Students Design New Nature Trail For Eco Cafe

An example of one of the student-designed information boards in situ.

(A project that I helped develop, supervise and teach to Graphic Information Design students. A facsimile of a University of Worcester News Release, pictures by myself).

Visitors to a Worcestershire nature trail will be guided by new signs designed by University of Worcester students.

Staff from The Fold, a not for profit community enterprise providing elements for a healthy lifestyle at Bransford, near Worcester, contacted the University’s Graphic Design and Multimedia Course after seeing outputs from other student-designed wayfinding and signage projects.

They were keen to try and harness the same student design skills to help inform and guide visitors on a new nature trail they were in the process of developing on site, to the rear of the café.

The Fold’s development manager, Brendan Cropper, said: 

“We are very keen to work with our local educational institutes and saw the expertise offered by the Graphic Design & Multimedia Course at the University of Worcester as an ideal match for this project. Working with students and staff was a really stimulating and enjoyable experience and we are absolutely delighted with the end results. Since opening the trail we have had an increase in visitor footfall and many positive comments about the boards and the maps too. We consider the whole exercise to have been a great success.”

Design students Liam Sargent, Mitali Mistry and Josh Ashley worked on the project for a few weeks over their summer break. They also had ongoing help and supervision from design lecturers Helen Holmes and Andy Stevenson.

“Designing the materials for The Fold’s Nature Trail was a really enjoyable experience - it gave me a chance to tackle, head on, a ‘live’ project that was different from anything I had done before,” said Liam.

“I think it’s great that students are offered the chance to work on real briefs with hands-on experience in line with the sort of work that we may be involved with after graduation. I also had a feeling of real achievement when I saw the end results on site. This was especially satisfying after all the work that we'd put in on the project over summer.”

Senior Lecturer in Design, Andy Stevenson, added: “This was a lovely project to be involved in and notable too as it was out of our usual teaching time. Working alongside Brendan and staff from the Fold, we were able to utilise the skills of the students to effectively solve the client’s design challenges with their new nature trail. The solutions and outputs from this project are also very much in line with our ethos on the Graphic Design & Multimedia course of using ‘design for social good’ wherever possible too. This aims to offer a helping hand and our combined skillsets to help benefit local and regional charities and community organisations in particular.”

The information boards and leaflets designed by students and staff of the University are now being used by visitors on site in Bransford. The Fold held a formal opening of the trail in early August 2015 and it’s now fully open to the public and helping to increase the range of activities on offer for the Fold’s visitors.

Students Design Activity Book and App Concepts to Get Children Exploring the Outdoors

Student Tom Game's final prototype designs showing print and possible interactive applications.

(A project that I helped develop, supervise and teach to Children's Book Design students. A facsimile of a University of Worcester News Release, image use sanctioned by student Tom Game).

Final year design students from the University of Worcester have been working on a book design brief for children's authors and educators Gyles Morris and John Cook of Naturesbase in West Wales.

The students were asked to research and develop graphical solutions to help create a children's activity book that helped them engage better with the outdoors. The book's idea came about in part as a response to 'Nature Deficit Disorder' - which seeks to better understand and help offset the trend of children getting less and less time to appreciate the outdoors. The National Trust are already working in this area at some of their own heritage properties with their '50 Things to do Before You're 11 3/4' project. Gyles and John aim to develop an activity book that both helps children to better engage and learn about the outdoors - taking further their existing work with school groups in the UK and abroad. 

Client John explains:  

"The (student supporting blogs) were fascinating and gave a wonderful insight into the creativity, detail, rigour and analysis that was behind the various responses to the project design.  My congratulations to all concerned!" Student Tom Game's ideas were highlighted as particularly effective solutions and John adds: "Tom Game's work is appealing and I like his consideration for an accompanying app too. He has also clearly researched and come up with good activities for involving younger children alongside their parents ..... I can't wait to go outside to count the spots on a ladybird with my three year old grandson to see if there will be more or less than three!!!! Some of the old ideas stand the pace of time and as with creating numbers on snails they need to be "reinvented"! 

Illustration student Felicity Taylor says of her experiences working towards the book concepts:
“This module and project has both widened my knowledge and introduced me to key considerations in children’s picture book design and has enabled me to understand why they are so important… I have enjoyed this module immensely and feel that with the areas learned I will be able to take forward in my illustrative practise and build on this in the future.”

