Contextual Camouflage
McKoy Creative is one of 9 organizations chosen for CTSI’s WORDOUT: Community Research Dissemination Challenge. The WORDOUT challenge is an opportunity for community focused organizations to creatively disseminate research from multiple scientific disciplines. Given that the average time it takes for research to reach the communities they would most benefit is 17 years, researchers need all the help they can get to get the word out in a way that is informative, relevant & easy to understand.
For our part, McKoy Creative (with support from New Sun Rising) is constructing an interactive art installation that disseminates information and combats the stigma surrounding mental & behavioral health. Contextual Camouflage aims to transform research into a living narrative using a web based application, GIS technology, and user input to paint a picture of the prevalence of mental disorders in the community. The project will show that anyone, anywhere around you could be living with a mental disorder and you wouldn’t even know it, whilst also showing those that live with mental disorders that they are not alone. We will also provide educational, outreach, preventative resources for the community.