Our Living Encyclopedia is part of our work in creating Living Knowledges. Here you will find community led and scientifically rooted reportings that are in constant progression as injustice is an evolving phenomena.
Living Knowledges is a realm where knowledge finds a sanctuary to flourish, evolve, and expand beyond the confines of conventional repositories. It is a dynamic space dedicated to storing and nurturing knowledge in a manner that allows it to adapt, transform, and grow with the passage of time.
This is a digital ecosystem designed to accommodate the vast array of information amassed by humanity. It goes beyond the static nature of traditional libraries and archives, embracing the concept of living ideas that continuously evolve. Thus, knowledge is envisioned as a living entity that undergoes perpetual enhancement and refinement. Every piece of information is treated as a seed, capable of germinating, branching out, and cross-pollinating with other ideas.
How the Living Encyclopedia works
The Living Encyclopedia is colour coded to help guide people to the right type of content. Here’s a quick guide to what each category means.
ARTICLE
a short form essay-like piece of work
DATA-STUDY
a data led exploration into a topic
DECLARATION
a declaration made by a group of People
DEFINITION
short form copy detailing a specific phenomema
IMAGINATION LAB
a special event to ideate on a specific topic
PAMPHLET
a shareable output from research
AUDIO REPORT
a spoken word conversation and reporting
REPORT
a long form piece of work
Decolonisation in Precarity: Migration & Trans Healthcare
From our Trans and Gender Non-Binary Health Justice Programme, we bring forward the work of Nina Rivera, who is an organiser, healer, and advocate of Trans Women's Migrant Rights. She is the recipient of our first Healing grant, where she brought together Trans Migrant Women into a space of Kinship and healing.
Reframing Trauma
Trauma also creates systemic biological and cellular changes. For example, it can change our gut bacteria environment, which has implications for obesity. In cases of acute trauma, some can experience PTSD, which creates neurobiological abnormalities which alters the function of various biological systems, this too has implications for obesity.
Reframing Diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is a metabolic disorder, which prevents the body’s ability to regulate glucose, it can turn into a lifelong condition, when it is not caught early or left untreated.
Biological Inequity
Biological inequity, also known as biological inequality, refers to “systematic, unfair, and avoidable stress-related biological differences which increase risk of disease, observed between social groups of a population”.
Reframing Obesity
Obesity is a dysregulated production of adipose tissue commonly known as fat throughout the body. It is considered a complex and chronic disease, which means there are multiple factors that contribute to its aestology.
Susceptibility
At the crux of this theory is that when the body is faced with stressors it adapts through a process called allostasis, which means “achieving stability/homeostasis through change”.
Thermal Pollution
Thermal pollution is going to be a factor of increased importance due to climate change as it encompasses everything from region down to the density of buildings and even further to the materiality of the environment.
Air Pollution
Air pollution presents a particularly insidious hazard given that the disease affects respiratory and cardio-vascular systems (source). These two systems are sensitive to air pollution as air pollution directly damages the mechanics and as a consequence the function of lungs, heart, and the circulatory system.
Psychosocial factors of stress
Our body does not only suffer chronic stress due to pollutants. Psychosocial factors also play a part in our long-term health. The psychosocial relationship to health is a widely investigated field.
Noise Pollution
People specifically experience the negative health outcomes of noise when it disrupts their sleep and ability to recover or focus.
