NEWS

Kbaumlier quoted in the U.K. Guardian – Miranda July’s movie the Future

Kbaumlier quoted in the U.K. Guardian – Miranda July’s movie the Future

Posted on by Kbaumlier

Last week I was interviewed about Miranda July’s film The Future, which opened in the U.K. this weekend.

The movie focuses on the relationship of a couple have been together for several years but their lives are starting to drift into an odd malaise.  The couple decides to adopt Paw-Paw, a shelter cat, in a month after he’s healed up, and they see that as the beginning of the end for any dreams they may have had.  The story features quirky elements such as time-stopping conversations with the moon, a shirt that can move on its own, and the film is narrated by the cat waiting to be adopted.

The film premiered at the Sundance festival this summer, and is now playing in the U.K. and the rest of the world.

You can read the article which was printed today here on the guardian /The Observer at :
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2011/oct/30/miranda-july-chic-or-indulgence

Links:

The Future – movie website

A clip of Miranda July at the Sundance Premiere

The 7 Billion of Us – All Together

The 7 Billion of Us – All Together

Posted on by Kbaumlier

If you haven’t heard yet – this weekend the population of the world will be 7 billion.

The 7 billionth baby somewhere in the world will be born around Halloween (or maybe if he/she is lucky – on Halloween.)

A study found that it will be possible to feed up to 10 billion people – but that it will not be easy.

The study offers some core strategies to meet future food production needs and environmental changes.

Some of these strategies are:

  • Stop farming in places like tropical rainforests, which have high ecological value and low food output;
  • Improve crop yields in regions of Africa, Latin America, and Eastern Europe where farmland isn’t meeting its potential;
  • Change farming practices to better manage water, nutrients, and chemicals;
  • Shift diets away from meat; and
  • Stop wasting food (up to one-third of all food grown is wasted either in production, transport, or after purchase).

What is the carbon footprint of a baby born this weekend?

Over his/her lifetime, each American born in the 1990s will produce an average of:

  • 3.1 million pounds of CO2 (same as 413 plane trips from New York to Tokyo)
  • 22,828,508 pounds of water waste (the equivalent of 48,060 10-minute showers)
  • 16,372 pounds of yard waste (enough to fill 442 large garbage cans)
  • 7,249 pounds of food waste (as much as 16 households produce in a year)
  • She/he will eat 1,654 chickens, 74 turkeys, 25 pigs, 11 cows, two sheep, and 18,675 eggs.
  • And she/he will use 1,870 barrels of petroleum (enough to fuel a Subaru Outback for 822,800 miles).

 

 

Ecowatch.org, The Cuyahoga River, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks

Ecowatch.org, The Cuyahoga River, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks

Posted on by Kbaumlier

Yesterday I went to a public event that celebrated the launch of Ecowatch’s new nationwide news service website.  EcoWatch, publisher of EcoWatch Journal which has a  distribution of more than 80,000 copies across Ohio,  launched its new nationwide news service which will be based in Cleveland.

The website—www.ecowatch.org—went live the morning of Oct. 27 and will  unite the voice of the grassroots environmental movement.  This will be the first media source to focus exclusively on environmental news from more than 700 environmental organizations across the country.

The site focuses on five critical issue areas—water, air, food, energy and biodiversity—and covers topics including renewable energy, water and air quality, sustainable agriculture, fossil fuel depletion, solution-based sustainability projects, species protection, global warming, climate change and pending legislation.

The site of the event was in Rivergate park, which is near the historic site where the Cuyahoga River caught on fire 42 years ago in June of 1969.  This event played a major role in starting  modern-day environmental movement and creation of the Clean Water Act.

The event started  with short speeches from Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson; Cleveland City Councilman Joe Cimperman; the George Gund Foundation’s Senior Program Officer for the Environment, John Mitterholzer and the Cleveland Foundation’s Program Officer, Nelson Beckford.  The speakers commended the work that Ecowatch has done for Ohio, and talked about the potential that the new nationwide website will do for the country.  Joe Cimperman showed support for Cleveland saying that, “Cleveland is a place that learns, earns, and shows why the best is yet to come.”

The keynote speaker at the event was Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., founder and president of Waterkeeper Alliance.  Kennedy talked about how the environmental movement is not about protecting animals – but people.  He talked about how the parks, rivers, and waterways are assets of the community – and assets of the people.  “We don’t have to choose between good environmental policy and good economic policy – we can have both,” Kennedy stated. He then talked about how the environment is an investment and will create economic prosperity in the future.

