Impact case study database

Drummond’s books have achieved impact in three ways. They have brought significant commercial benefit for publishers through sales of copies and relicensing agreements. Through use by readers and promotion by schools and libraries, they have helped educate children worldwide on issues of environmental sustainability and resilience. They have benefitted environmental organisations and companies in their promotion and awareness-raising of environmental sustainability and the need for resilience.

Commercial benefit for publishers in the US, Canada and Japan

All three titles in the series were first published in the USA by Macmillan. In 2017 Pearson acquired rights to publish for 500,000 print and 500,000 digital copies of Green City for their School Reading programme. They subsequently bought rights for 250,000 print and 250,000 digital copies in 2019. In between, in 2018, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt purchased a reprint licence for a total of 1,380,000 users for Green City. This comprised English and Spanish versions of print copies, eBooks, and embedded audio for their worldwide Collections/Reading 2019 Program [IMP1]. The financial details of such licensing agreements are commercially sensitive, but the book has worldwide reach, being translated into Spanish and Japanese. As of June 2020, Green City had sold a total of 18,880 copies, Pedal Power had sold 7,715, while Solar Story (published in March 2020), had sold 2,185 copies. A total of 28,780 sales. While profit numbers are commercially sensitive information, the sale of more than 28,780 copies has led to economic benefits for the publishers. These have gone beyond sales of the books themselves and include benefit derived from selling translation rights and the licensing of excerpts for educational textbooks. The Executive Director Farrar, Straus, Giroux, Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group confirmed, ‘We are of course well pleased with book sales of the series in our market, but also with the success we have found in selling translation rights to foreign publishers and licensing excerpts of both words and pictures to the textbook publishing market’ [IMP2].

Impact on children through education in schools and libraries

Drummond’s books address and educate young readers on contemporary, global, environmental, sustainability issues and how these can be solved. They show the need for resilience in facing such issues. They have been used as educational material in primary schools in Ireland, the USA, Canada and Japan, benefitting young readers by raising their understanding of issues of environmental sustainability and resilience. A lecturer in the School of Informatics and Computing at Purdue University at Indianapolis noted how she had ‘woven Green City into [her] course materials as an outstanding example of how informational picture books based on real events can inspire youth in environmental topics across the curriculum’ [IMP3].

Green City was a winner of the first “Best STEM Books”, awarded in 2017 by the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) in the USA. NSTA honoured the books that push the definition of STEM beyond purely scientific books [IMP4]. The winning title was considered to have been “modelling innovation, demonstrating authentic problem-solving and assimilation of new ideas, all while exploring solutions that show progressive change or improvement.” All three books have formed the basis of educational resources developed by teachers and been used in classrooms The School Administrator at Stevens Cooperative School (Hoboken and Jersey City, New Jersey USA), where Drummond’s books are used to teach about permanent and sustainable cities noted that they ‘have undoubtedly led to an increased awareness and interest in environmental and sustainability issues’ among the children [IMP3]. A teacher at Powder Mill School (Southwick, Massachusetts USA) observed studying Green City led to ‘an increased awareness/interest of environmental and sustainability issues as well as global awareness’ amongst the children [IMP3].

The University of Alberta’s public engagement programme has used the books as part of the CAN$75,000,000 Future Energy Systems programme. The Programme Co-ordinator posted videos on YouTube of Drummond’s books being read aloud and by 31 December 2020 they had generated 1,763 views. The benefit of being able to do this under the Covid-19 lockdown is evident from the Co-ordinator’s observation that ‘Creation of this content provides many benefits. This online content means more people can connect to the work we do. Prior to this we didn’t post on social media often. Since April I have been posting on Twitter and Facebook at least three times a week and we have seen lots more engagement as a result. That is a huge benefit for us because the whole point is breaking down barriers between us, other organisations and the wider community’ [IMP5]. She created resources drawing on Drummond’s books for use in schools and with children’s organisations such as the Girl Guides.

Read-aloud versions of Drummond’s other books posted on YouTube have also been created by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Colorado, USA who posted a video of reading aloud Solar Story. Pachion Carlson read aloud Green City (4,509 views) as did Accelerated Reader, Reading books 4u (2,167 views). Together views of read-aloud versions of Drummond’s three books, including a reading of the Spanish edition of Pedal Power, total 10,172 [IMP6].

Impact achieved through dissemination by organisations and companies involved in environmental sustainability

Drummond’s books have supported organisations and companies involved in environmental sustainability to promote the agenda in this area in different countries. In Japan, The Real Estate Companies Association of Japan awarded Green City (version in Japanese) a 34,000 Yen prize for teaching young readers about the theme of disaster reconstruction, the environment and sustainable town development [IMP7]. Grand View Elementary School (Manhattan Beach, California USA) recorded a YouTube read aloud to celebrate Earth Week in April 2020 (208 views) [IMP6] and the American renewable energy company, Arcadia, promotes Solar Story as ‘one of the best books to teach kids about renewable energy’ [IMP8]. In Canada, the Outreach and Engagement Co-ordinator of Future Energy Systems noted the benefit of the books to their role in raising public awareness of sustainability issues observing, ‘Climate change and the energy transition impact everyone and it is essential that we can provide information directly to the public about the work we are doing. Allan’s books help with this because they provide an easy access point for people as they are engaging and understandable’ [IMP5]. Similarly, the education officer of the Sustainable Energy Office of Ireland, who have used Drummond’s books in school outreach work, observed: ‘It is really impactful that Allan’s books tell the stories of real-life communities; it is very empowering for people, including children, to see what is possible and aim to replicate this themselves’ [IMP9].

