Boxed Ideas for Responsible Development
Get to know B.I.R.D.
History
B.I.R.D. (Boxed Ideas for Responsible Development) started as an initiative to teach young children about migration and its causes, at a time when the number of asylum seekers arriving in Europe was at its highest. We wanted to bring children closer to the idea of migration as a natural phenomenon, to understand what drives it (environmental, economic, and political causes), to learn the basics of intercultural communication, and to become more aware of the needs of those around them. We grew fond of allowing complex academic concepts to flow into games for kids, and we enjoyed seeing children becoming more generous, empathetic and respectful towards nature and each other.
The portfolio soon grew to include more educational tools, more subjects and wider audiences. Today, sustainability education, future skills and game-based learning are at the heart of what we do. Each project brings together its own team and partners, and each one gets the same playful twist that started it all.
How we work
Every BIRD project has its own team. Our games are built on a solid foundation of subject knowledge, design and educational expertise, and each one is developed, tested and put into practice with the collaborators and partner organisations the project needs.
We believe in interdisciplinarity, which is why our collaborators come from many fields: journalism, research, design, architecture and business strategy.
The game CUiB was developed with the Geopark Carpaterra and emerged from the collaboration with more than 200 Romanian schools, more than ten other environmental NGOs and a team of designers. "Hello World!", a coding game for children aged 8 to 10, was tested together with Kiga afterschool. The "Festival Box" was put into practice with the Street Delivery festival in Brașov and Bucharest, showing organisers and visitors what it takes to build a sustainable festival. And with the urban sustainability initiative SCUT, B.I.R.D. built a digital game on long-term thinking and the future of the city of Brașov.
Dr. Luana Martin-Russu
B.I.R.D. Founder / Political scientist
Dr. Luana Martin-Russu develops the concepts and content behind the games and educational tools, working with designers and educators where a project calls for it, and builds the partnerships behind each project. She builds these tools because she believes in the capacity of civil society to inspire social change and to support policy-making and policy implementation for a more sustainable future, an argument she also makes in her book. Games are her way of opening difficult subjects to everyone, whether the topic is sustainability or first coding skills, drawing on her expertise in sustainability research, data analysis and science communication.
Luana is a political scientist and a certified sustainability and digital responsibility expert. She holds a B.A. and an M.A. in European Studies and a doctoral degree in Political Science from the European University Viadrina, Frankfurt (Oder), Germany. She has worked at Ecologic Institute Berlin and held several research positions at the European University Viadrina, including at the European New School of Digital Studies. Her most recent research used data science methods to assess compliance with European climate and environmental policies. As a researcher and university teacher, she has always relied on visualization techniques and innovative teaching methods to keep audiences engaged with complex topics.
Timea Honț
B.I.R.D. Founder / Freelance journalist
Timea Honț is a freelance journalist collaborating with the OCCRP and several Romanian outlets. She studied journalism, strategic communication and international relations and has worked on cross-disciplinary projects in Germany, China, Mexico, Brazil and Colombia.
Over the past few years, she covered transnational organized crime in Latin America and documented the Ukrainian refugee crisis in Romania. Previously, she was a reporter and community manager for Casa Jurnalistului, the first crowdfunded newsroom in Romania. She wrote about political elections, environmental and social movements, poverty in Roma communities and domestic violence.
Besides her journalistic path, Timea has been constantly involved in social and cultural projects. She coordinates Floodlight, a global initiative that brings together journalists and filmmakers to produce fiction in the public interest, thus increasing the reach and impact of investigations. As vice president of the Cărturești Foundation, she manages Street Delivery, a yearly environmental street festival that promotes sustainable urban development and art in public spaces.
For B.I.R.D. she is bringing in her expertise as a communicator and creative strategist.
Raluca Russu Culcea
B.I.R.D. Associate / Journalist
Raluca Russu Culcea is a journalist and a Digital Marketing specialist. She has a masters degree in Communication & Public Relations from UTV (West University of Timişoara). Raluca has a deep understanding of the evolving media landscape and the interplay between content, technology and audience dynamics. She has over 10 years of experience as a journalist, having worked with some of the main news television channels in Romania, first as a reporter and news anchor, and later as Head of the Department for Social and Economic Affairs.
She covered a wide range of subjects, from environmental challenges to health-related vulnerabilities faced by lower-income and socially excluded groups, and launched several televised campaigns featuring underprivileged children, overlooked elders, disability fighters or gifted students.
In the last years, Raluca worked as a Communication Facilitator and Digital Marketing Specialist, shifting her focus towards social media, new media, and publishing in the digital age. She highlights in her work the importance of media literacy and the need to address it through education at every age.
For B.I.R.D. Raluca will bring her expertise as a journalist, communicator and Digital Marketing Specialist.
Oana Mărăscu Klein
B.I.R.D. Associate / Educator
Oana Mărăscu Klein is a dedicated professional in the field of education, with extensive experience as both a teacher and an educator. Her passion lies in shaping young minds and fostering a nurturing learning environment where children can thrive.
Oana studied German and English at the Faculty of Applied Modern Languages, Transilvania University of Brașov, from 2005 to 2008. She participated in a six-month cultural and academic exchange program in Oldenburg, Germany. Driven by her passion for education, she co-founded with her sister, in 2009, a German-language kindergarten in her hometown of Brașov. For the past 15 years, Oana has worked closely with children. In addition to running an After-School program, where she supports kids with their schoolwork and engages them in environmental education, she has also organized annual week-long personal development camps. These camps focus on bringing children closer to nature, teaching them respect for and ways to protect the environment. By integrating non-formal educational approaches with environmental awareness, she has built a reputation for guiding children toward personal growth and a deeper understanding of their surroundings.
For B.I.R.D. she contributes with her expertise in education and her passion for inspiring a natural love of learning in youngsters, helping them grow into responsible and environmentally conscious individuals.