He talked about the power of grassroots organizing – and talked about what it was like before Earth Day in 1970.  Lake Erie was called “dead,” you could not swim in the Hudson and other rivers, large cities had smog so bad that you would get black soot on your clothing, and most waterways were polluted.  He talked about the Cuyahoga River burning in Cleveland – and that this was the catalyst for 10 million people going out into the streets demanding rights to clean waterways and fisheries.

Kennedy mentioned throughout history – all tyrannies take away public access to wildlife and waterways – and that it is time for us to take this back.   He went to say, “At this time all of the Great Lakes have fish that are deemed to be uneatable, and we need to continue to fight the polluters!”

After the event, I was able to walk by the banks of  the Cuyahoga River in the park,  which had a quiet but strong presence at the event.

Links:

Ecowatch – www.ecowatch.org

Water Keeper Alliance

Rivergate Park

“Microtecture,” Off the Grid LED Lighting, and the Designers Accord Town Hall Meeting

“Microtecture,” Off the Grid LED Lighting, and the Designers Accord Town Hall Meeting

Posted on by Kbaumlier

Last night I attended the first Designers Accord Town Hall meeting in Cleveland.  Hosted by  SmartShape Design, CIA, IDSA Northeast Ohio Chapter and AIGA Cleveland Chapter at the Cleveland Institute of Art, the event was intended to create discussion on how design can create positive environmental and social impact in the local community and beyond.

There were several presentations by designers in Cleveland which included David Levine of Wireless Environment ( a company focusing on off the grid LED lighting), King Heiple of Recharge Power (a company which produces products that are for recharging electric cars), PJ Doran, of APOC ( a group which rescues and upcycles good wood from houses) and F*SHO Collective (annual furniture show in the Cleveland area), and Doug Paige, from the Cleveland Institute of Art.

The presentations focused on presenting an overview of what the companies and groups did – and each presenter would end the presentation by framing  some key questions for discussion – which were to be discussed in later breakout sessions.

Some of the highlights of the night:

David Levine summary which included the questions, “ What if a light could go on and off the grid – like a laptop?  What can be wireless in 2015?  What if lights would store up power at night, when the cost of power is cheaper, and go off the grid during the day?”

PJ Doran presented about his current project in microtecture, trying to make small 150-200 square feet living spaces that are affordable, low-maintainance, that have a low impact on the land,  and can be moved.  His presentation was the most engaging of the night – and he showed several interesting examples of microtecture and presented the question, “How can we create creative sustainable, small living solutions?”

Doug Paige, who I work with at the Cleveland Institute of Art,  talked about a current group project he is a part of which is using biomimiciry o create solutions to the challenges of desalination of water.  (biomiciry is a process where models, systems and process of nature are examined to solve human problems.)   The project addresses the question of, “ How can we crate efficient, modular desalination systems that work with the principles or “rules” of nature?”

This was the first event organized by the Cleveland group of The Designers Accord – which is a global coalition of designers, educators, and business leaders working together to create positive environmental and social impact.  The group has a Design Education toolkit that you can view on the  site or download as a PDF.

I had to leave before the breakout and discussions began – but the information will be posted online at a later date- on the Designer Accord website  – presenting ideas about Cleveland, design, and sustainability and social impact.

LINKS:

The Designers Accord Site

IDSA Northeast Ohio Chapter

AIGA Cleveland Chapter

A Piece of Cleveland (APOC)

F*Sho Cleveland

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eat your fruit – and wash it too… the Vanishing Fruitwash Label

Eat your fruit – and wash it too… the Vanishing Fruitwash Label

Posted on by Kbaumlier

Designer Scott Amron  has designed a “Vanishing Fruitwash Label.”

Instead of peeling off the label on a piece of produce and throwing it away ( or sticking it to your fridge) – you wash the apple, peach, or other piece of fruit and the label dissolves into an organic fruit cleansing produce wash that helps remove wax, pesticies, dirt and bacteria.

This is especially great for produce such as apples and peaches, which are usually sprayed with the most pesticides.

Vanishing Fruitwash Label

Scott Amron’s Site – www.amronexperimental.com

 

Image credit:  www.amronexperimental.com