The Seattle Design Festival is a volunteer-powered organization and we appreciate your help to make the festival a success! We will have 70+ volunteer opportunities to help produce and document all of the amazing events and installations our community partners bring forward to the Festival.
There are several paths to get engaged as a volunteer. To find the right fit for you, consider how much time you want to commit to SDF, the impact you hope to have, and what strengths you think you can bring to the team!
The SDF Council guides SDF activities to deploy design to make a difference, to unleash the power of design for all and inspire action. The Council provides interdisciplinary leadership informing the annual theme and Festival elements, supports the SDF individual giving campaign, and facilitates connections with community groups and design partners. The Council should reflect the disciplinary diversity of the festival. Check out our amazing Council leaders!
The call for new SDF Council Members will go live in November.
Are you looking for a long-term volunteer opportunity? The Seattle Design Festival is organized and produced by a committed group of volunteers – the Festival Planning Team. They manage the festival as a whole and produce specific components within the Festival. Together, this group connects communities and unleash the design thinker in everyone to illuminate Seattle’s challenges and ignite action through our annual Festival.
The call for the 2025 SDF Planning Team will launch in November!
The SDF Board of Directors advances our mission through strategic planning and fiduciary oversight – planning for sustainable growth and resource development. Directors are ambassadors for SDF, championing our mission, fostering transparency, and ensuring responsible conduct as we work together to positively impact our community. Read the complete board role description to learn more about how our board functions, and our strategic partnership with AIA Seattle.
Review the full list of our Board of Directors.
The 2024 nomination cycle is now closed.
Design in Community Volunteer:
(Flexible hours + commitment)
Design in Community volunteers enable the Seattle Design Festival to further its content strategy by delivering subject-centered, design-focused stories for publication through the festival’s digital channels. Responsibilities may include (depending on your interests):
– Sourcing: Assist in identifying and developing story leads.
– Audio: Collect audio through subject interviews.
– Stills: Photograph designers during the interviews and in their design environments.
– Audio production: Enhance and edit collected audio for use in the final multimedia story.
– Multimedia production: Produce the final multimedia piece by pairing stills to the final audio story.
– Writing: Author articles to accompany the final multimedia pieces for publication on the website.
Since Design in Community offers a flexible volunteer opportunity, contributors may work on a single component of a project within a team. Or volunteers may work on all elements of a project, depending on context or interest.
Festival Volunteer Support:
Short-term volunteer opportunities are available as we get closer to the delivery of our annual Festival, each 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.
– Connect with professionals, leaders and students in our community
– Contribute to and influence events that support innovative design
– Build a stronger and more cohesive Seattle design community
– Educate the public about how design directly affects their lives and communities
– Demonstrate your values, and fuel your passion!
The best reason to volunteer is to have fun and know that you’ve had a positive and influential effect on the city you love to live in and on the design movement!
Questions? Contact info@seadesignfest.org.
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