This project is about the design of a collection of principles that contribute to a sustainable internal communication. It is shown via an online manual (website-based-ebook). My findings are based on my work experience at IKEA of Sweden AB, developing their internal communication tool, the sustainability Hub, and on research, transition design, sustainable dialogue, and the diverse economy (see more in chapter 5.1., page 26). The design is targeted primarily to the decision-makers of small- to mediumsized organizations that are interested in a transition towards sustainable change, and, secondarily, students and lecturers from the fields of design, natural science, and economics. The methodological framework used in the project is transition design, sustainable dialogue, and the diverse economy. Furthermore, theories about change agency, intranet, sustainability, and IKEAs position on sustainability are outlined to establish a definition of sustainability that can be applied to multiple actors of the diverse economy. The outcome is a collection of 24 principles about an internal network focussing on the transition towards sustainability. I call it Intra-Collectivity because it is about change from within a system, and networks being the actors of change. I communicate my idea via a manual, that should guide the target group to create, maintain, and use Intra-Collectivity. The manual features infographics with explanatory texts guided by consistent user interface navigation. The design is done by the research of theories and of the target audience, by application of the methodological framework, by my work experience at IKEA, and by the design craft of a website-based ebook and digital infographics. The manual is publicly available and based on minimalistic, contemporary screen design, and infographic design principles. It places the graphical explanation in the focus. The principles of Intra-Collectivity are base on the following key findings: 1. The difficulty to find a definition of sustainability for the diverse bodies of the diverse economy can be solved by the differentiation between “honest sustainability scopes“ and “dishonest sustainable development“ (or “greenwashing“). 2. It can be derived from the field of transition design and sustainable dialogue that a constant, multiperspective communication is crucial to a network promoting change. 3. Solutions to sustainability problems are not definite but adaptive and require constant reiteration. 4. Internal communication becomes more effective in terms of sustainability if unconventional perspectives are taken into consideration.

This project explores the agricultural heritage and current social landscape of the Stinking Creek community of Knox County, Kentucky, and the legacy of the local nonprofit organization the Lend-A-Hand Center. Through participatory research, this project presents a reflexive account of the Lend-A-Hand Center Grow Appalachia Gardening Program examining the diverse economy of the Stinking Creek watershed and possibilities for new economic imaginings and post-coal futures for central Appalachia. This dissertation includes an oral history project, a theoretical examination, and an ethnographic reflection, bridging several literatures in the fields of agricultural history, Appalachian Studies, Participatory Action Research, research within the diverse economy framework, and feminist political ecology. For three years I coordinated the Grow Appalachia program through the Lend-A-Hand Center, developing agricultural initiatives in Knox County, working to re-localize food systems through home gardens, community gardens, and the establishment of the Knox County Farmers’ Market, and gathering stories through oral histories on the Creek. Problematizing the 1967 book Stinking Creek, by John Fetterman, this account of the community seeks to call attention to the importance of critical analyses of representations of people, processes, and places. In the face of pressing social issues in central Appalachia and renewed interest in the discourses of development, local food, and post-coal transition, this work seeks to intervene in region-wide discussions and suggest avenues for change and possibility. The Lend-A-Hand Center Grow Appalachia Gardening Program illustrates the potentials for community-based agriculture projects in the region to promote a variety of economic processes, foster and preserve agricultural traditions, and impact the conversation about outlooks for the region. This research provides policy and programmatic suggestions regarding the importance of relocalization of food systems and different (re)presentations of community narratives as part of a multifaceted agenda toward a just, sustainable future for eastern Kentucky and the region.