The 2024 SDF Planning Team: (First Row) Tanya Villarreal, Tyler Schaffer, Adrian Pacheco, Aurora Bays, En Ning Foo, Cheryl McIntosh; (Second Row) George Zatloka, Alice Irizarry, Isha Mishra, Julia Campanella, Julie Wang, Rebecca Noran; (Third Row) Matt McWilliams, Queenie Gipaya, Hannah Exner, Trevor Dykstra, and Priyanka Rao.
Meet the 2024 Festival Planning Team
The Seattle Design Festival is organized + produced by a committed group of volunteers — the Festival Planning Team! For over 13 years, SDF has relied on volunteers to manage the Festival as a whole as well as produce specific components within it. Together, they develop our annual call for proposals to connect communities and unleash the design thinker in everyone to illuminate Seattle’s challenges and ignite action.
Over the next month, our team of Festival volunteers will be working with our community partners to refine their proposals, ensuring that all of the experiences featured at SDF 2024:WHAT IF? are accessible, intersectional, and inviting.
Why do they do it?
I was a day-of volunteer for the 2023 Festival, and I can confidently say that my experience was nothing short of inspiring. The opportunity to contribute to such a fantastic event and witness how this platform brought engaging and bold design conversations to so many people was truly remarkable. My experience and interactions with the planning team have motivated me to become actively involved in SDF’s mission to “illuminate Seattle’s challenges and ignite action.— Queenie Gipaya
I’m excited to have a direct involvement in seeing the Festival come to life! It’s an exciting role to be able to see how the overall planning serves to engage the design – and general – community. In addition, I’ve had the opportunity to have first-hand experience of being a volunteer at SDF 2023, primarily contributing to the Design in Community stories, and volunteering time at events that SDF hosted. — En Ning Foo
Design is not my profession, but it is my guiding light. I firmly believe that through thoughtful design, we can create spaces that inspire, connect, and empower individuals. The Seattle Design Festival presents an incredible platform to showcase the transformative power of design and inspire connection, and I am eager to be a part of this movement.— Aurora Bays
How does this group form?
Each fall we release a call for Festival Planning Team volunteers. This amazing group of volunteers has been working together since February to design, develop, and implement SDF 2024.
Interested in Other Volunteer Opportunities?
Consider joining us as a day-of Festival Volunteer in August! Depending on your interests/preferences some examples of festival roles/duties include: Production Support, Evaluation Support, Social Media Support, Screen Printer, and Partner/Guest Support. You will be able to select your specific role(s) and shift availability during the orientation period. More info here.