Jay Wall

@talkpaperscissors Episode 284: Design for Social Change and Inclusive City Building with Jay Wall 🏙️ This is the second episode in a 3-part guest lecture series, speaking with a diverse range of design and typography pros from across North America!  This episode features a Creative Director dedicated to social change and inclusive city building, Jay Wall @jaywalljay . In this conversation you’ll hear about Jay’s origin story as a designer and the evolution of his path towards designing for social change. You’ll hear about the Design Justice Network (DJN) and learn a less naïve way to frame the question “can design save the world?” You’ll hear concrete examples over the last 70 years that have challenged the status quo and helped catalyze change in a variety of contexts, both on the streets and on the screen. Lastly, you’ll hear what Jay’s currently up to regarding inclusive city building; a project called ‘Yonge Tomorrow’, a project with the City of Toronto to redesign downtown Yonge Street, nodding to the past, embracing present needs, and planning for a more accessible future. This episode was recorded as part of a guest lecture series in @gcmtmu #GCM230 - Typography in fall 2025 @thecreativeschl at Toronto Metropolitan University. #TalkPaperScissors #RallyRally #rgd #socialgood * One Land, One People (Jay Wall, in collaboration with Bomgiizhik Isaac Murdoch) * More Than Transit (RallyRally) * RGD So(cial) Good Design Awards (RallyRally) * What Will Remain of Us (RallyRally)

I have some big news: I recently wrapped up my time with @briteweb . After a decade building my design studio RallyRally—which merged with Briteweb in 2021—and nearly three great years at Briteweb, I’ve decided to pause, recharge, and explore new possibilities. I’m deeply grateful to our brilliant team, clients, and partners, and the meaningful work we did together to advance social causes. I’m proud of what we accomplished, working alongside non-profits, foundations, governments, institutions, and purpose-driven businesses. I had the privilege of leading our international team of strategists and designers in creating brands, websites, campaigns, and publications. Beyond the projects, I enjoyed establishing Briteweb’s presence in the B Corp community, speaking about digital accessibility, hosting panel discussions, sharing our Truth & Reconciliation journey, and mentoring emerging designers. To the client partners, colleagues, and collaborators that I’ve worked with over the years: thank you, merci, miigwech. My heart is full. So, what’s next? For now, a summer sabbatical to enjoy bike rides, time with my kids, and exploring possibilities for my next chapter. While the destination is unknown, I have a clear sense of purpose. From 15 years at the intersections of design and social change, I’ve found my passion in thoughtfully guiding creative projects for important causes and cultivating relationships in the social impact ecosystem. I’m drawn to roles in design, creative direction, communications, and/or community engagement, especially supporting climate action, urban planning and landscape architecture, and Indigenous rights and Reconciliation. This summer, I’m having conversations about social change, design, and potential career moves. If something here sparks an idea or you’d like to reconnect, I’d love to hear from you! Feel free to comment or message me. During this exploratory phase, I’m open to part-time opportunities: freelance consulting as a creative director, public speaking and workshops, and teaching gigs (beyond my courses at George Brown College School). Reach out if you have an idea! Let’s design a brighter future. Anything is possible. ✨

Thanks again to @jaywalljay for his participation in our 4th talk series ✨ Stay tuned for our upcoming talk series happening next month! 👀 #ligaturesyyz

Wow 🤩 what a night! We’re so grateful to everyone that came out to our 4th talk series featuring @jaywalljay ✌🏼 The night was filled with powerful messages and incredible insights into typography and its relation to serving a social purpose. Thank you, Jay! ✨ #ligaturesyyz

We’re excited for our 4th talk series happening TOMORROW with featuring @jaywalljay ✨ Tickets are still available via the link in our profile! ✌🏼 #ligaturesyyz

Don’t forget 👀 Our 4th talk series featuring @jaywalljay and @seanmartindale.art is coming up on Thursday, February 5th ✨ Tickets are still available via the link in our profile! ✌🏼 #ligaturesyyz

