Design for Social Change : Case Study
Nourishing the Kids of Katrina
BACKGROUND
In 2005, I was at San Francisco film school adding documentary film skills to my film making expertise. I worked as a production assistant with co-student, Robert Lee Grant, who had an idea to create a model to influence change. His aim was to tackle one of the main challenges to diabetes and obesity in children, education around food. He wanted to inspire influencers by telling the story of Alice Waters and the success of the edible school garden.“Waters helped create the Edible Schoolyard at Samuel J. Green Charter School 14 years after planting the first one in Berkeley, where she operates Chez Panisse restaurant.”
Challenge
Obesity and Diabetes in the US in children is at an all-time high.
The devastation of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans left schools in need of rebuilding from the ground up. Many of the areas suffered from poverty and inequity around health care.
Approach
Grant’s vision was to use documentary film about the Edible School Gardens to gain support from influencers in the school district rebuilding programs. By showing the film at events and influencing those in the school district to understand why these gardens were a good idea, he highlighted how outcomes could be improved for schools and their communities by offering space for both to be involved.