Reviews of Drummond’s books have highlighted their significance. The Horn Book Guide - one of the most distinguished journals in the field of children's and young adult literature - gave Green City one of its star reviews describing it as: “A triumph of both community action and scientific writing” [IMP10]. The New York Times called Pedal Power, “A celebration of both cycling and political activism” while Amazon.com included Pedal Power as a ‘Best Book of the Month’ in May 2017 [IMP10]. The Horn Book thought the impact of Pedal Power was significant, saying that the focus of the book, “is the activism of a united community that effects change and creates a precedent for worldwide bicycle usage” [IMP10]. Kirkus Reviews considered Solar Story “A valuable look at sustainability and development.” [IMP10]. The pertinence of these reviews is demonstrated in the impact that Drummond’s books have had on publishers, readers and organisations involved in promoting issues of environmental sustainability and resilience.

Salisbury’s research, closely linked to his practice, has had a distinct and material impact on the children’s publishing industry, the teaching of illustration in Higher Education in the UK and abroad, public awareness of the subject, and on individual lives and careers in a number of interconnected ways. It is disseminated by various means: through his publications, teaching, and course leadership as well as his keynotes at conferences and international bookfairs, and his TV and radio appearances. This cumulative impact is detailed below:

Impact on the publishing and bookselling industries

There are two primary areas where Salisbury’s research has had significant impact on today’s publishing industry. The first is direct financial impact through sales of his published books since 2004. These reached at least 111,473 by September 2020 (IMP1), but these figures exclude Korean and Chinese editions that cannot be measured accurately. Since 2014, confirmed sales of Salisbury’s books (Refs 1, 3, 4, 5, 6) total at least 29,219 (IMP1) with a retail value of at least £737,000. However, the published books illustrated and/or authored by graduates of ARU’s MA Children’s Book Illustration (MA CBI) programme, where Salisbury’s research influences and shapes his pedagogy, have contributed a far greater financial sum to the book publishing and bookselling sectors. There have been 401 graduates of the MA CBI in this REF period, of whom at least 140 have had at least one book published. Many of these graduates have published multiple titles and some are ongoing best-sellers in multiple languages (e.g. Antony 20 books, 17 languages; Muncaster 16 books, 29 languages; Sif 13 books; Hirst 7 books, 12 languages) (IMP2). Collectively, these graduates have published no fewer than 450 books in the REF period. Not included in those figures are the large number of graduates who have been published in their native countries / languages. Since August 2013, many graduates have created works that sell tens of thousands of copies. Muncaster’s Isadora Moon series, for example, first published in 2016, is being sold in 29 countries and has exceeded 1,500,000 copies sold (IMP2). Steve Antony’s Mr Panda series, (7 books 2014-2018) has sold more than 1,000,000 copies (IMP2). Consequently, the value to the publishing industry of sales deriving from books created by graduates of the MA CBI taught by Salisbury and influenced by his research is in the tens of millions of pounds.

In addition to the financial impact is the wider impact on the visual culture of picture-books, which is evidenced by the fact that at least 40 of ARU’s MA CBI international graduates have not only been published in English by UK or US publishers, but also in translation in many other languages (IMP2), many on a large scale. Marta Altés’s Little Monkey (2016) has been translated into 7 languages and had 700,000 copies distributed to UK schools by BookTrust (IMP2). She and other non-British artists have brought different visual heritages and influences into the English language market. Many have won or been shortlisted for international awards and achieved considerable sales: for example, Shu-Ti Liao (winner, Macmillan Book Prize for Illustration, 2015), Steve Antony (winner, Oscar’s Book Prize, 2015), Anuska Allepuz and Maria Gulematova (both shortlisted for Kate Greenaway Medal, 2019), Elena Melville (winner, Queen’s Knicker’s Award, 2020). The impact of Salisbury’s research on these successes is direct. Eva Eland’s When Sadness Comes to Call (2019) won the 2020 Klaus Flugge Prize, has been translated into 20 languages and sold more than 11,000 copies. Eland observed that ‘The few books I always keep going back to during my studies and after, are 100 Great Children’s Picturebooks and Children’s Picturebooks’ and confirmed that Salisbury’s advice was ‘pivotal in my understanding of how best to approach the subject and make the final artwork’ (IMP3). Another graduate, now a lecturer in another UK HEI, observed that Salisbury’s ‘ Children’s Picturebooks – The art of visual storytelling has served me as a ‘children’s book bible’ which I refer back to each time I embark upon a new picture-book project. Through his research, I have gained a deeper understanding of the whole book making process, for example how readers might respond to clever word-image interaction and how children’s books play an important part in shaping our future generations. This knowledge has recently helped me in my creative decision making’ (IMP3).