Just a friendly reminder that our 4th talk series has been rescheduled for Thursday, February 5th ✨ We’re excited to host both @jaywalljay and @seanmartindale.art for this exciting night! Tickets are available via the link in our profile! #ligaturesyyz

We’re super pumped about @jaywalljay joining us for our 4th talk series ✨ Jay’s talk explores how typography, lettering, and communication design can serve a social purpose—from public awareness to inclusion to resistance. Drawing from his experience across non-profit branding, activism, placemaking, and urban planning, Jay shares work from his own portfolio alongside examples from wider design culture. Tickets are free and are available via the link in our profile! #ligaturesyyz

This week, I’m back at @RGDCanada ’s DesignThinkers—Canada’s largest graphic design conference—for the 14th time. I’m leading a roundtable discussion, “Spaces & Places: Designing for architecture, urban planning and placemaking,” a conversation for designers working across disciplines to help shape our communities. I’m proud to be representing my team @o2planningdesign , and I’m excited to share the experience with my @designgbc students, reconnect with old friends, and hear what’s on the cutting edge of our field. If you’re there, come say hi! 👋🏻 #rgdDT

I’m thrilled to see growing interest from peers in the design and social impact space around improving digital accessibility. My speaking tour continues… This Friday December 6th, I’ll be presenting at the EvolveDrupal Toronto Summit at the University of Toronto. Hosted by my friends at Evolving Web, this event brings together designers, developers, and digital strategists, as well as communications leaders from post-secondary institutions. Alongside Fran Wyllie from @northern.co and Pierre Fanzhu from @evolving_web , we’ll be delivering a session on “Designing and Building for Digital Accessibility”. We’ll share practical tools and strategies to help you create inclusive brand and web experiences—because accessibility isn’t a “nice-to-have”, it’s essential. If you’d like to attend and cost is a barrier, feel free to message me for a discount code. 👉🏻 Details: EvolveDrupal.com (link in bio) #EvolveDrupal #a11y #DigitalAccessibility P.S. I’m now booking speaking engagements for 2025. While digital accessibility has been a recent focus, I also offer talks and workshops on design for social change, communications for urban planning and community engagement, career pathways, and more. If you have a conference, webinar series, podcast, or classroom, I’d love to hear your ideas—feel free to reach out!

This week, I’m excited to be back at @RGDcanada ’s DesignThinkers conference in Toronto for the 13th time! I’ll be leading a roundtable discussion, “Spaces & Places: Designing for the Built Environment”—a conversation for designers in the architecture, urban planning, and city-building field (full description on conference website). Let me know if I’ll see you there! If you’re interested in joining my roundtable (Friday at lunchtime), you can sign up through the registration portal. If you’ve been thinking about attending the conference and need a final nudge, DM me for 15% off tickets at designthinkers.com. #rgdDT

Are you excluding people from your website and marketing materials? You wouldn’t want your digital presence to leave anyone out — yet many organizations overlook this critical aspect with materials that are not inclusive and accessible to all. Did you know that about 16% of the global population experiences some form of disability? ​Accessibility is about designing your products, services, and digital spaces so they can be used by as many people as possible — recognizing that “one-size-fits-all” simply doesn’t cut it. During our next session on October 28, we invite you to dive into what digital accessibility really means, why it matters, and how you can start making your organization’s presence more inclusive today. ​Join Jay for this free session that will help you: 👉 Understand the key elements of digital accessibility and why they matter. ​👉 Learn how to make your design processes more inclusive from the ground up. ​👉 Discover practical tools to assess and improve your website’s accessibility. ​And get actionable steps to enhance your digital accessibility efforts. Bring your questions! 🗓️ October 28 @ 12 PM EST 🟢 Signup through the link in @thegoodgrowth.company bio. —————— #a11y #accessibility #accessibledesign #designingforgood #digitalaccessibility #socialgood #designforgood #socialinnovation