democracy, education, and toys

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democracy, education, and toys

Aroundsquare is involved in what might appear to be a strange mix of projects. Social development and child development are pretty far apart on the technical spectrum, but they are related in that they both have to do with the kind of people growing up within a society. Educational consulting and toy design are a bit easier to connect, and with that connection, Aroundsquare works to bridge individual and social development. Democratization, sustainability, cognitive theory.. It's all interconnected, and Aroundsquare's work infiltrates all of these fields. These things all have to do with the way that people, as individuals, and collectively as societies, develop.

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leaving space for creativity

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leaving space for creativity

One of the common themes running through all the work of Aroundsquare is the idea of freedom within some kind of a structure. In discussion of cognitive theory, this freedom is referred to in terms of affordances--the available options for action or choice within a given context. Part of what Aroundsquare tries to do is to create structures which are empowering, and which maximize the available affordances.

The Goodwood Deconstruction Blocks are a good example of this. While classic building blocks are timeless and elegant in their simplicity, we've removed a few little pieces here and there, creating spaces where the blocks can fit together and balance in new and interesting ways. The geometry creates a kind of platform for expression. The additional affordances provide new options for exploration and discovery.

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supporting the new economy

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supporting the new economy

aroundsquare is proud to be a certified B Corporation.  unlike regular businesses which are driven by profit alone, AO2 leverages the tools of business to generate benefit.  while most businesses have a single bottom line, profit, aroundsquare has four.  in addition to being financially viable, aroundsquare strives to deliver social, developmental and environmental benefit through incorporating these values into all decision-making related to the products developed and the processes used to bring them to the market.  

AO2's certification as a B Corporation signifies that this is not just empty rhetoric.. this is not green, or red, marketing.  B Labs, the organization which certifies B Corporations, has a rigorous certification process involving a detailed survey and follow-up process in which prospective companies are required to back up claims with appropriate

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open-source toys

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open-source toys

i’ve classified the goodwood deconstruction blocks series as “open-source toys” in the past.  i’ve assigned them a creative commons license “attribution; share-alike” (CC-BY-SA).  in plain language this means that anyone can use or modify the designs for themselves.. all they need to do is attribute the design to aroundsquare, and provide the same license for all derivative works.. they can make and sell the blocks, and they can come up with modifications or new version of the blocks..

my intention in doing this was to put the designs out there with hopes that they may do good for somebody.  ideas are free after all.. it isn’t costing me anything.  there is always a risk that i’ll get ripped off by some profit-driven toy company, but i’m not really concerned about that.  it would be much more of a shame for an idea which may do

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