Design Firms Focused on Social Good

Augusta Meill is a designer and strategist seeking to use design to redistribute power in the systems of our country. Her practice brings together design methods and problem-solving approaches with the philosophies and mindsets of community organizing.
Augusta founded Agncy Design to apply and adapt human-centered design practices to the work of justice and equity. Agncy has created a radically community-centered approach to design and works areas such as community development (e.g. with neighborhood-based collectives), healthcare (e.g. with New England’s primary safety net hospital) and criminal justice (e.g. with a coalition that includes police department, school, and service provider), as well as continued work in education.

Civilla is led by Michael Brennan, who has earned respect from changemakers and leaders throughout Michigan and across the country. At Civilla, Brennan guides Civilla’s mission, vision, and strategy. He carries 10+ years of experience leading human-centered design inside institutions, and played a pivotal role in the work with MDHHS to streamline applications and recertifications. Prior to Civilla, Brennan led large-scale change efforts as the CEO of the United Way for Southeastern Michigan. After 30 years in leadership at United Way, his achievements include overseeing the rollout of the 2-1-1 social service hotline program across the United States, a system he also implemented in MetroDetroit that now receives 400,000 calls annually. He has fundraised over $700 million and provided innovation leadership and coaching to heads of organizations across 4 continents.