Gyles and John tied-up with Graphic Design students on the Children's Book Design module at the University of Worcester to help them develop prototype ideas for their new book. Successful designs will be considered to take further to fruition as a final book and some students will be offered a chance to help with this should they wish.

Ref links:

National Trust '50 Things to do before you're 11 3/4'
https://www.50things.org.uk/

Naturesbase
http://www.naturesbaseschoolcamp.co.uk/

Nature Deficit Disorder
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-17495032

Children's Author and Educator Visits Children's Book Design Students

Gyles Morris talks to students about his teaching methods and typical tasks.

Third year children's book design students at the University of Worcester had a visit today from children's author and educator Gyles Morris. 

Gyles demonstrated a range of the practical techniques he uses to help engage schoolchildren with the outdoors. The visit comes on the back of him setting the students a brief to design a set of 'working prototype' page spreads and covers for a book of the same nature. One of the drivers for this brief is the recent research into 'Nature Deficit Disorder' which seeks to better understand why children are becoming more and more distanced from the outdoors and the natural world.

The students will be arriving at their final ideas in mid may 2013, these will then be looked over by Gyles and his co-author once marked. There's the very real likelyhood of one or more of the students being offered the possibility of completing the work and taking their ideas to a final state in readiness for publication.

Student Wayfinding Signage Project Begins

We've just finished the client briefing today in Upton on Severn for this year's student wayfinding signage design project for the Information Graphics students. 

Museum manager Simon talks to students about the town's history.

An incredible old trading town based on the river Severn, Upton's town council have asked graphic design students from the University of Worcester to come up with working prototype designs for both directional and information board signage. The previous year we ran a great wayfinding project in Malvern for students in which final designs were exhibited in the town's library for the public to look over.

This student project was created on the back of ongoing work in the town by Helen @ http://www.marosholmes.com/

Mapping Commenced for Operation Tabarin Book

I've started to work with polar author Stephen Haddelsey to create a set of accompanying maps for a new book presently being written by him called 'Operation Tabarin' (working title) on the secretive WW2 British military operation in the Antarctic.

Comparitively little has been published in relation to this operation. Stephen explains for the first time in his new book the various events and happenings around it and it's eventual formalising as the organisation we know today as the 'British Antarctic Survey'.

I also recently created all of the accompanying maps for his latest book "Shackleton's Dream" (History Press) too. I've put a quick example of these below too. Stephen's blog can be found at: http://stephen-haddelsey.blogspot.co.uk/

Examples of the range of initial source materials being poured over
(note all important choccies).

A map of Ross Island for the author's previous book by the History Press
"Shackleton's Dream".

Children's Book Designs Underway for Natures Base

We've just started a great project with Gyles at Natures Base Schools to work with students at the University of Worcester to design and create 'working prototype' cover and double-page spread designs. The designs will ultimately be considered for inclusion in a new book that Gyles and a colleague are writing which aims to get children outdoors and enjoying the countryside and learning activities.

The book and brief also stem from a growing awareness of children's dislocation with nature and the idea of 'Nature Defecit Disorder'.

Pizza making for the big earth oven - amazing flavours!

Campfire activities with the children.

Eco Print and Paper Visting Speakers for Worcester Graphic Design Students

Mary Warren from Robert Horne Paper talks to Green Design Students
at the University of Worcester.

Big thanks to Mark Pickford from Seacourt's Eco Printers in Oxford and Mary Warren from Robert Horne's sustainable board/paper suppliers in Northampton for coming over to talk to my yr 3 Green Design guys.. 

Mark talked about Seacourt's environmental credentials and the sorts of work they undertake as well as the many awards gathered en route (including 2x Queen's Awards!). Mary talked in some depth about the various papers and boards available now to designers when thinking about either eco print or packaging. She also talked about the need to think about reducing materials use where possible but while still conveying the same message. Finally Mary talked about the rise of the 'ethical consumer' - educated and with disposable incomes these people are part of the driving force behind many large companies 'greening' their business practices.

Great to hear them both talk about their industry and big thanks again to them both for travelling over to see us. Our third year Green Design students are working on an eco packaging brief this year to design prototype sustainable re designs of the iconic Worcester Sauce bottle and associated graphics.