West Fraser
ESG Reporting: Demonstrating sustainable forest management through visual data
West Fraser is one of the world’s largest producers of renewable wood building products, with more than 50 facilities in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe. They approached Red Rocket Creative to produce their 2025 Sustainability Report—a comprehensive, high-impact publication that communicates their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) efforts to a wide-ranging audience of investors, employees, political representatives, Indigenous communities, and industry peers.
As a long-standing advocate for sustainable forest management, West Fraser needed a report that would not only meet the rigorous standards of frameworks like GRI and SASB, but also showcase their innovative practices, community commitments, and reforestation efforts in a way that felt modern, credible, and visually engaging.
Creating structure through strategy
Red Rocket Creative provided strategic input on both the structure and content of the report. Our writer helped shape the messaging around West Fraser’s key ESG impact areas—renewable energies, reforestation, innovation in manufacturing, and community support—ensuring clarity, consistency, and alignment with stakeholder expectations.
We worked closely with the West Fraser team to organize the content into a logical, easy-to-scan layout, grouping key ESG themes and aligning them with the appropriate reporting standards.
Designing for readability
The design direction was clean, minimal, and modern, with a vibrant but natural colour palette to reflect West Fraser’s sustainability focus. We prioritized readability and scanability for time-constrained stakeholders, balancing text with white space and thoughtful layouts.
We incorporated authentic photography of West Fraser employees. The inclusion of real faces brought a sense of approachability and human connection to the report’s tone—highlighting the collaborative culture behind the numbers.
Storytelling that is data-driven
To support West Fraser’s commitment to transparency, we created a wide range of infographics—from charts and iconography to combined photo-graphic visuals—that clearly communicate data and processes in a digestible, visually appealing format.
Each ESG section was colour-coded to improve navigation and aid comprehension. Infographics were built using a consistent visual language, emphasizing comparability and progress across areas like carbon reduction, forest certification, and employee engagement.
Delivering results in different formats
The final report received enthusiastic praise from the West Fraser team. They appreciated Red Rocket’s collaborative process, creative leadership, and ability to translate complex ESG information into a clean, engaging, and effective communication tool.
The 96-page hardcopy report was printed in a Carbon Neutral Facility on 100% Recycled Paper. The optimized digital version was distributed via West Fraser’s website and promoted across social media using the custom animated Gif we created for them.