S3•E4 Ashleigh Axios

The practice of civic design is increasingly in the spotlight in the U.S. as dramatic cuts to federal agency staffing and funding resulted in the abrupt elimination of thousands of design jobs earlier this year. 

My guest this episode is Ashleigh Axios, one of the top leaders in the global civic design community. Ashleigh is the founder of Public Servants, a consultancy that partners with government and civic organizations across the US to design equitable, effective, and human-centered experiences. Ashleigh served as Creative Director and Digital Strategist in the Obama White House, and has held numerous leadership roles, including as president and board chair of AIGA, the professional association for design in the US.

Recently Ashleigh authored an excellent essay titled Not Just Another Chess Set: What the U.S. Chief Design Officer Must Deliver, following the launch last August of America by Design, a new National Design Studio that will work out of the executive branch of the US government—and the announcement that AirBnB co-founder Joe Gebbia will lead this initiative as the US Chief Design Officer. 

Here is a list of resources and initiatives that we reference in our discussion:

• DotGov Design initiative (AIGA DC)
• DotGov Design Conference
• Dori Tunstall: “The current regime’s America by Design announcement misses the mark” (Archpaper)
• Jesse Gardner’s accessibility check of America by Design site (LinkedIn post)
• Rachael Dietkus: “America by Design, Harm by Default” (LinkedIn article)
• Fast Company: “Nixon, NASA, And How The Federal Government Got Design” (2017)
• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA.gov)
• “From Airbnb to America’s ‘Chief Design Officer’” — New York Times, Aug 27, 2025 (nytimes.com)
• e-Estonia

Doug Powell is an award-winning designer and executive design leader with more than 30 years of experience in a wide range of design disciplines. Learn more about Doug's practice as a consultant, educator, and coach at his website dougpowell.design.