Visual Identity
Social Art Direction
Copy Strategy
Multimedia Production
As political polarization intensified across the U.S., most headlines focused on division at the national level, leaving a critical blind spot: the local governments where people experience democracy every day. Carnegie Corporation of New York, now renamed to Andrew Carnegie Foundation, partnered with research firm, CivicPulse, to commission a first-of-its-kind three-part national survey of thousands of local government officials, exploring if and where Americans still find common ground.
The research challenged the national narrative. While national politics remained deeply divided, local governments continued to solve problems through collaboration and shared purpose, despite declining trust levels in government among Americans. It revealed local government as one of the country's most promising, innovative hubs for rebuilding trust in government, strengthening communities, and renewing American civic life.
I successfully proposed naming of the survey, "Polarization in America," designed the wordmark, supported copy strategy, produced all campaign assets, and worked closely with Carnegie's creative director, social media strategy lead, and content team to shape promotional efforts on our digital channels, transforming a dense body of research into an accessible and informational assets that reframed local government as a place where collaboration, trust, and problem-solving still thrive.
At the center was a custom wordmark I designed featuring a subtle diagonal divide within the wordmark, expressing both American divides and the opportunity to come back together. A visual system rooted in sweeping geographic imagery of small town America replaced the familiar imagery of partisan conflict, shifting the focus to local government as a catalyst for strengthening American unity and public trust.
The survey results revealed an opportunity to tell a larger, impactful story. Beyond the data, local government officials emerged as the people quietly helping communities navigate political differences through practical problem-solving and good public service.
The original campaign vision I developed around the surveys centered on cinematic short documentaries, powerful environmental portraits, and community-driven narratives that elevated the everyday work of select local government leaders featured in the survey, while offering tangible examples of how stronger communities are built through good public service and collaboration. Although priorities shifted, my work on this campaign, from the name to the wordmark to the digital collateral, helped transform dense technical research into compelling digital storytelling that positioned local government as a force for civic unity.
Very much a team effort, the project transformed a complex body of research into a compelling public narrative covered by national outlets like NBC News, helping Carnegie elevate the survey beyond a policy report into a broader conversation about the entreprenuerial role of local government in strengthening American democracy.
Celeste Ford, Daniel Um, Kelly Devine, Wilfred Chan, Angely Montilla, Catriona Whalley