Graphic Recording

“At the half way point to the target year of 2030, the conference considered how we could reignite passion and commitment for the SDGs, taking inspiration from people and communities across the world to renew the SDG agenda for Scotland and the planet.

This year’s conference was hosted at Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh, and streamed online for those who attended remotely, and featured keynote speakers, interactive panel discussions, lightning presentations, and networking opportunities.

As always, speakers came from the global sustainable development community in Scotland and beyond, along with other experts in their field. Panel sessions considered how the SDGs informed decision-making in Scotland and globally; the role of AI and new technology in progressing the SDGs; and how we could inspire more public understanding and support. The conference was chaired by Hermione Cockburn, Scientific Director at Dynamic Earth and Broadcaster.

We hope you enjoyed this exciting and informative event, where you had the chance to connect with other professionals, experts, and practitioners working on the SDGs, share your experiences and challenges, and learn from best practices and success stories.”

Graphic Recording

A conference for individuals, communities and organisations who want to explore and shape the future of intangible culture in Scotland. There are four broad aims:

• to explore how communities are engaging with their intangible cultural heritage, who’s involved, who’s keen to do more, and who wants to be involved

• a platform for innovation and creativity with ICH

• to scope out the challenges and opportunities of ICH

• to explore how support for safeguarding ICH might develop in Scotland

The day will comprise panels, presentations, and discussion groups. Keynotes will be delivered by Dr Michelle Stefano, folklife specialist at the American Folklife Centre at the Library of Congress and author of the acclaimed Practical Considerations for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage; and Daniel Carpenter, Executive Director of the Heritage Crafts Association.

Conference organised by Creative Scotland, Historic Environment Scotland, Museums Galleries Scotland, TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland).

Graphic Recording

“The first ever EMEN Environment Conference is coming to Glasgow!

The event takes place on Thursday 12th October 2023, at Trades Hall. The event will run from 10am to 5pm.

This is the first time we have hosted an autumn conference and will be delighted if you were able to attend. Our key themes for 2023 are energy (with a focus on heating buildings), transport (with a focus on cycling), and how we can mobilise community climate action. We view all of these themes through the lens of a Just Transition, and how we can create a fairer, greener and more prosperous Scotland for all.

Join us to hear from expert speakers, grassroots activists, academics, and politicians - and have your voice heard, as we seek to build a fairer, cleaner, greener Scotland.

EMEN - the Ethnic Minority Environmental Network - is facilitated by CEMVO Scotland, and funded by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust.”

Graphic Recording

I was invited to graphically record events, sessions and talks in the conference over the span of 2 days.

“This year's Gathering was our first in-person large scale event in two years. It was wonderful to see so many people.

We listened to feedback on previous events so this year was a little different. We offered:

• More events, with more rooms available to hire

• More networking opportunities with a new Connections Café where you could meet with like-minded friends, old and new

• More breaks between events, and more activities outside the programme of events

An 'SCVO Arena' showcasing key speakers and well-known faces.

We didn't have an exhibition space in 2022 – we kept that for future because you told us you weren't keen in the current climate.

We aimed for this to be the greenest Gathering yet through actions to reduce our carbon footprint including offering exclusively vegetarian catering, reductions on drinks price for delegates using a reusable cup, minimising our merchandise provision, reducing our use of print materials and reusing and recycling wherever possible.

We know that for many people, the Gathering was one of the first major events you'd attended since the start of the pandemic and recognised that some people may have been feeling apprehensive about returning to an in-person event. Our team worked with expert advisers to make sure the event was as safe and comfortable an environment as possible for delegates.”

Graphic Recording

I was invited to Iriss’s Learning Week in in Stirling Highland Hotel when they conducted a workshop amongst members of the organisation to discuss methods on how to streamline the work processes of Iriss.

I attended to document the insights that emerged through the conversations had during brainstorming and co-design sessions.

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The Plan Vivo Foundation (PVF) celebrated its biennial Stakeholder Meeting on the 28th September 2022. The conference was held in the Dovecot Studio in Edinburgh.

“… The conversations, ideas and feedback given throughout the day were incredibly positive and uplifting. It was a reminder to all of us of the amazing work and experience that circulates throughout the network and most importantly why we do what we do.

