A proposal for the Grounded 2.0 brand identity, messaging, and launch website by January 30, 2027.
The goal of the project is to merge three brands: grounded.org, regeneration.org, and gsa.earth, into a clear, cohesive identity, and build a new website that sparks funder interest in the bigger project of moving Nexus.
I first drew from Project Drawdown's research in 2017, when Christina Kwauk and I wrote Three Platforms for Girls' Education in Climate Strategies at Brookings. Project Drawdown had just ranked girls' education among the top climate solutions, and our paper argued for treating girls as climate leaders and green-economy workers, framing reproductive health as a matter of rights, not population control.
What draws me into your brand shift from a focus on global warming to global cooling is the economic argument underneath the climate story. RegenIntel describes a shift from an economy built on endless growth to a regrowth economy, one that puts life and well-being at the center of decisions and treats climate, biodiversity, equity, and health as one connected system.
Your head, heart, and hands pillars map onto the Enneagram system that I mentioned having been involved with over the past several years. It describes personalities along three centers of intelligence: the body center (action), the heart center (feeling), and the head center (thinking). The balance of those interconnected centers has become so embedded in how I see the world and people; it was a beautiful surprise to hear about the synergies in sharing that lens.
The rebranding task requires us to make a systems idea feel concrete and bring humanity back into the picture, while keeping the scientific credibility and legacy that Drawdown and Regeneration built. It also has to bring three identities into one clear voice without losing what made each of them trusted.
I spent about five years at the Brookings Institution's Center for Universal Education, working on strategic positioning, turning research findings into stories, and writing reports and blog posts meant to reach funders, policymakers, and practitioners.
At Brookings, I helped manage a fellowship program for education leaders from around the world, including helping each fellow develop a personal brand. RegenIntel's fellows and the importance of thought leadership in advocacy have a dear place in my heart, and I would be interested in teasing out how that fits in the new brand and vision for their contribution to the work over time.
I am originally from Brazil, having moved to the United States as a child and staying involved in global communities. I can't help but bring a multicultural lens to everything I do. From my first job out of college, I traveled to São Paulo and Mexico City several times a year, collaborating with the Latin American branches of US-founded tech brands before moving into global education.
I started Abbra Strategy Studio in early 2026, after more than a decade in education research, nonprofit operations, and leadership development. I work with research organizations, nonprofits, and thought leaders. I'm Brazilian and work in English and Portuguese.
Founder and Strategic Lead, Abbra Strategy StudioBrand strategy and web design for research organizations, nonprofits, and thought leaders.
Chestnut Paes Enneagram AcademyChief Strategy and Operations Officer; previously Business Manager and Chief of Staff, The Chestnut GroupGrew a startup training academy from $250,000 to $1.5 million in annual revenue. Developed its brand voice and visual identity, including the Enneagram Compass, and managed a global team across marketing, social media, and sales.
The Brookings Institution, Center for Universal EducationProject Manager; Research Analyst; Project Coordinator and Research AssistantManaged a fellowship program for education leaders worldwide. Co-authored Three Platforms for Girls' Education in Climate Strategies (2017), Translating Competencies into Empowered Action (2017), and Non-formal Girls' Life Skills Programming (2018), with blog posts on girls' education, life skills, and girls in science and technology.
GartnerLatin America Sponsorship Operations LeadSupported a portfolio of research conferences in Latin America and managed sponsor relationships with companies including Microsoft, Google, Oracle, and Cisco.
MA, International Educational Development, Teachers College, Columbia UniversityLemann Foundation Graduate Fellow. Research supported by a United Nations Academic Impact and UnHate Foundation Fellowship on migrant women and public education, and a summer research grant from Columbia's Institute of Latin American Studies. BA in International Relations, Mount Holyoke College.
Open any site to explore it live.
Unbounded Alliance is a women-owned policy research firm working with the World Bank, UNICEF, and UNESCO. A previous build had stalled before launch, so I rebuilt the site and designed a filterable Project Library, where funders and partners can narrow more than 30 studies to the ones they care about, and an interactive map showing where the work happens. Built in Showit.
I advised on and built the design elements for the Enneagram Compass brand and website. I also designed the assessment report itself, which you can see . And its mood study appears in the process section below.
Click any page to read the full report.
The Equus Effect runs equine-assisted programs for veterans, first responders, and professionals. I maintain their Squarespace site, donor emails, and event pages, and I'm partway through a redesign. The homepage and the Train to Facilitate page are the most finished.
Simple Squarespace sites for researchers and authors, built so they or their teams can update them on their own.
A personal site for a researcher and advisor on education and climate.
The site for an Enneagram author and teacher, part of a longer brand strategy engagement that includes a full redesign planned for the first quarter of 2027.
Studio explorations I built to show range. Please note that these are not client sites and contain placeholder text, fictional names, and sourced photography.
Each concept includes a homepage only and is best viewed on a desktop for now.
A fictional research fellowship that pairs evidence with policy through a residency, a policy lab, and a network.
A fictional nonprofit, with a bilingual site in Brazilian Portuguese and English, that pairs master clay and thread artisans in Pernambuco and Ceará with paid apprentices.
A portfolio and commissions site for a New York figurative painter, built in Showit.
A site for a Charleston author and life coach, with coaching, an intensive, and a self-paced course, built in Showit.
For this project, we would have three phases, planned around your asset transfers wrapping up at the end of November, a pause for the holidays, and a launch before February. Dates assume we start on Monday, November 16.
We have three 90-minute working sessions with you and up to two of your team members. I'll then create a short brand strategy you can react to, covering who Grounded serves first, how the three legacies sit together, and what the launch has to do for potential funders.
Visual work begins with a mood board, which settles how Grounded should feel before anyone weighs in on a logo. From there come the logo, including how "powered by RegenIntel" appears with it, then color, type, imagery, and core messages. The phase ends with a brand kit.
I provide examples of how the brand can operate across different spheres of your communications, like in newsletters, infographics, and social media posts.
Scroll sideways for more of the kit.
No deliverables.
We agree on a site map and wireframe in the first week, then I design and build version one of grounded.org with your copy. Your current landing page stays live until launch.
Note: The above timeline requires feedback within two to three business days at each step. Given the tight turnaround, I would ideally have contact on WhatsApp (or similar) with a team member that can provide quick feedback throughout the process.
Brand identity and launch website
$17,500 to $22,500
This is a range, and the total investment depends largely on the size of the website. A simple launch site of about six pages (not including privacy and terms pages), with Nexus linked from its current home, will be on the lower end. If you would like to have a more complex site, 20-25 pages, with a filterable solutions listing drawn from Nexus, that will be closer to the upper end. After the first strategy session, we would agree on the final figure together.
If you feel drawn to working with me and the budget is within or close to your scope, we can set up a short call to cover the proposal and answer any questions.
