FUNDRAISE WITH THE BEES

collaborate with us on the print run for our NEWEST Graphics Campaign!

What is a “graphics campaign”?

A graphics campaign has two parts - a graphic and a campaign. The graphic is an image that tells a story- in this case, the complex and multi-layered story of extraction, injustice, and resistance in the Appalachian coalfields. The graphic is printed 1) on paper as a small-format poster and 2) on large-format fabric banners for presentations and workshops. All beehive graphics are researched in collaboration with affected communities, collectively conceived and illustrated, and anti-copyright.

The campaign is everything else that bees do to fulfill our mission to “cross-pollinate the grassroots” by supporting educators, activists, and community members on the front lines of organized resistance. This includes press; regional, national, and international networking; touring within and outside of affected areas; and a “campaign toolkit” of workshop ideas and educational materials that help make the graphic a tool for meaningful community dialogue and action.

Why collaborate with the bees on a print run?

Printers charge a hefty fee for every “run” of posters (because of the high cost of initial set-up), making it most economical to print posters in bulk. Unfortunately, to do so involves substantial up-front costs, more than we can muster on our own or secure in grants.

As an all-volunteer collective operating on a shoestring budget, we work our wings off to make sure that we squeeze all the potential out of every dollar donated to support this work. We also want our graphics to help other small organizations support the work they're doing. If we combine our resources to get this new graphic printed, we can all have posters to distribute for fundraising, organizing, and education. That’s why we’re asking our friends and allies who are committed to justice in Appalachia to help us pull together the final funds needed to make THE TRUE COST OF COAL GRAPHIC CAMPAIGN a reality!

Every day we are losing ground, literally, to mountain-top removal mining, and we need to work together to expose and educate as many people as possible, to help build the movement for grassroots resistance before more mountains are lost. By pre-purchasing a bulk package of posters at just above cost, you are becoming a part of this graphics campaign in two very important ways: you are helping us with the initial cost of printing, and you can become an integral part of the "pollination" process by distributing these posters throughout your community. We are offering several different options in the hopes of making this offer available to as many groups and individuals as possible.

How can we use our share of the print run?............So many ways!

- distribute posters as a fundraiser (we suggest a sliding scale donation of free to $10-20 depending on your community’s resources) for your organization and/or others engaged in justice work

- use the funds generated to bring the bees to your school or town for a presentation or workshop

- use the posters to fund the purchase of a beehive banner and do the presentation yourself!

- start a dialogue at your school or with your members (ask us for tools & ideas!)

- donate posters to area high schools or other educational programs

- talk to your membership or community base for the best ways to use beehive posters to tell stories, catalyze or sustain dialogue, make connections between different struggles, and fight for justice in Appalachia!

Sounds great! Where do we sign up?

Right Here! [ online collaboration request form]