Natural Designs LLC’s Post

A business leader should know: - Education and Outreach: - Engaging with communities and businesses to promote the principles of biomimicry. This is how Byron Garcia used this innovative approach to decide to expand scientific opportunities for children in rural communities. 👇 Subscribe for news and updates!

Wail of a Tale (WOAT) is set to produce a groundbreaking (90/120)-minute documentary, designed to be adapted into an educational docuseries accompanied by lesson plans for students in grades 6–12. These resources will guide students in understanding peer-reviewed research, critically evaluating scientific information, and exploring the devastating effects of misinformation—specifically through the lens of Long COVID. The docuseries brings these issues to light through the stories of dismissed communities and marginalized voices—affirming their struggles while pushing for a healthcare system that serves all equitably. Conceptualized by Founder Marty Pack, whose frontline experience as a COVID investigator and educator in rural Colorado. https://buff.ly/3ZlZ91F

Wail of a Tale (WOAT) is set to produce a groundbreaking (90/120)-minute documentary, designed to be adapted into an educational docuseries accompanied by lesson plans for students in grades 6–12. These resources will guide students in understanding peer-reviewed research, critically evaluating scientific information, and exploring the devastating effects of misinformation—specifically through the lens of Long COVID. The docuseries brings these issues to light through the stories of dismissed communities and marginalized voices—affirming their struggles while pushing for a healthcare system that serves all equitably. Conceptualized by Founder Marty Pack, whose frontline experience as a COVID investigator and educator in rural Colorado. https://buff.ly/3ZlZ91F

New! Check out this landscape scan of funder collaboratives in the postsecondary education field. Incorporating findings of a new survey and interviews with postsecondary funders, the publication outlines opportunities, challenges and trends among postsecondary funder collaboratives. The scan sheds light on perceptions of collaboratives and how they can move toward action and impact. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gvKgbjbN

Research for Action is committed to becoming a community-engaged research organization that truly values all forms of knowledge. In our "Insights Report," we emphasize the importance of moving beyond the traditional hierarchy of academic knowledge and recognizing the lived experiences of community members as vital expertise. One way RFA is putting this into practice is by building community advisory committees composed of community leaders, parents, and teachers/ former teachers. These committees ensure that community perspectives shape the research project overall, from design to dissemination. 💡Curious about how RFA is centering community voices in their research? 📖 Download the full report: https://lnkd.in/gtKnVFuh

Some powerful reflections from experts at our recent Media Literacy conference on why we need to tackle mis and disinformation. Media literacy is everyone's business - you can read more about what Ofcom is doing in our 3 year strategy: https://lnkd.in/eX6jF-fi

📣 Calling all nonprofits, government agencies, and educational institutions in the Capital Region! 👐 Do you have hands-on service needs at your organization? 🤔 Do you have research, capacity building, or consultation projects that need an extra set of hands (or brains)? The Center for Academic Community Engagement (ACE) - Siena College is requesting proposals from nonprofits, government entities, or schools to share their project-based needs. We have a variety of programs that can provide hands-on service as well as capacity-building support, and we would love to partner with you! To be considered, please complete our Partner Interest Form by November 1st: https://lnkd.in/gsN77-fj If you are not sure how to start formalizing your ideas, that's okay! We can meet in advance of your submission, or you can submit an outline of your idea. Administrators at ACE always schedule follow-ups with organizations to ensure we fully understand your ideas and to evaluate if we can meet your needs!

This new study explores the advocacy efforts of three key national library associations: the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL), the Canadian Urban Libraries Council (CULC), and the Canadian Federation of Library Associations (CFLA). From copyright reform to funding issues, these organizations are shaping the future of libraries and their vital role in society. Using thematic analysis and organizational culture models, the research highlights patterns, strengths, and gaps in advocacy since 2016. It also provides actionable recommendations for more impactful initiatives moving forward. Discover how these associations are championing intellectual freedom, equitable access, and user-focused policies—setting the stage for stronger library services across Canada. https://lnkd.in/gYdjzFQV

How can fictional futures help us strengthen truth and facts online? Imagine a world where reliable, well-sourced, and human-verified information is not only flourishing, but public trust in it is growing. Can this world exist beyond fantasy fiction? How do we make it a reality? These are the questions we want to explore in our panel at #SXSW 2025. Speakers include: ➡️ Stephen Harrison – Author, “The Editors” ➡️ Karen Lord – Award-winning science fiction author  ➡️ Sewell Chan – Editor-in-Chief, Texas Tribune ➡️ Rebecca MacKinnon – Vice-President of Global Advocacy, Wikimedia Foundation We need your help to bring this important conversation to a broader audience. Vote for our panel to be included in next year’s conference! The SXSW community voting phase runs until 18 August. It is a crucial step in helping to determine whether our panel will be selected. Vote here ➡️ https://lnkd.in/deNQ95wE

How can we make co-produced research work better? Here's what we're taking away from our co-hosted session yesterday with the Modern Slavery and Human Rights Policy and Evidence Centre ⤵ - Consider the practical; spend time cultivating the space, the values you want to underline your work, and ring fence time for relationship building - Identifying common interests and aligning strategies helps bring together research and policy partners effectively to co-develop projects - Co-production needs to include all voices, both academics, policy organisations, those with lived experience and others - But we need to take care when including these voices, flawed engagement methods can inadvertently exclude some participants Thanks to our speakers Sarah Chaytor, Alex Balch, Vicky Kemp & Laura Durán Cardenas, for giving their perspectives from both those who fund co-produced research and those who have been recipients of funding. & special thanks to our colleagues in the Modern Slavery PEC Owain Johnstone Izzy Templer Jakub Sobik and CAPE Rafael C.. We’re currently developing a toolkit that focuses on our experiences awarding funding for co-produced projects, with advice for both funders and applicants, so watch this space.