4 minute read
Annotated Environments & Anthropocentric Ecologies: A collaboration with Activate Performing Arts
from AUB Human - Scan Me
by inspiredaub
| 30
SDGs Poster workshop | Tom Hubmann
www.tomhubmann.com Twitter: @tomhubmann
Students sometimes find engaging with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) a little tricky, to explore this we invited illustrator, designer and visual artist Tom Hubmann to run a workshop. Tom has a deep love for conservation and the natural world and is interested in ways the visual arts can be used to help bring about positive change. Amongst Tom’s clients are Friends of the Earth and The Eden Project.
In his talk Designing for Sustainability, Tom shared his own work and discussed a range of practical ideas to show how the SDGs can drive ideas in relation to the visual arts. He concluded the talk by sharing his own personal values and making a pledge for Earth Day. During the short workshop, students used the SDG’s to inspire an illustrated type-based poster to promote, challenge and raise awareness of an environmental issue close to their heart, giving them an insight as to how they could use their skills in communicating global issues. Dona Stavreva, Level 4 BA (Hons) Illustration student from Bulgaria said, ‘I think discussing significant issues in a relaxed environment is vital to comprehending them, the AUB Earth Day events and this workshop have offered valuable insights into how to incorporate all that matters to us, into our creative practice.’
Level 5 BA (Hons) Graphic Design student, Ciara Seviour, said: ‘The workshop with Tom was a lot of fun, and made me think more about sustainable design in terms of both content and materials.’ “Tom's workshop was a great way to get us thinking about how we can really use our creative skills to bring awareness and start thinking much more sustainably in a way that's not all doom and gloom!
Grace Reeves, student
| 32
Sympo sium AUB Human: Tech for Social & Sustainable Good AUB Human was delighted to present ‘Tech for Social & Sustainable Good’, a two-day symposium, exploring the impact that digital technology is having on our planet and our lives. Technological change will continue to shape our future, offering new forms of mobility and communication, innovations in healthcare, smart cities and new modes of renewable clean energy. Alongside these positives however, technological advances have also contributed to a rise in human social disconnection, an undermining of personal privacy and a massive negative impact on the environment. Technology can clearly be both the cause and the solution to some of the biggest challenges the world currently faces.
During the symposium in March, we were delighted to hear from a range of speakers who are using digital technology as a force for good across areas of social impact and sustainability. The symposium provided students with the opportunity to discuss possible ethical dilemmas that tech may intentionally, or inadvertently, introduce, and how as creatives and designers we need to consider the consequences of what we use, how we use it, and what we design.
The symposium was convened by Alice Stevens, AUB Human founder, and co-convened with Mark Osborne, Senior Lecturer in Graphic Design and founder of the ‘Not Yet Invented’ computational media workshops, along with Michael Cavagin, Senior Lecturer in Interior Architecture & Design, with support from Ed Ward and Monica Franchin.
| 34
Feel: Ethics and Our Digital Future Dave McRobbie
Digital Strategist & Ethicist www.davemcrobbie.co.uk
Dave McRobbie is a digital strategist and ethicist. Amongst a myriad of entrepreneurial activities, he is also a trustee of a mental health charity, a director of two start-ups and a Non-Exec Director of two others.
In his thought-provoking talk, Dave urged us to consider what is next in our relationship with technology. Illustrating his points through a series of poignant examples, he questioned whether the ethical boundaries of tech had already blurred to such an extent that we were unable to see the lines that had been crossed. Posing the question, ‘what kind of digital future do we, as humans, individually want and collectively need?’ we were challenged to consider how we use digital technology and how it uses us.
Ethics and Our Digital Future
Don’t Say Gamification! Ashley Brown
Twitter: arctic_sunrise Instagram: ashleyjamesbrown www.ashleyjamesbrown.com
Ashley is an internationally respected artist and developer who creates emotive nostalgic experiences using code, electronics and sound. He is currently the first coder-in-residence at AUB. During his talk, we were fascinated to see examples of Ashley’s practice that explores shared emotive experiences using technology as a medium to create his own digital playgrounds. Involved with mental health organisations and promoting positive social interactions, all Ashley’s work uses game psychology and game dynamics to immerse audiences and create a sense of ownership and empathy with the experiences.