Salisbury’s more direct contribution to this opening up of the English language publishing market to a wider, more international, informed aesthetic in illustration is driven by his books, articles and 21 international keynotes and talks since 2013 presenting the work of artists previously unpublished in the UK and US (IMP4). A prime example is Beatrice Alemagna (IMP2) who has won 10 international prizes since 2014, whose work was not known to the English language market prior to being commissioned to design the covers of both editions of Ref 3, but is now widely published in the UK and USA. As well as the primary impact from Ref 3, there is significant ongoing impact from other authored books (Refs 4, 5, 6) all of which bring an historical and international perspective to a wide audience, the reach widened by illustrated reviews in major international newspapers and journals including the Washington Post, the Guardian, the Observer and the Literary Review (IMP5). Evidence for this impact is primarily in the form of testimonials from key figures in the children’s publishing industry, on whose work Salisbury’s research has impacted directly. The Editorial Director, Thames & Hudson observed ‘Martin’s prescient recognition of the best illustration from around the world has encouraged a wider recognition within the book trade of the value of this broader outlook. As a result, the material that is now being published in the UK offers a much more diverse range of approaches to illustration than was ever the case previously, so that the UK is now located within a network of international illustration from which it was largely excluded previously’ (IMP6). Sir Quentin Blake contributed a recommendation for the cover of the second edition of Ref 3 – ‘it would be hard to find a more knowledgeable and experienced guide to the wealth of them (stories in pictures) than Martin Salisbury’.

Impact on and through education

Salisbury’s books have become standard texts for illustration courses around the world at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. 52 colleges and universities in the UK and around the world confirmed, when surveyed, that Children’s Picturebooks is a recommend reading text on their course (IMP7). His books have contributed to a greatly increased interest in children’s book illustration and ‘the art of visual storytelling’ in particular. Since Salisbury designed and launched the first MA in the subject, four UK universities have followed, three since 2013. Of his twelve practice-based PhD graduates, eight have combined their high-level practice as illustrators with academic posts, including at universities in the UK, since 2013 (ARU, Bath Spa, Nottingham Trent, Colchester School of Art, UCA) and overseas (University of Evora Portugal), bringing their research into aspects of the practice to another generation. One graduate, now a lecturer at National Autonomous University of Mexico commented ‘ Children’s Picturebooks and Illustrating Children’s Picturebooks had a great impact on my approach and my process. In his books, Professor Salisbury condenses and structures the creative process in a way that allows for the necessary freedom and creativity, but also sets specific steps to ensure the result of that process is a well thought-out and thoroughly researched product … I have been able to use the knowledge obtained from Professor Salisbury’s research in my own projects, and I have conveyed that knowledge to my own students’ (IMP3).

Impact on public and academic awareness and understanding of the art of illustration

This takes place through presentations at literary festivals, TV and radio appearances, participation as a jury member and chair of judges for international illustration and publishing awards - such as Bologna (2014), Frankfurt (2017) - and through invited keynote lectures (Sao Paolo (2015), Bangkok (2020), Beijing (2016), Bologna (2016), Ljubliana (2017), and Bogota (2018)) (IMP8). Further industry and public impact is achieved through advisory roles such as to the Victoria & Albert Museum’s exhibition: Winnie the Pooh: Exploring a Classic (2017); supporting the UK Children’s Laureate, Lauren Child on curating a 2019 exhibition; being a member of the panel selecting the Irish Children’s Laureate in 2015 (PJ Lynch), and appearing in and helping with research for Mark Gatiss on John Minton (BBC4, 2017) (IMP8). Salisbury contributes regular illustrator obituaries to the Guardian and an occasional column on illustration for the Literary Review. These multiple contributions / interventions at the heart of the world of illustration can be seen to exert significant cumulative impact on public understanding and appreciation of the work of the illustrator.

Impact on individual lives and careers through MA course

Over the last ten years, the UK’s main industry awards for illustration have been dominated by students and graduates of the ARU MA CBI course, designed and taught by Salisbury and based on his research. As well as the high proportion of graduates now working as published author-illustrators, many are also teaching, or working in publishing and other areas of the creative arts. 93% of the 186 respondents to a graduate survey agreed that the MA was life-changing or highly influential in their career. One author observed ‘ Illustrating Children’s Books and Children’s Picturebooks: The Art of Visual Storytelling …gave me a lot of technical and practical info that helped me to organise my work and find my creative voice’ (IMP3). Another, a winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal 2018, commented that Children’s Picturebooks: The Art of Visual Storytelling has been a source of clarity (IMP3) and insight, while the Publishing Director of one publishing house observed that through the MA CBI a significant and lasting contribution had been made to the children’s book industry.