Up to Now

Danielle
Photo by Allana Tarranto

What I love the most in life is being in spaces where people can relax, and open their thinking to new possibilities. This is why I find so much enjoyment connecting with Infinite Growth participants.

I have devoted my work to stories of large-scale social change, as a multi-media producer, communications strategist, and community organizer. This work has taught me to listen and sharpened my ability to reflect back the meaning of things.

I gained my first media and publicity experience as an environmental health organizer at Clean Water Action. From there, I found my way to Center for Story-based Strategy, where we partnered with national social movement groups to package visionary campaign stories and support political imagination. I worked as Director of Communications at Interaction Institute for Social Change (IISC), a home for best in class facilitators using proven collaboration and leadership development methods. I am grateful to these organizations, for the work they are doing and how they each shaped my thinking.

One particularly instructive project was Go Boston 2030, a city-wide transportation visioning process which has “set a new gold standard” in Boston for public engagement. IISC designed the public engagement with a talented team, including the Design Studio for Social Intervention (DS4SI). The whole team was dedicated to involving everyday people in the public planning process, particularly those at the margins of society. I led IISC’s digital engagement and documentary content strategy for Go Boston 2030. The opportunity to be involved with visioning at a city-scale contributed to my understanding of the structural and individual factors at play in bringing dreams to life.

The Comms Team at IISC released viral content that provoked hundreds of thousands of conversations in varied communities across the world on equity and racial justice. We led the upgrade of IISC’s brand identity, directing production of the organization’s website, social media, animations and documentary story-telling projects. One of the highlights was preparing IISC’s amazing thought leaders for high-profile public speaking engagements such as keynotes and TEDx appearances.

Story-telling, identity, and truth are guiding forces in my work.

My writing is published by The Christian Science Monitor, National Geographic Glimpse, in the textbook Practical Argument, and online. My contributions as a film producer have been seen at film festivals large and small, and in my living room since around age nine. In 2019, Walk on My Own, a documentary film I edited with BYKids, premiered on PBS. I graduated from Mount Holyoke College, and then completed the storytelling program at Salt Institute for Documentary Studies.

I live north of Boston with my wife Erin and dog Clover, on the Ipswich River. I am also at home floating in the ocean, growing food, laughing, cooking, meditating, talking about communications strategy, story-telling, and imagining new realities – in my own life and in our society.

Endorsements from Infinite Growth Participants

“The process is awesome because of Danielle. She is a gifted communicator – calm, insightful, lucid, respectful, funny, and warm.”

“I can’t recommend Danielle highly enough for her honest, thoughtful, and deeply caring ways.”

“Danielle uses participant feedback to grow and improve the program continuously. She has incredible communication skills and a unique ability to ask good questions that enabled me to dig deeper and make decisions based on the values and vision that are behind the life I want to lead. I highly recommend IG to anyone seeking positive change and growth in themselves and the world.”

“Danielle is a knowledgeable, thoughtful and supportive facilitator, encouraging self exploration along the way. I enthusiastically recommend the experience, and feel fortunate to be part of such an amazing cohort.”