about me

Hi! My name is Ida Persson and I’m an idea person.

I work at the intersection of systems thinking, social impact, and regenerative practice helping nonprofits and social innovation initiatives understand complex systems, design equitable interventions, and communicate their vision for change.

A woman with glasses and a patterned blouse is sitting at a table, engaging with a man with short dark hair, wearing a dark shirt. There are other people around the table, and colorful sticky notes and papers on the table and behind them, indicating a collaborative workshop or meeting.

At the core of my work is one guiding question: how do we design systems, tools, environments, and narratives that are truly regenerative, equitable, and beyond-human centered?

Most design optimizes for what already exists. It makes things faster, smoother, more sellable. But the systems we're optimizing are often the same ones driving ecological harm and social erosion. At some point, making those systems more efficient stops feeling like progress.

I'm interested in the harder work: understanding what's actually driving a problem, designing interventions that address root causes rather than symptoms, and finding the stories that help people see the system they're inside of and imagine something different.

For the past 15 years, I've been doing this work across climate justice, education, healthcare, and social transformation, with international NGOs, foundations, and social enterprises including IDEO, the UNDP, and Appleseed Impact, and more.

I'm also the founder of DesignShifts, a community and critical lab for designers ready to move beyond extractive practice.

Let's work together

FORMER CLIENTS

My practice

UNDERSTAND

Systems & Futures Thinking

I help organizations understand the complex systems shaping their work. Through design research, stakeholder engagement, and systems mapping, I uncover root causes, power dynamics, and patterns—identifying where intervention matters most.

CREATE

Social Innovation & Participation

I design social innovation initiatives from concept to implementation, developing programs, tools, and frameworks that address root causes and create lasting impact. I place co-creation and community participation at the center of my work.

COMMUNICATE

Strategic Narrative & Communication

I help organizations articulate their work with clarity and purpose, ensuring that strategy, story, and action reinforce one another and mobilize people toward change.

I believe that borders are fluid and there are no firm lines where one topic ends and another begins. Most answers are found at crossroads and intersections. My approach is intersectional, interconnected, and interrelational, because complex challenges cannot be addressed in isolation.

A group of women gathered around a table, with one woman standing and speaking, in a modern office or conference room.

Let’s collaborate

If you're navigating complex social or climate challenges and need support understanding the systems at play, designing interventions that stick, or communicating your vision with clarity, I'd love to hear from you.

Get in touch