Wandering the gradient : reflections on relational learning

Summary: In this thesis, I describe my creative practice of designing a series of relational and collaborative engagements, as expressions of my love of critical pedagogical theory by Paulo Freire. I learned about the nuances of shared knowledge by feeling Freire’s theories through my body. I became aware that learning and teaching coexist in an ongoing process of consciousness. This consciousness is held in body and mind, and it is also held between beings we share this planet with. During my research I realized that important moments of learning happen through relational practices. These include workshops, but also collaborative writing, auto-ethnography, braiding, storytelling and other conversations. These methods are not tightly defined or given specific form. In searching for a term that could encompass these, I came upon the gradient, as a descriptive and visual term that includes many different engagements, an amorphous undefined space that allows friction, growth and flourishing as we learn about ourselves in relation to others. Wandering the gradient as an action of openness, we discover a notion of emergence which most of the time is not linear or predictable. I reflect about ways in which design can help people understand that we can learn collaboratively with all beings. I speculate that when we acknowledge this form of learning, we may start to shift to a more horizontal and interdependent alliance among all beings. This can influence our sense of interdependency, encourage us to question power structures we are embedded within, and commit to ecological flourishing.