SAJE develops research and policy work around housing, tenant protections, and equitable development. For the Just Recovery Series, the editorial system needed to make dense research approachable while giving each report enough individuality to stand on its own.
EDITORIAL SYSTEM / RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS
SAJE — Just Recovery Series
Building a flexible visual system for housing research, policy, and advocacy.
THE ASSIGNMENT
One visual language, built to carry a series of complex reports.
REPORT BRAND SYSTEM
Related, not repetitive.
The series uses a consistent framework rather than a single repeated template. SAJE's identity, typography, structured page architecture, and controlled use of color create continuity, while individual cover imagery and pacing give each report a distinct editorial character.
01 — Identity
A restrained SAJE presence anchors the series without competing with the subject matter.
02 — Grid
Repeatable column logic creates consistency across long-form essays, data, quotes, and recommendations.
03 — Type
Clear levels of scale help readers move quickly between narrative, evidence, and key takeaways.
04 — Color
Color shifts create distinction between sections and reports while preserving a unified family feel.
EDITORIAL ARCHITECTURE
Designed for the way research is actually read.
The layouts move between dense analysis and high-impact moments. Large section openers, carefully controlled line lengths, visual pullouts, and image-led spreads create rhythm so readers can scan first, then go deeper.
DETAIL AT SCALE
Hierarchy does the heavy lifting.
Section Openers
Large typographic moments orient the reader before dense sections begin.
Evidence
Statistics and supporting facts are separated from body copy so they can be found quickly.
Narrative
Comfortable line lengths and consistent spacing make extended research easier to stay with.
SERIES IN PRACTICE
A system that can stretch from policy detail to advocacy storytelling.
The goal was not to make every page look the same. It was to establish enough consistency that multiple reports could feel connected while still responding to different subject matter, content density, and storytelling needs.
OUTCOME
A scalable editorial language for research that needs to be read, understood, and used.
The result is a report family with a recognizable point of view: rigorous enough for policy work, accessible enough for advocacy, and flexible enough to carry very different stories across a growing publication series.