Charter
Conversations
Glossary

KINSHIP CODE™ Why it Matters

01

‘Kinship Code’ speaks to the desire for transformation, a paradigm shift from a human centric mindset to one that embraces multi-species as our kin. This activation seeks to inform and inspire behaviour change within the creative sector to inherently understand and champion designing for and 'with' all of our kin.

02

‘Kinship Code’ proposes ‘mutuality’ as the guiding principle for how we as ‘designers’ approach design. This activation acts as a introductory design primer, explaining some of the basic concepts of impact and relational dynamics via a multi-media approach.

03

The code and charter help to address the deeply entrenched post-colonial capitalist fault lines, that have promoted and preserved an extractivist, short termist, human centric culture, system and mindset.

04

This small almost guerilla style activation seeks to mobilise grass roots awakening, knowledge and action, in a highly accessible tech enabled manner. Creating immediate and equitable access that speaks the language of collective planetary wisdom, in a relevant format for the emerging creatives of tomorrow.

KINSHIP CHARTER

01 KIN

The world is a dynamic, interconnected living WEB, where the intrinsic health of each living being, entity and element impacts on the wellbeing of all those connected to it. We are all Kin.

02 RELATIONS

We realise that humans are just one part of this huge multi-species ecosystem, and so appreciate the real breadth of our biosphere community, systems and reciprocal resources. Which allows us to shift from a scarcity, resource grabbing mindset to one of Interconnected Abundance. We flourish alongside our Kin.

03 MIRROR

Climate change is a self correcting mechanism, that narrows the window of tolerance for ingrained dysfunctional attitudes and behaviours. It mirrors back what does not work via catastrophic climate impacts which expose the part that we as humans play. We pay heed to the voices of our Kin.

04 MUTUAL

We accept that the future of humans and nature are fundamentally, inextricably and reciprocally intertwined. When we take care of nature, we actually take care of ourselves, our home, our resources, our economic fortunes, our future safety. We prioritise the care of all our Kin.

05 CONGRUENT

We act with congruence, so our actions match our words and we challenge cognitive dissonance. Compartmentalisation is the universal and powerful mental defence mechanism that enables humans to live in denial of their reality; a world entirely based on human and beyond human abuse, extraction, subjugation and destruction. We act with integrity towards all our Kin.

06 CULTURAL

We acknowledge the damage of the globally pervasive post-imperial capitalist and patriarchal culture which dominates and continues to shape systems, governance and socio-economic structures. We make reparation on behalf of our Kin.

07 GENERATIONAL

Prioritises respect and reference to indigenous and place based knowledge, traditional skills, ancestral traditions, rituals and customs that have evolved over time. We honour the wisdom of all our Kin.

08 ACTION

Promotes grass roots community action, that opens up a future of our own imagining, regaining agency, dignity, sovereignty and a connection to our land, traditional skills, rituals and cutural heritage. We work in unity with our Kin.

KINSHIP CONVERSATIONS

Pigeons are one of Londons most misunderstood citizens. From their early roots in the city during Roman times, they played a critical role during both world wars, safely conveying strategic communications. Today they play a vital role again, as urban cleaners in the city, they consume food waste that would otherwise create an overwhelm of food for rats. They are also an important part of the food chain for predatory birds, helping them to flourish again in the city after near extinction. Hear about the impact of human attitudes towards our feathered city kin…

Urban foxes are often seen as a nuisance, even vermin, but the reality is that they are simply adapting to the urbanscapes that we create. Foxes are avid rat catchers, consuming 200-400 rats a year, often to feed their young. Look at the city from a foxes perspective, listen to how they perceive Kinship and what they would like from us….

Have you ever wondered what Kinship means to the more than human species living around us in the city….our multi-species kin intuitively understand the concept of kinship. As humans we have a lot to learn, let’s hear what our city kin in London have to say…and how they experience our human-centric world.

The Living Web Principle - Podcast
Urban Flight Blues - Solitary Bees in Conversation
Roots of Isolation - City Trees in Conversation
The Cry of the Thames - Fish and the River in Conversation

KINSHIP STICKERS

‘WE ARE KIN’ guerilla laptop stickers allow participants to access and share the website and digital content via a QR code. Helping spread the word, and inspire a community grass roots movement towards more than human reciprocity, mutuality and equanimity. And they are eco friendly too!

GLOSSARY

CREDITS

Kinship Code - Aterre Lab

Graphics and website - Phenotypica Design Studio

Earth Week Activation Funding - UAL

REFERENCES

This project has drawn upon a wide range of sources and inspiration, the wider web of knowledge that helps expand our own, this list is not exhaustive:

  • UAL + MARD

  • Dr.Lyla June Johnston

  • Robin Wall Kimmerer

  • Amitav Gosh

  • Donella Meadows

  • James Lovelock

  • Tom Longmate MARD

  • Thomas Kuhn

  • Science Direct

  • The Sustainability Directory

  • History of Pigeons:

  • Google

  • AI audio + video

Kinship Code

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Kinship Charter

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Kinship Conversations

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Kinship Glossary

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Kinship Code 〰️ Kinship Charter 〰️ Kinship Conversations 〰️ Kinship Glossary 〰️