FoAM - Kernow / Then Try This

** The FoAM Kernow studio is now called Then Try This **

FoAM Kernow is a non-profit organisation founded and run by Dave Griffiths and Dr. Amber Griffiths, and we are one of six collaborative FoAM studios dotted around Europe.

Most of our time is spent on projects to better understand the ecosystems we are part of, enable more sustainable behaviours, design bespoke appropriate technology (things that can be understood, fixed, repurposed, sometimes off-grid or even elephant-proof), reduce inequalities, and help people to develop creative and confident relationships with science and technology.

In practical terms, you’ll find us designing workshops, building hardware and electronics, writing software, creating exhibitions and unusual opportunities, amplifying the voices of our communities, publishing our work, teaching at all levels (from primary to postgraduate), advocating for political change, and giving people a leg-up wherever we possibly can.

We see transdisciplinarity (working outside established boundaries) as the only viable approach to tackling the most pressing problems, and routinely embed co-design and citizen science as essential approaches for encouraging and including broader perspectives. Once you start with a problem and work your way out, disciplines become a bit nonsensical.

Our projects are usually collaborations or commissions working with publicly-funded organisations, so we make all our work freely available through free software, creative commons and open access publications. This means anyone is able to modify or build on our work for their own purposes.

FoAM Kernow's work has been featured on BBC Radio 6 Music, Blueprint Magazine, Official Raspberry Pi Magazine, The Economist, The Guardian and The Wire and has won the Soil Association's innovation award 2014 and the 2011 VIDA award. We have written for The Guardian and The Conversation on the rapid changes happening in research and education.

FoAM Kernow is registered in the UK as a non-profit organisation (Company No. 09073427). You can find our articles of association, and our policy statements on github. Our 2019 activity report is available here.

A selection of current projects from our studio are highlighted below, followed by a list of who's currently working at the FoAM Kernow studio, with all our archived projects, blog posts, events and publications listed underneath: