About Us
Uncommon Union (UU) provides technology and communication services for clients working in the areas of economic development, international justice, and human rights. UU works closely with complex and transitional communities in bringing together diverse stakeholders to advance long-term systemic change.
UU has received recognition for initiatives serving Nobel Peace Prize Laureates, high-level communications related to the Colombian peace negotiations, and the development of technologies for evidence-gathering in war zones to support terror victims. Most recently, UU has been building community-focused distributed manufacturing models in the aftermath of COVID-19.
Uncommon Union is located at New Lab in New York’s historic Brooklyn Navy Yard.
Our History
Uncommon Union evolved from an interactive firm founded in 2004 by Paul Rene Johnson and Elizabeth Schaeffer Brown. In our first year of operation, we functioned as an independent laboratory that worked with agencies and cultural institutions. Read more >
News Highlights
NYT | The Brooklyn Navy Yard Has Become a Lab for Planet-Saving Tech
Brooklyn Pull | Join our place-based community engagement platform Brooklyn Navy Yard
Deadline | The Inspiring True Story Of The All-Girls Robotics Team From Afghanistan
The Guardian | ‘Women’s bodies weaponized’: Haiti gangs use rape in spiraling violence
Design Milk | How Haiti Continues Its Artisanal Traditions Despite Difficult Times
NYC Gov | The backbone of our Urban Ecosystem
Reuters | At U.N., emotional appeals for world leaders to protect Afghan girls' education