Richmond, VA is an old American city pulsing with perpetual, vibrant energy. Innovative youth harboring DIY mentalities move here for the colorful art scene, low cost of living, and warm southern hospitality. Beautiful Victorian houses, nationally recognized restaurants and breweries, pioneering tech startups, and giant murals line old brick roads. Well-maintained park systems entertain outdoor enthusiasts during the day while the dynamic music scene wails at night. Today is a great time to be in Richmond for creative minds who desire to affect change at local, national, and international levels.

City Ambassadors

Lauren Boynton

Lauren Boynton is an Art Director with over a decade of experience developing creative work for international brands like IBM, Kodak, Lenovo, DuPont, GE and Capital One, as well as brand building for startups, non-profits and local businesses. In 2012, she founded Elleby Design Studio, focusing on translating intangible brand attributes into compelling visual identities. Lauren is driven by curiosity to explore the cultural shift caused by the changing way we communicate, and a desire to add beauty to the world. As her most successful projects have always mixed her professional skills with other disciplines, she believes all problems can (and probably should) be solved with Design Thinking. She is on the planning committees for Shop Class and Feast RVA, and works as a subject matter advisor for Richmond’s Small Business Development Center.

Website | Twitter

Good is:
Asking big questions and solving social problems. Good is wanting the best for your larger community, and taking the small steps to achieve real outcomes. Good is connecting communities, then making their members proud. Richmond’s HWGI is characteristically different from bigger cities’ pages. But for our city’s small size, our problems are plenty big, and the resources listed here will connect you to passionate people working to solve them in the most creative ways.

 
Amber Lantz

Amber’s passion for social entrepreneurship and style/art/design led her to co-found Love This, a curated selection of modern yet classic accessories + objects that highlight socially responsible brands. She’s continually inspired by beautiful things, people doing good, and the positive change created when the two combine. She’s soon to be out + about RVA in Love This’ new Airstream Boutique. Otherwise, she’s adventuring outdoors, exploring new places, and listening to music.

Good is:
Living your life by design, not by default. Good is coming together as dreamers to truly make the world a better place. Good is light. Light is good.

Header image: Joshua Graydon

© HWGI? 2017 | Created and designed by Marc O’Brien.