Our logo nods to the Two Loops model, a theory of change credited to Margaret Wheatley and Deborah Frieze and inspired by the most successful kind of system on the planet: ecosystems. Imagine pale green leaves emerging on a tree in spring, developing into a robust canopy in the summer, then turning brilliant shades of autumn colors before falling to the ground to decompose over winter and continue the cycle the following year. Instead of a full circle, Two Loops recognizes the overlap in growth and decline: preparation for spring takes place underground even as the autumn leaves are still falling.
In other words, a new cycle begins before the other fully ends.
Unlike the obvious change of seasons, we humans may be lulled into thinking our "systems" – meaning our ways of doing things and ways of living – can go on forever. In reality, our laws, policies, and systems grow and decline, and that process can be inspiring and daunting, invigorating and terrifying, hopeful and heartbreaking all at once.
In our logo, the arch on the left is the first “loop,” representing the initial growth and subsequent decline of an existing system. The arch on the right, the second “loop,” is the next generation of that system. The logo captures the fact that change isn't linear; the two systems aren't connected by a clear set of steps from the old to the new. Instead, there is a jump, and crossing that chasm requires courage.
Picture a forest of trees and imagine you could swing along the branches. Sometimes you might enjoy a firm grasp of one branch before releasing another, but more often than not, reaching the next branch would require letting go of the one you have in hand. In that moment of letting go, you’d be floating in space. Feeling unmoored, unsupported, and uncertain can unnerve us to our core, especially if we don’t know where, when, or how we'll reach the next branch – or loop.
That space requires bravery.
And we are currently in such a space.
Like all human systems to date, current systems serve some people well while others are served less well (at best) or deeply harmed (at worst). Those who are well served, particularly those who built the current system or are leaders within it, may be deeply invested in maintaining the current system, whether or not they recognize harms it has caused. Other groups are eager for something new to emerge with hope the next system will support a better life.
Put another way, some people readily see the need for change and will join together in building the next loop, while others spend their energy tending to a system in decline, not realizing that trying to stop this cycle is like trying to stop the change of seasons. Meanwhile, those open to change have already begun to imagine the next iteration even before the old system has ended.
In the space between loops, we have the power to determine how sustainable the next loop will be. Will it last for many seasons or soon give way to yet another version?
History shows us that, like the elements of decomposing leaves support life in the next seasons, all resources eventually move to the new system. Along the way, we navigate how to let go of the old system with dignity, how to build the new system with intentionality, and how to accept that change can be deeply uncomfortable, whether one welcomes it or not.
Even as we recognize global change underway, as a United States-based organization, our logo nods to the two major U.S. political parties converging in the current loop. Some may argue the two have rarely been further apart than at any point in our country’s history, but we know our shared future is linked.
At Stories Change Power, we want this next loop to be the one where advocates are so effective they achieve their goals of laws, policies, and systems that work for everyone. That’s why our second loop is a hopeful yellow and broadens as more people join in building it.
Together, these three primary colors of painting can combine to form every color under the sun, recognizing that no matter how many ways we humans seek to divide ourselves, the system that will last is the one that provides a just, equitable, and peaceful future for everyone.
