2022 Graduate Thesis Work Remembering Our Original Family Heirlooms: Accessible Education on Seed Sovereignty 

Grayce’s thesis works to re-contextualize existing academic & scientific information on topics of Seed Saving & Sovereignty for the average person, in order to stimulate greater involvement by communities who are not directly impacted by food apartheid & exploitative systems of seed, plant, & plant trait patenting.

Knowledge can be embodied & shared in many ways. This project grew from an understanding that academic information is generally inaccessible to the public, even when that information can help folks to manage oncoming or current crises. This project also grew from an understanding that design can play a key role in democratizing information.

Identifying target market segments & testing knowledge dissemination allowed Grayce to create educational embodiments of seed sovereignty & saving that worked to educate the average person. Some embodiments re-contextualize academic articles for accessibility, some visualize historical lineages for seed saving in the US that honor the work of Native peoples & Black peoples in creating the food systems we rely on globally today. Other embodiments sharing practical knowledge or serve as ‘campaign’ posters (fig 1 & 2). Each embodiments is intended to share intersectional knowledge in a way that is accessible to a target market segment.

The primary graphic I tested (fig 3) re-contextualizes a 16 page scientific article, documenting genetic and physical effects of farmer selection on maize over time. I shared my prototype with the primary author & researcher of the article, who gave feedback for accuracy & said outright that there is a need for this kind of work in the scientific community.

Figure 3

Drawing from two dense scientific articles related to the agricultural practice of selective seed saving / breeding to promote desirable crop traits, the above graphic re-contextualizes academic info for consumption by the general public. Design strategy: brights colors, images, visual hierarchy of font, visual flow. Academic terminologies are defined to educate the reader and ensuring some accessibility.