MAKE A POSTCARD  

INSTRUCTIONS

PART 1: WRITE A LETTER TO THE EARTH

• Grab a piece of blank or lined paper, a pen, and a timer. You won’t need your postcard until later in the exercise. 
• Find a comfortable place to sit and think. If you can, visit a place outside that brings you a sense of comfort, joy and calm. This could be a nearby forest, ravine, meadow or terrace. If you can’t go outside, try to sit near a window or a place where there’s direct sunlight and think of an outdoor space that brings you a sense of comfort, joy, and calm. 
• Take a moment to pause, breathe, and consider: Why did you choose this particular place on earth? Are there certain memories you associate with this spot?  
• Write a letter of gratitude to the earth, the provider of this space. It can be as short or as long as you’d like. You might want to put on a timer for 10 – 20 minutes to start. 

If you don’t know where to begin, here are some prompts to inform your writing: 

• Once you’ve finished writing your letter, read the words silently or out loud and decide if there are any specific sections of it that stand out to you in particular. Perhaps you really like a particular line, phrase or cluster of words. Circle or underline what stands out. 
• Grab your postcard and flip it over. On half of this side, write a couple sentences that capture the “essence” of your letter of gratitude to the earth. Leave a bit of extra space on the bottom to commit to taking an action to cultivate your relationship towards yourself and the planet (see below). This instruction will be completed in the next step of the project. ***NOTE: What you write on the back of your postcard will be shared with other folks who participate in the Postcards for the Planet project if you decide to upload your postcard to the online exhibition or mail it in to be showcased at the in-person gallery. 

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PART 2: IMAGINE THE SYMBIOCENE

• Grab a piece of blank paper, a pencil, some drawing materials and a timer. 
• If you haven’t already, find a comfortable place to sit and think. If you can, visit a place outside that brings you a sense of comfort, joy and calm. This could be a nearby forest, ravine, meadow or terrace. If you can’t go outside, try to sit near a window or a place where there’s direct sunlight and think of an outdoor space that brings you a sense of comfort, joy, and calm. 
• Take a moment to pause, breathe, and imagine. Consider: what it might be like to live in the Symbiocene—an geologic era where humans live in reciprocity with the earth again? What might it feel like? How might it look? Are there any colours, shapes or lines that stand out to you when you think of this place? 
• Draw whatever comes to mind on your piece of scrap paper. Don’t worry about capturing exactly what is in your minds eye. Your expression of the Symbiocene can be as realistic or abstract as you’d like.
• Once you’ve finished capturing some initial ideas around what the Symbiocene might look or feel like, move into sketching out some potential designs for your postcard, or go straight into working with the art materials you have in front of you to make the front side of your postcard.
• Once your design is complete, flip your card over one last time. Using a pen, in the bottom left hand corner of your postcard, write down one action you intend to take to cultivate your relationship towards yourself and the planet to make the Symbiocene a reality. It can be something as small as taking a look out your window every morning to planting a garden in your community. 

Add any finishing touches, and… That’s it! You’ve made a Postcard for the Planet.

Through continuing to process the relationship you have to the earth through art-making you can not only connect to the sense of comfort, joy and calm it brings you, but also take steps toward creating a more sustainable future.