2018 has been quite a year. The news cycle has seemingly continued to grow darker and darker, with many choosing to ignore it entirely. Alas, ignore it we can’t but perhaps there’s a more optimistic year looming up ahead.

Pantone certainly seems to think so as they announced their 2019 Colour of the Year: Living Coral. An orange shade with a peachy twist and golden undertones, Living Coral is a hopeful colour that, according to Pantone’s VP of the colour consulting unit, has been influenced directly by the environment: “Top of mind was the arresting beauty we see in nature and the importance of preserving the environment.”

The colour of the year does not predict trends or look to the future but rather sets out to capture the feeling of the here and now, a reflection of the world and culture we’re currently inhabiting. Living Coral feels particularly apt this year as the UN released its report on climate change, which signalled how the fight against single-use plastics and greenhouse gas emissions continues.

Living Coral has been seen across a range of products in the last year including Apple’s XR phone, Monzo’s attention grabbing debit cards, social media and fashion runways.

Pantone has been choosing a Colour of the Year since 1999 and this year’s shade follows 2018’s Ultraviolet, a “dramatically provocative and thoughtful purple shade” and the zesty Greenery of 2017.