We've come a long way since we certified the Scolel'te project in Chaipas, Mexico, back in the 1990s (a partnership that's still going strong). We've seen the world of carbon markets change and evolve, with a huge amount of interest building (and continuing to build) in the Plan Vivo model. As we scale up, one thing remains the same - keeping communities and smallholders at the heart of what we do..”

''Thank you so much Sarah for the wonderful graphic recordings created for our 25th anniversary event. What we do as an organisation in the climate change/ international development space is fairly complicated, and the discussions during our event were fast-paced, but Sarah beautifully captured the key topics and ideas being shared. People who attended the event were very impressed and complimentary. The posters are now up on our office walls and are a great reminder of our event!”

- Diana Wrangham, Media and Communications Officer

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For this graphic recording session, I was invited by Diversity+ and University of Edinburgh to document insights that emerges from talks by professionals within the law industry.

The Festival of Legal Possibilities will showcase career paths and opportunities available for students. We know that large scale commercial firms are frequently on campus to provide information in respect of the career options that they provide. But what else is available? What about those who do not feel represented in mainstream commercial firm recruitment?

The Festival of Legal Possibilities will have panels over 3 days and will both:

• boost networks for students who may not feel represented within legal practice and recruitment; and

• demonstrate to students the wide variety of career paths ahead of them, in addition to the general large scale recruitment undertaken by large commercial firms touting for traineeships.

Graphic Recording

Promise into action: A trauma informed approach to housing policy and practice with care leavers

“Scotland’s national membership organisation for all of those involved in the lives of young people leaving care.

On Wednesday 8th March we gathered senior leaders, care experienced young people and practitioners from across the country to hear how we can adopt a trauma informed approach to housing policy and practice with care leavers.”

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I was invited to graphically record the Black Tie Event hosted by The Miracle Foundation.

“ Born upon our founder's own grief after the loss of a family member, The Miracle Foundation was established in 2016 to support Children and Young People living throughout Lanarkshire impacted by bereavement and trauma. The organisation's primary mission is to provide early intervention bereavement and trauma support through Counselling, Art Therapy and Mental Health services for ALL Children, Young People and their families in need. Our services aim to create a safe space for Children and Young people to recover and heal from bereavement and trauma, providing them the support, tools and resources to reach their full life potential despite the adverse experiences they have faced.”

“We raised a MASSIVE £17,632 thanks at our first black tie event on Friday last week. We have SO many thank yous that we will need a separate post just to ensure we’ve included everyone!

Everyone was on wonderful form. Our heartfelt thanks to the CEO & the board, to our hard working & conscientious team of young ambassadors, to our host Katy J, to our entertainment Gordon Frew & Liam Farrelly, to our full team of counsellors and staff who work tirelessly to ensure the service runs smoothly. To Anne, Mandy & Jenna for their work on bringing the event together, to everyone who donated to the raffle or bought a raffle ticket on the night, to the ambitious bidders on our wonderful auction items & to everyone who spent the evening with us celebrating the importance of accessible mental health support for families in North Lanarkshire & beyond.

We can’t wait to announce what our next fundraising event is going to be! We’ve already started planning… 🫶”

Graphic Recording

I was invited by University of Edinburgh to document and graphically record feedback by different experts and professional within the AI industry around design fictions pertaining to biometric health data including Critically Envisioned Biometric Artificial Intelligence Futures, Live Facial Recognitions, Emotional Artificial Intelligence and DNA Phenotypes.

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Understanding the complexities of rural poverty are crucial for the development of an effective anti-poverty policy. Today’s conference will contribute to gathering evidence to help us to better understand the nature and extent of poverty in NEF. Several factors contribute to higher living costs such as the cost of housing, fuel, transport and food and we will drill down into these issues in the workshops.

Those living in rural areas typically need to spend 10-20% more on everyday requirements than those in urban areas – and it goes without saying that benefits don’t stretch as far in rural areas. Seasonal, temporary or part-time employment as a result of a dependence on tourism and primary production means that low pay is also a key concern within rural NEF.

A TUC study a few years ago reported that 34% of employees in NEF earned less than the Living Wage. Affordable housing can be in short supply with lower levels of social housing available. The prevalence of older, hard to heat houses together with higher fuel costs through not being connected to the mains gas supply and lower disposable income combine to push people into fuel poverty. Food costs too are higher with no access to discount supermarkets.

