Understand, imagine and create more beautiful futures
Hi, I'm Julian Ellerby, a design strategist combining futures and human-centred design, backed up by a healthy dose of research, collaboration and facilitation skills, and a deep interest in visual and material cultures.A generalist and not easily or willingly pigeonholed, my strengths are building and leading teams to navigate our fast-changing world, making sense of emerging technologies and ideas and translating these into action and impact today.I have worked with businesses and agenices across industries, from consumer and biotech to fashion and manufacturing, including: Anna Money, &us, Arcaea, Avery Dennison, Barclays, Dutch Invertuals, Faber Futures, FranklinTill, Google, HP, Nike, Pernod Ricard, Polaroid Originals, Samsung, Tarkett, Uniqlo.
My work helps businesses to understand, imagine and create more beautiful futures. I do this in three ways:
INNOVATE + EXPERIMENT
Identifying opportunities and developing innovative new brands, products and services.
IMAGINE + FUTURE
Helping teams build future visions and translating them into actions and principles to guide the way there.
MAKE + COMMUNICATE
Bringing ideas to life in tangible ways as creative experiences, brands, content and campaigns.
A NOTE FROM A CONCERNED OPTIMISMIt probably goes without saying by now, but we live in extraordinary and challenging times, with simultaneous and interconnected ecological and well-being crises (among others). Like many, I am grappling with what I can contribute and how to best live within this reality.Humans are part of nature. However, it is clear that modern ways of living, including designing, too often see humans as separate from and superior to the other beings, systems and relationships that create and sustain life on Earth. It is time for this to end.I am driven to collaborate with people and organisations interested in harnessing the power of creativity and innovation to create a beautiful and regenerative future for people and the planet.For several years, through personal projects, I have been exploring how designers can learn from the wisdom of nature’s 3.8 billion years of innovation. Going out into nature offers many possibilities to reconnect with a sense of self, other people and the Earth. I am continually integrating what I learn through these experiences back into my work.With care, Julian
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