Visual Storytelling for Impact

Have you ever worked on a project for multiple weeks, months, years, even? Then when it’s time to report on your work, or a friend asks you what you’ve been up to, you have no idea where to start explaining? 

For the past year, I’ve had the pleasure of working with a team at Boston University convening a network across the country to change health care systems to better support families and children with complex medical needs. 

As you can imagine, this project is complex, full of nuance…and the core team needs to be able to show how they’ve used the funding. A multi-year pilot working with teams across the US…systems and culture change…collaborative innovation…

Yeah. It’s complicated. And it’s a story that needs to be told.

So, we sat down for 90 minutes and the core team told me their story. They told me about what they heard from families, from care providers, from partners. They shared data in the form of lived experience and from tools they developed.  

The result was messy, but the main messages had become clear. Add in a few rounds of revisions, and we had a one-page illustration that could be used to tell their unique story to funders, families, and so others could learn and improve on what they started.

What did the team have to say?

“I could cry with pride and happiness seeing our family engagement work laid out so beautifully and clearly by Karina. Well done…and many, many thanks!”

— Meg Comeau, MHA; Boston University School of Social Work

What’s the story you want to share? How might you map it out visually to illuminate the impact you’re making?  

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers, 

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

TREETIME: In May, I got to co-create with a brilliant group of ecologists, biologists, and other researchers preparing for a large grant proposal. The goal of the workshop was to build a network across fields of study that will explore environmental changes over different time and phenological scales. We created a massive Miro board that the group fully leveraged!

On the River: Yes, again! Last year we got lucky and pulled a permit to raft through Dinosaur National Monument, but the trip was postponed due to the ‘rona. So we got to go this year instead! Unplugged, refreshed, and ready for June! Here’s a watercolor I made on the river a few years ago - looking forward to making some more!

Why You Should Write That Down On Paper

Coming at you with a little visual thinking science this week, sparked by this article from FastCompany exploring new research about the power of writing things down on paper. I was really curious to read this research, as I’ve been working almost 100% on the iPad this past year.

The study compared people taking notes on paper with those taking notes either with a digital keyboard or stylus on a large phone. An hour later, they were asked about the information they took notes on while in an MRI scan. 

The results? People taking notes on paper remembered more accurately…and took notes more quickly!

Why? According to the article, “Your memory loves one-of-a-kind spatial and tactile details,” and having a finite space like a notebook page helps trigger visual memory of where information was on the page. Additionally, the kinesthetic act of writing out different letters triggers our memory, and including elements like arrows, bullets, doodles, and colors helps spark that recall even more. 

Take a few seconds to think about how you take notes on paper – what the action feels like, how you revisit the information, how you feel. Now, think about what that experience feels like using a tablet, stylus, or digital keyboard. For me, the tactile feel of paper, the smells of paper and graphite, and the experience of moving the page around come to mind, versus the stylus gliding across my iPad screen, and pinching in and out to zoom. 

People working with visual practitioners experience the benefits of visual notes for memory and deeper thinking directly – using colors to connect similar ideas or themes, including illustrations of stories to improve recall, and creating a shared visual metaphor all contribute to more focused and collaborative processes. In fact, the lead researcher says “For art, composing music, or other creative works, I would emphasize the use of paper instead of digital methods.”

For those of you thinking “Okay, but isn’t there a time and a place for working digitally? I mean, covid times, right?” Absolutely! Check out this post I wrote based on an interview with Austin Kleon about when analog and digital can support the creative process. With similar results to this research, Kleon recommends starting with pen/pencil and paper to spark ideas and thinking creatively, then using digital tools to refine your work. 

What do you think? How do you work most creatively? What are your tips for remembering information from classes, meetings, or workshops? 

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

In the Studio: Wrapping up two illustrations – one of a Vision Statement for a team working in the health sector, and the other an explainer of the concept of carrying capacity for a scientific article for young readers. The Vision Statement is not fully out in the world yet, so here is a snippet:

Core values and vision for supporting families and children with medical complexity.

And here are the brown bears and sea otters!

Carrying capacity explained via brown bears and sea otters in coastal Alaska.

NYC Stormwater Resilience Plan Officially Released: In 2018, I was part of an incredibly talented team of researchers, modelers, and the NYC Mayor’s Office working toward a data-informed, equitable, and safe stormwater resilience plan. After years of iteration and refinement, the Plan was officially released last week! Here is a graphic from the stakeholder workshops. To see and read the Plan as a PDF, click here. 

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers,

How I Prepare for Live Graphic Recording: Visual Notetaking Tips You Can Start Using Today

If you and I have met and had a conversation about visual thinking, there’s a good chance I’ve enthusiastically shared that I believe anyone can draw, and anyone can take visual notes. 

Aside from the fact that we are innately visual creatures and a few tips can spark creativity, I’ve learned through the years that there are things I can do that help me feel more confident and consistently help me produce my favorite work. 

One secret is that taking time to prepare before live graphic recording really helps me set myself up for success. These are strategies I use all the time that you’ll be able to implement at your next meeting to infuse your own notes with some visual flair. 

Each tip is followed by a snippet from my sketchbooks as an example. Here we go! 

Look through an agenda and practice sketching ideas for how to visualize concepts that will almost certainly come up – specific animals, equipment, or activities.

Play with potential layouts – even if I don’t know how the conversation will emerge, if I have some ideas sketched out I’ve found I’m more confident and it’s easier to adapt or add more detail if I’ve already spent some time thinking about it. 

Pick your colors – as Brandy Agerbeck says, use color MORE, rather than using more color! Pick colors for very important ideas, or to add patterns in the background. This is especially helpful when working digitally and you can use literally any color – paring down up front helps make decisions quickly in the moment. 

Draw out session titles and key names/affiliations if you know them, that way you’re not trying to spell someone’s name correctly while listening to their brilliant ideas and trying to get it all down.

Keep scratch paper nearby for taking notes. I do this less working digitally as it’s easy to move or erase ideas, but it’s still helpful to have a sketchbook nearby to jot down a great quote or statistics to incorporate later. 

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers, 

Where in the Virtual World is ConverSketch?

Back from Idaho: Where we spent two weeks unplugging and whitewater rafting! Here’s a shot from the South Fork of the Salmon River. Photo: Josh Metten

Procinorte: Even though I was offline most of the time, I was still able to jump back into Zoom for two days of agriculture and climate researchers from Canada, Mexico, and the United States discussing how to improve collaboration across borders for food and climate security.