Earth Passport: An exploration in Design for education and sustainability
It’s a crazy world we live in.
From the spread of a worldwide disease that resulted in a global pandemic, to the Kimye divorce — ok maybe thats not that bad, It seems like every time we watch the news or open up our news apps something horrible is happening. I wish there was someway that I could solve all the worlds problems with the snap of a finger, or a wave of a magic wand. Obviously I can’t though. I am only one person and the worlds problems are quite vast, it just isn't feasible.
As a designer one of my biggest goals is to create work that brings positive change to the world no matter the size. I figure that if I can’t solve all of the worlds problems I can try to solve a few, and for one person I think that is amazing.
It’s this Idea that led me to create Earth Passport.
Earth Passport
I am super into sustainability, specifically sustainability in relation to food and our food systems. 1.3 billion tons of food goes to waste in the world globally.
1.3 BILLION TONS
That is insane, especially when you think of all the people who deal with food insecurity world wide. When I heard this I knew that I wanted to create something that would make it easier for everyone to be more sustainable and waste less.
Earth passport, before it was even called earth passport, went through many iterations. I sketched up some ideas for affordable compost bins and kits that teachers could use in class to teach children about sustainability –none of these really worked. I talked to my high school biology teacher and some of my professors and realized quickly that to be truly sustainable I needed to design something that enabled people to use items they already have. It is this idea that sparked the final Earth Passport concept.
Earth passport is an event that would be held at schools to teach students about sustainability issues as well as how to be more sustainable. Something I learned is that often times the best way to teach people things is through their children. The hope is that children would come home from this event and show their parents all the resources that they got and what they learned. The parents would then (hopefully) try to implement these principles into their home environments.
The event is composed of different booths that students would go to. They will complete a sustainable task all while learning about sustainability.
At the first booth students would plant their own plant with compost in milk cartons that are recycled from their lunches. This not only teaches them about how compost is used but also how to reuse items that they already have.
At the second booth students will be given a coloring sheet to complete with the caption– “I can help protect our earth by…”. The sheets will then be hung around the school to remind the students everyday of the small things that they can do to help the environment. Besides getting children to think of how they can contribute to sustainability efforts, this booth also serves as a way for students to take control of the signage and decorations that go around their schools.
At the third and final booth, students would have the chance to decorate a composting bin for their class. The bins would then be put in the lunch room and different classes can race against each other for who can get the most compost. Here they would also learn about composting and the importance of composting as well as how it can be used.
I also designed a “passport” that the kids would take around to each booth with them and get stamps for each booth completed. I felt like this was a great way to make the experience more fun, and kids would feel a sense of accomplishment once they get all the stamps.
This is definitely not a finished project by any means. Due to covid-19 I couldn't test this event in real life, and that is a big part of the project. I hope to actually do this event in the future once it is safe to do so, I may even add more booths.
This year has been wild but I am happy that I was able to create something, even if it is just the seeds of something great.
About Me!
Hey I’m Nehema :)
When im not whipping up some cool art or some impactful designs you can catch me crocheting coasters for my housemates, drinking a matcha latte or taking care of my many plants!
