Seed Magazeen - Letter from THE NORTH FACE

A Magazine for Kids Who Care About the Environment

Seed Magazeen

An environmental magazine for children, set up by British illustrators Jack Snelling and Lizzie Lomax. Aimed at making learning about environmental issues fun, the magazine features lots of illustrations, games, comics, puzzles and activities. With features on ‘insects’, ‘vegetables’, ‘ponds’ and ‘mud’, the magazine encourages children to think about the earth and nature through an interest in the environment around them, and with each issue the duo organise free workshops where children can practise the activities featured in the magazines.

https://seedmagazeen.bigcartel.com/

Children are the ones who will be most affected by climate change for the longest time. So why isn’t there a magazine to help children learn about it? That’s what British illustrators Jack Snelling and Lizzie Lomax thought when they launched Seed Magazeen, an environmental magazine for children in 2019.

The magazine, full of friendly illustrations, games, comics and activities, encourages children to learn about the environment in a fun and positive way. Seed Magazeen gives us a hint of the way we need to communicate climate change today.

Please tell us about Seed Magazeen. Why and how did you start the magazine?

The concept of Seed first began in January 2019. We spent a whole weekend planning and brainstorming what an environmental children’s magazine could look like. What should it include? How should it be printed with the environment in mind? It seemed like there was nothing currently in place for children interested in the environment that was easily accessible. We wanted the magazine to be positive, filled with facts, comics, games and activities. After lots more planning, the first issue of Seed launched alongside various workshops at an art festival in a local town to Brighton, UK.

What kind of projects/activities do you do other than the magazine?

We are both illustrators (we do most of the illustration work in the magazine, as our funding to commission other artists is limited!). We work on our own separate illustration projects and briefs, but it’s always nice to come together to make Seed.

What kind of feedback do you often hear from children who have read the magazine or participated in the workshop?

It's very positive! Which is a relief. It's aimed at 4-7 year olds, so we try very hard to not make the wording or activities too difficult to understand, but at the same time trust in the child's abilities to try something new, and learn about a topic they might not usually go for.

Please tell us about the four messages of Seed Magazeen: “learn,” “make,” “play,” and “grow”.

These 4 keywords are sort of a guideline for each issue. We liked the idea that when a child reads this they will have learnt something, made something (from our various activities), learn through playing - we include various games, and comics - and grow. That one feels like the most important as we hope they're more enriched on the issues theme after reading.

How do you try to communicate the climate crisis or environmental issues to children? What are tips or lessons you’ve learned?

We try to keep the subject matter focused on one topic, instead of the wider picture of the climate crisis. This can sometimes be a scary subject to think about globally, so we focus on ways the children can react to their local environment, as this is easier to grasp. Even for adults, talking about the climate crisis is a huge, overwhelming subject, so we try to keep the tone light, whilst still trying to make sure nuggets of wisdom can be gained, so the child can slowly understand environmental issues. We hope that by engaging children with their local environments in a small way, Seed will help cultivate a wider a wider interest in the outdoors and the natural systems that we rely on.

What should all adults, with or without children, do for the sake of children?

There’s so much we can all do, which is sometimes quite daunting to think about. Firstly, start with government. Write to your local representative, go to peaceful protests where possible. The more pressure we put on governments, so they understand our concern, the better. There are lot of other smaller things you can do too; switch to a renewable energy provider, eat seasonally and reduce the amount of meat and dairy you consume, reuse and buy second hand where possible. Be honest about the causes and impact of climate change and encourage a healthy interest in ecosystems and local nature.

How do you think we should interact with the Earth to make the future sustainable?

Most things have already been covered in the previous question but to reiterate; a shift to renewable sources of energy that don’t rely on extracting limited, highly polluting resources that mostly serve to financially benefit a small minority; continuing to put pressure on governments, and contributing in the small ways you can.

What is the ideal landscape that you would like to leave to future generations?

One that doesn’t exploit natural resources for profit but benefits communities in a mutually sustainable manner; where interest in the environment and art-making go hand in hand and continue to inspire further generations, reminding us all through the arts that we are bound and indebted to our planet.

Research & Creative Direction:
SUB-AUDIO Inc.

Design: Tomomi Maezawa

Text: Yuto Miyamoto