Humankind is the world I wanted to live in when I was a kid… and honestly the one I still want now. Maya, Dallas, Ankka, Nika, Axel and a whole cast of friends drawn by hand, all trying to be a little kinder than the day before.

It ran from 2021 to 2023 as a character universe and a web3 collectibles brand. Humankind Studios built the stories, the world, and the brand. The Humankind Fund backed artists so they could make things without money breathing down their neck. Art and kindness were the tools of the trade.

The whole thing kicks off with a nostalgic object: a lunchbox. Holders would "burn" theirs, and out of the fire a Humankind character would appear. A little ceremony. You give up the thing you're holding, and you get a person instead.

I drew the burn as a ten-frame story, each scene built in layers so it could move.

The characters are called Stanleys. Some of that is a family joke I'll never explain. They come in every shape: a kid in a wheelchair, a little brujita, a zombie with tired eyes, a mecha suit. The rule was simple. Everyone belongs, everyone is a little strange, everyone is trying.

A world only feels real once you can hold a piece of it. So the Stanleys jumped off the screen: shirts, stickers, a skateboard, artist collabs, and a photoshoot where real people stood in for the little weirdos. "Kind punk" became a thing. Be kind, but loud about it.

In 2023 I ran the whole cast through Inktober: 31 days, 31 drawings, no skipping. It's the kind of thing that hurts by day 18 and feels great by day 31. A good way to end a chapter, drawing every single day until you can't anymore.