Graphic Recording

“On Wednesday 23rd November 2023 we held our first in person Conference for almost 3 years at the Stirling Court Hotel where we discussed relationships, friendships and connection. Almost 150 delegates and Staf team members came together to connect once again. The results were wonderful!

The following is a short recap of the day, including links to key information and speaker presentations alongside the brilliant graphic recordings of each session by the talented Floating Designer “

Photos by Andrew Perry

Graphic Recording

“The Scottish Government published their hydrogen policy statement in December 2020 which set out a vision for Scotland to become a leading hydrogen nation in the production of reliable, competitive, sustainable hydrogen, securing Scotland’s future as a centre of international excellence as we establish the innovation, skills and supply chain to underpin our energy transition.

Having spent £40m over the past five years in hydrogen transport policies, the focus is now to scaling-up the potential for hydrogen by linking together opportunities across sectors and transport modes and building Scotland’s potential for innovation and supply chain growth.

With the support of Transport Scotland and our enterprise agencies, underpinned by close collaboration between government and industry, we are now seeing the emergence of the next generation of hydrogen projects and investment, including in new areas such as rail, road transport, maritime and aviation.

This one day conference will bring a wide range of stakeholders responsible for delivering Scotland’s hydrogen objectives to discuss practical ways in which we can produce and distribute hydrogen successfully.

• Split into four sections as below, we’re looking for industry experts to contribute to the day

• Aligning Transport Scotland & other key transport authorities to build a secure infrastructure

• Building for Success: Working collaboratively to build a network of hydrogen production, storage and distribution for transport

• Competitive Future: Scaling up technology to create a more robust business case

• Delivering for passengers: Encouraging modal shift through clean energy and modal shift”

Graphic Recording

“Excited to collaborate with our expert partners: Education Evolved Ltd. , Ethnic Minority Environmental Network, and The Floating Designer Sarah Ahmad. Hosted by the UofG Games and Gaming Lab, we are co-creating a new digital game to highlight Minoritised Ethnic people's perspectives on #sutainablefutures in #Scotland.

Our first ideation workshop at UofG's Advanced Research Centre (ARC) went so well, and we are excited to promote #gamedevelopment as a pathway for innovation in social sciences and arts/humanities #SHAPE!

And look at the fantastic graphic recording by Sarah Ahmad capturing our game #ideation process so creatively!

Watch this space as this academic-industry-community-artist collaboration grows. Join us and follow our project #InnovatorsAssemble (INASSEM). With thanks to funding support from Aspect Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities Network Innovation Fellowship and College of Social Science University of Glasgow.”

Graphic Recording

I was invited to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee to attend an in-person meeting amongst a team of experts and researchers from Research Data Scotland within the field of research and data. The in-person meeting was hosted to gather strategies and information on methodologies around how to create trustworthy, reliable, safe, secure and accessible data for the general public.

Graphic Recording

Ecologies of Care in Creative Hubs

In order to capture the interconnected nature of the activities of Creative Stirling during the pandemic, in the summer of 2021 we collated interviews with key individuals working in or closely with them. We would now like to gather those of you connected to the hub to gather your views and reflections on the some of our initial findings.

The Project: Ecologies of care in a creative hub during Covid

We are exploring the ways in which Creative Stirling transformed their activities, mobilised their networks and redeployed their assets during COVID-19 and lockdown. The project aims to make visible how people pooled efforts and resources during this time of crisis and to consider how this is shaping future activities and sustainability.

Graphic Recording

In collaboration with Cherron from The Power of Staff Networks, I produced a visual story including all important aspects, insights and guides on how to Make Work Better and how to have a Great Inclusive Workplace. The story itself was written by Cherron, I illustrated the whole thing.

"Staff networks offer support to employees from different groups as they endeavour to navigate the processes, systems and culture that may prevent them from progressing and/or being their authentic self in the workplace.

They are an effective mechanism of workforce engagement that can provide insight into unseen barriers and devise practical, creative and commercially viable solutions to help address the systemic challenges faced by certain groups. Put simply, effective staff networks are making work better."