Humans & Nature Press Digital publishes creative work that explores and promotes human responsibilities in relation to the whole community of life.

For our 2025 open call for digital submissions we welcome your writings and artwork on the theme of seeds as both the offspring/wellspring of the plants and also as metaphors for resilient reimagining and active adaptation. Seeds are teachers. Seeds intend to grow. Seeds carry the experience of all who came before, and seeds hold resiliency based in ancestral adaptation. Seeds are inherently generative and life-giving.

In this time of accelerated climate and social change, what are the seeds we are planting for the future? What are we growing in our gardens and communities? What are the forms of adaptation and beginnings that we want to enact at this point in our shared histories? What ancestral knowledges do we retain and reinvigorate that will further the flourishing of humans, and other-than-human beings? What are our intentions and offerings for the generations who follow us? How are we cultivating transformation in this time?

Words for inspiration: creativity, diversity, resiliency, adaptation, gardening, germination, genetics, interspecies relationship, generational knowledge, growth, knowledge transfer, seed sovereignty, seed keeping, rematriation, animacy, radical joy, belonging, listening, enchantment, embodiment, urgency, slowness, deep time, crafts, roots, dialogue.

We accept submissions within the following categories:

• Essays: We welcome submissions of original essays, narrative journalism, experimental nonfiction, lyric essays, and personal essays that have not been published elsewhere (including personal blogs, websites, and social media). Essays should be 1,000–2,500 words.
• Poetry: Please submit pairs or groups of up to four poems that complement, contrast, and can be published together and that have not been published elsewhere (including on personal blogs, websites, and social media).
• Artwork: We consider any form of visual or auditory art which can be captured and shared on our digital platform. Please submit at least 3–10 work samples. We are seeking works that speak to the seed theme and display your artistic vision. We accept all media including photography, sculpture, painting, collage, drawing, film, sound art, multimedia, etc. Please include an artist’s statement of 750–1,000 words describing the work and how it relates to the theme of seeds.
• We accept only one submission per person within a submission period. We welcome multimedia artwork; please refer to the category definitions above to select a category of best fit for your submission: essay, poetry, or artwork.
• Submit documents in a .doc format or as a JPG file via our Submittable account. When you submit, please include a bio and headshot.

Please note that Humans & Nature Press Digital does not accept essays, images, or documents that have been generated or extensively edited by AI. We value the authenticity of the content submitted to us. Please ensure that any work you submit reflects your own creativity and effort.

Concurrent submissions are welcome. If you have submitted elsewhere, let us know in your cover letter that this is a simultaneous submission and please withdraw it from the Center’s Submittable if you agree to publication elsewhere. Returning contributors are welcome to submit.

Contributors receive an honorarium of $500 USD upon publication.

This year’s submission window will be open from June 24 through July 15, 2025 at 11:59 pm CDT. When submissions are open, a link to the submissions portal will appear on their official page.