Pseads Institute

Cultivating the heart of learning.

Pseads (“seeds") is an educational nonprofit and design institute. All of our programs are designed to reinvigorate classrooms for educators and students through creative approaches that deepen and humanize the learning experience. We are deeply committed to holistic and integrative approaches to learning, with over 20 years of research, practice, mentorship, and collaboration informing our programs. At all levels, Pseads weaves together the power of narrative, science, social-emotional learning, social justice, and ecology in ways that honor the unique strengths and gifts of every learner.

A Growing Movement and Community. Pseads is at the threshold of an incredible opportunity to significantly increase our impact across the Marin and Bay Area community. Our poetry and creative-based programs are running across 120 classrooms in nine districts this year, with 100% program renewal and an addition of 30 new classrooms. We’re also launching two new initiatives aimed at addressing teacher burnout and supporting young women during key educational transition years.

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Pseads in the World

In 2020, five Pseads poets were invited to share poems as part of TEDxReImagineScience. The video poems were outside of the typical TED Talk format, but TED organizers loved the content and added a compilation to their main site. This was one of the first youth submissions of this kind added to the TED site.

Experiencing these visions and voices helped inspire the Hope on the Rize narrative and filmmaking initiative that began at Pseads the following year. Hope on the Rize includes emphasis on creating new narratives that inspire greater curiosity about science, the Earth, and the universe, and reflections that bring imagination and innovation together toward a healthier planet.

Join Pseads in Celebrating Young Voices and Year Four of Hope on the Rize!

Hope on the Rize is a transformative writing and short filmmaking project for students in Grade 5 through college. Designed to build on classroom learning across subjects, it creates immersive, multidimensional experiences that integrate knowledge, creativity, and personal reflection.

At its core, Hope on the Rize reimagines how we inspire ecological reflection, scientific inquiry, and the deep, rooted qualities of self-awareness and inner knowing. By weaving personal narrative with evidence-based exploration, the program allows students to see themselves as part of the broader story of the planet—sparking connection, empathy, and a profound sense of responsibility for a living world.

Through the power of storytelling, reflective writing, environmental science, and technology, Hope on the Rize nurtures not only knowledge but also the emotional and ethical capacities needed to address the urgent challenges of our time. It builds community, supports well-being, and empowers young people to become engaged stewards of both their own lives and the world they will inherit.