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these aspects are important to me today. i think it is important that we find methods to provide shelter without having a large impact on our ecosystem. i think it is important that we only use what we need and that we find ways to work with the environment, not against it.
these aspects affect who i am in every sense. i feel very close to nature and i am striving to apply this to all areas of my life... i think sustainability is important. i would like to find a balance in my life in order to be a better person... and i hope that it does affect my art and design.
i want to design buildings that are environmentally friendly and work to reduce the emission levels that buildings and homes are currently producing.... i think that sustainable development can work to address many of the issues people face today including homelessness, global warming, pollution, etc. By addressing the causes, we can work to find solutions for problems that are very real for the people they affect....
i think there are wonderful developments that have allowed designers to build differently. for me, taking care of the environment is just part of who i am. anything i do in my life, will be closely related to this belief...
this affects every aspect of my life from the books i read, to the art i create, the music i listen to, everything.... i enjoy where i am at school and feel that the program i am in, offers no constraints or resistance to what i want to do.... i am a full-time student, a small business owner, an avid music follower, an artist, a tree hugger, an explorer, a book worm, and a free spirit..
*Regarding Environmental Sustainability: I think it is important to look at differences around the globe relating to population, gross domestic product, rate of natural increase, consumption patterns, emissions standards, etc. There is a huge disparity between more developed countries and lesser developed countries. The United States, for instance, continues to produce and consume at an alarming rate, yet hesitates to take responsibility for its environmental impacts. At the same time, there are lesser developed countries in the world that are trying to meet their basic needs for food, potable water, and shelter. I think an important aspect of the Millenium Development Goals will be addressing these issues and finding ways that we can deal with these disparities, while making environmental, economical, and social benefits a priority. This blog will reflect my thoughts, inspirations, contradictions, blahblahs regarding this........*
"Well I think as designers we realize that design is a signal of intention, but it also has to occur within a world and we have to understand that world in order to imbue our designs with inherent intelligence so when we look back at the basic state of affairs in which we design.. we, in a way, need to go to the primordial condition to understand the operating system and the frame conditions of the planet and the exciting part of that is the good news that's there because the news is the news of abundance and not the news of limits and I think as our culture tortures itself now with tyrranies and concerns over limits and fear we can add this other dimension of abundance that is coherent, driven by the sun, and start to imagine what that would be like to share" --William McDonough, from the Monticello Dialogues
"I have no doubt that we will be successful in harnessing the sun's energy.... If sunbeams were weapons of war, we would have had solar energy centuries ago." --Sir George Porter, quoted in The Observer, 26 August 1973
“Humanity is part of nature, a species that evolved among other species. The more closely we identify ourselves with the rest of life, the more quickly we will be able to discover the sources of human sensibility and acquire the knowledge on which an enduring ethic, a sense of preferred direction, can be built.� --E.O. Wilson, author of The Future of Life
watch the last part of The Lorax:
*note to self: go to youtube.com to see the whole thing*
a city is constantly being pumped with energy and has to release at the same rate if not faster. people want things now: it has to be bigger and better. people are in a rush: have to get to work, the mall, the game.... we run around and hardly notice each other
"My name is the Waker
And I'm bringin' you the morning sun
I've pushed the old man up forever
Still I feel I've just begun
I've just begun
My name is treetop
And I'm higher than you'll ever be
I'm married to my roots here
Still I feel like I am free
Feelin' I'm free
My name is blue sky
And I'm bluer than all of you
I've watched you run around forever
Always searching for something new
There's nothing new
Feelin' I'm free
I've just begun
I'm always young
Love's always new"
Lyrics from "The Waker" by Widespread Panic.
i think this song is thoughtful.... it seems like we are always running around looking for something new. i think i would rather be like a tree................
nature takes its time. it is high-energy and bursting with fruit flavor, but nature is quiet and peaceful.... not to say it is never unkind... but a walk in a park is usually just that. we should be more like that. i want to design buildings that function like trees. cities should work together like forests: we should be aware of our energy usage and wastefulness... nature provides us with a lot.. it is important that we maintain a balance......
"Sustainability takes forever. And that's the point." --Wiliam McDonough
Little Earth is a housing project located in the heart of Minneapolis. It was started in 1973 by members of the American Indian Movement. At that time, they saw American Indians in Minneapolis living in abject poverty with no access to healthcare or job opportunities. They wanted to provide them with a chance to find connections with other Indians in the metro to help make the transition from life on the reservation to life in the city a little easier and also to help them keep their traditions alive.
This becomes a social issue, in my opinion, when things like drug use, gang-related activity, and police brutality, are commonplace today at Little Earth. Some people view this housing project as an inner-city reservation or an Indian ghetto-- these labels are unfair and untrue. It seems that a lot of the trouble at Little Earth is being caused by outsiders, not necessarily the residents themselves. Little Earth has often run into problems with funding, as well. Crime levels tend to follow patterns of poverty within neighborhoods: Little Earth eventually became a Section 8 housing project and the living conditions are sometimes questionable to say the least. There is a lot of gang-related activity within the younger groups of people, residents and visitors alike. This contributes a lot to the increases in crime at Little Earth. There has always been a lot of tension between residents of Little Earth and the Minneapolis Police Department; however, the police are called on for assistance when it is absolutely necessary. Unfortunately, I think it is tough to get out of a living situation such as this. Especially if it is the only thing a person can afford and the fact that they are probably surrounded by family and friends. It is not to say that the situation is hopeless.
There are many programs at Little Earth that have been implemented to curb crime, provide job opportunities and healthcare, and to encourage the youth to become educated. It is my belief that education is important when dealing with issues such as these. It is important for the residents and the public alike. The only thing that stereotyping does, is make it harder for people to get on their feet and initiate change. Often, people ignore areas like Little Earth, and decide that it has nothing to do with them. But shouldn't the safety of the community be everyone's concern? Or can we walk quickly past with our heads down and only know it as "a bad part of town"? We should remember to keep an open mind and to help others when it is in our power to do so.
Tell me and I'll forget. Show me, and I may not remember. Involve me, and I'll understand. - Tribe Unknown.
Read: "Little Earth: The Troubles" http://citypages.com/databank/27/1338/article14559.asp
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