brown). It appeared to many to be a beautiful image, but what did it mean? After a couple more years of reflection, in 2011 OC Board Member Joe Franco, wrote an insightful narrative that poignantly describes the symbolic meaning of OC’s logo.
“The entire logo is comprised of two circles and two arrows with three different colors. The circles or rings of the logo show wholeness and continuity, everywhere the same and containing no differences within it.
The central circle is reddish-brown in color and represents the soils and landscapes of the region—OC’s first boundary of influence. In addition, this circle represents OC’s commitment to steward natural resources. The outer circle forms a boundary around the central principles. Keep in mind that the circle is a two-dimensional shape of a 3-dimensional sphere. The blue color also reminds us of the clear sky and life-sustaining water of the Ogallala Aquifer. The arrows represent flow or flow of energy. The flow is represented by arrows which change directions at 45 degrees, which denotes strongly focused or targeted energy.
The arrows seek the center of the ring, then flow back out to the boundaries. The green arrow shows the focused energy of nature’s seed as it springs from the earth toward fruition, then to harvest. The blue arrow represents the rain which falls to the earth and filters back to the outer ring of the Ogallala Aquifer. This directed energy also represents the flow of ideas and energy which starts in local communities, flowing toward the center to be reinvigorated, then flowing back out to effect change.”
