Spring 2023 Sustainability Fellow: Kalijah Rahming
Partner: Healing Arts Alliance
Project: Sustainable Membership Directory
Student: Kalijah Rahming
Kalijah, a fourth-year undergraduate student majoring in Sociology and Humanities, worked as a Sustainability Fellow in Spring 2023. With a belief that these fields enable a better understanding of the world and human nature, Kalijah is eager to create positive change and improve the lives of others. She worked with the Healing Arts Alliance on creating a compact, attractive, and affordable directory for Healing Arts Alliance, facilitating access to holistic and alternative health practitioners in Tallahassee and the surrounding region.
The Healing Arts Alliance (HAA) has been instrumental in connecting community members with healing arts professionals throughout the Big Bend area. Their mission is to raise awareness, promote healing options, and improve the health, education, and well-being of the community. To attract former members back and meet the community's needs, HAA sought assistance in developing a new directory design that would be visually appealing, affordable, and easily accessible to all.
The project's goal was to create a compact membership directory for print and online distribution, serving as a template for future updates. Kalijah began by conducting research, meeting with HAA members to gather insights from previous directories and reaching out to over 50 HAA clients for input. Despite challenges in receiving responses, Kalijah persevered by connecting with HAA board members and utilizing information from their websites and social media accounts.
As she gained many new skills, Kalijah expressed, “I feel as though serving as a Sustainability Fellow has boosted my confidence and networking abilities.”
To bring the directory to life, Kalijah learned to use Canva and employed various resources such as YouTube tutorials and assistance from friends. Collaborating with HAA members, they organized the directory's layout, made necessary changes, and ensured clear and visually appealing images were included. This project showcased Kalijah's creativity, teamwork, organizational skills, and effective communication, resulting in a valuable printed product for the community.
“I deeply appreciated the opportunity to give back to a community in need, especially during my final semester of senior year, through my work with the Healing Arts Alliance. I appreciated that I was given an opportunity to express my thoughts while creating the physical directory, as it allowed me to share my creative side", Kalijah explained.
The previous directory, printed in 2018, was a substantial 100 pages. With sustainability as a core principle, the new directory aimed for a more concise 25-40 pages, significantly reducing paper usage, storage demands, and distribution requirements. By providing a PDF version for online access and print-on-demand, waste was further minimized. Affordability was also prioritized due to the pandemic's impact on HAA's revenues. Developing this directory through the assistance of the FSU Sustainability Fellow not only saved costs but also attracted former and new members, strengthening the organization's financial reserves.
Furthermore, the directory's physical presence catered to HAA's traditional customer base, ensuring that older individuals who rely on printed resources would not be left behind in the digital era. By embracing both online and print resources, HAA ensures that all community members can easily find practitioners who address their healthcare concerns using alternative, complementary, and holistic approaches.
Kalijah's experience as a Sustainability Fellow with the Healing Arts Alliance allowed them to apply their creative skills, build confidence, and expand their networking abilities. Through their efforts, a sustainable and visually appealing healing arts directory was created, serving as a valuable resource for the community.
To learn more about the Sustainability Fellows program, visit sustainablecampus.fsu.edu/sustainability-fellows.