Our Values

Self-determination is a fundamental human right. We make things that support people in choosing what is good and right for themselves and their communities. And we do so in ways that support each other's agency.

Dignity is not the same as respect. Respect is gained and lost through actions. We make things that support individuals' needs to be seen, heard, and treated fairly, even if they are sometimes disrespectful (mostly toward those in power). And we do so in ways that support each other’s dignity.

Equity is about both outcomes and the processes that produce them. All people are entitled to being alive, free, and happy, among other outcomes. People are also entitled to fair ways to achieve outcomes. We make things that support equitable processes and outcomes. And we do so in ways that support equity in our own processes and outcomes.

Transparency is more than providing open access or disclosing conflicts of interest. It is also about acknowledging and taking responsibility for the past, our differences, our biases, and our mistakes. And it is about clear, proactive communication and expectation-setting. We make things that support transparency in everyday life. And we do so in ways that support transparency within our own organization.

Critical thinking is a framework that leverages curiosity, creativity, skepticism, reasoning, and reflection to rigorously and systematically evaluate various kinds of information. We make things that combat misinformation, disinformation, and other forms of bullshit. We go further to make things that challenge received wisdom and predominant norms that tell us what and how we should think, feel, and act. And we apply that framework ourselves when making things.

This is a mindset shift outside of the business-as-usual box to celebrate creativity and joy. We make things that are fun, even if they are about serious or mucked up stuff in the world. And we have fun making them!

We mean this in the broadest of scopes and scales. Yes, environmental sustainability, along with social and economic sustainability. From large scale government policies, business practices, and societal norms all the way down to how we design and implement the details of the things we make. We make things that are useful in the long term for supporting human wellbeing and conserving resources. And we’re in it for the long haul, making things in ways that support our own wellbeing and avoid overconsuming our own resources.