TED Countdown

Countdown is TED’s global initiative to accelerate climate solutions through action and storytelling. Building on the original brand system by Jessica Walsh and the team at &Walsh, I led the design and development of assets across a wide range of touchpoints—from environmental signage and social campaigns to data visualizations and illustration systems.

As design lead, I helped evolve and adapt the brand to meet Countdown’s growing needs while enabling teams across TED and beyond to execute aligned, impactful work. For the inaugural Countdown Summit in Edinburgh, I led the design of all environmental graphics and traveled onsite to oversee installation and support digital asset development.

Role: Art Director, Brand Creative
Team: Mike Femia, Casey Walter, Nancy Hu, Sarah Lee, Sarah Jane Souther, Jonathan Mallow, Logan McClure Davda, Anne O’Dell, Elizabeth Zeeuw, Gilberto Tadday, Bret Hartman, Diana Pietrzak, Casie Jensen, Mina Sabet, Martha Estafanos, Gordon Cochran, Chris Milani, Ladan Wise, Stephanie Furlong

TED Countdown Livestream

Role: Art Director, Brand Creative
Team: Mike Femia, Nancy Hu, Casey Walter, Jonathan Mallow, Logan McClure Davda, Anne O’Dell, Mina Sabet, Martha Estafanos, Gordon Cochran, Chris Milani, Michael Nigro, Steve Robbins, Andrew Davis, Alan Clary, Andria Parides

Building upon the success of the initial Countdown events, TED hosted a virtual event that brought together key solutions from the Countdown Summit conference, stories of local action from around the world, social and cultural discussions, and powerful performances to ignite a global call to action.

This event needed to differentiate itself from previous Countdown broadcasts, as well as feel accessible to a potentially younger and less climate-knowledgeable audience. The goal was to expand the Countdown identity to achieve a more upbeat visual tone, while also providing more flexibility for animation and production. It was my job to lead this development and its translation into animation. We built an expanded color palette and new pattern library to augment the graphics package while still maintaining the original Countdown spirit that the community already loved so much. In close collaboration with Gordie Cochran’s team at Colours and Shapes, we developed the animation system that brought the Countdown message to life in an exciting and dynamic new way.

TED Countdown Summit 2023: Detroit

Role: Art Director, Brand and Marketing
Team: Mike Femia, Casey Walter, Sarah Jane Souther, Jonathan Mallow, Logan McClure Davda, Mina Sabet, Martha Estafanos, Gordon Cochran, Chris Milani, Diana Pietrzak, Casie Jensen, Allecia Verheire, Elizabeth Zeeuw, Jason Redmond
Illustrators: Kristen Uroda, Rachelle Baker

The TED Countdown Summit 2023 was an invite-only gathering in Detroit, Michigan, that brought together a diverse group of global innovators, business executives, scientists, policymakers, next-generation leaders, artists, activists, and more — all determined to create a better future.

To deliver a distinct brand experience and pay homage to the event's host city, we partnered with two Detroit-based illustrators. Kristen Uroda crafted the Detroit Summit illustration library, while Rachelle Baker designed the mural adorning the Detroit Book Depository building — a permanent installation. As Art Director for Brand and Marketing, my role involved developing all creative briefs for the project, leading the collaborative process with these talented artists, and guiding all visual development for the event across various TED teams, including the implementation of these illustrations. The result was a wonderfully refreshed Countdown identity, and a celebration of the great spirit of the Motor City.