I Dream in Green
15 February 2009
Actions: What You Can Do With the City
Through April 19th, The Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA) presents the exhibition Actions: What You Can Do With the City, an exhibition with 99 actions that instigate positive change in contemporary cities around the world. Seemingly common activities such as walking, playing, recycling, and gardening are pushed beyond their usual definition by the international architects, artists, and collectives featured in the exhibition. Their experimental interactions with the urban environment show the potential influence personal involvement can have in shaping the city, and challenge fellow residents to participate.
Action #85 is "Plastic Bag Feeds Neighborhood," a system for the transformation of vacant lots into community gardens, using plastic "grow" bags (pictured) filled with dirt, seeds, and water. In London, concrete lots lacking soil were planted with beets, kale, and broccoli, among other things.
Through April 19th, The Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA) presents the exhibition Actions: What You Can Do With the City, an exhibition with 99 actions that instigate positive change in contemporary cities around the world. Seemingly common activities such as walking, playing, recycling, and gardening are pushed beyond their usual definition by the international architects, artists, and collectives featured in the exhibition. Their experimental interactions with the urban environment show the potential influence personal involvement can have in shaping the city, and challenge fellow residents to participate.Action #85 is "Plastic Bag Feeds Neighborhood," a system for the transformation of vacant lots into community gardens, using plastic "grow" bags (pictured) filled with dirt, seeds, and water. In London, concrete lots lacking soil were planted with beets, kale, and broccoli, among other things.
Labels: action, canadian centre for Architecture, gardening, plastic bags
¶ 4:19 PM 2 comments
05 February 2009
Greenopia & the return of the Brown Bag Lunch
As we call try to cut corners every way we can to save money during these tough economic times, a tried-and-true method is regaining popularity: "brown-bagging" it.
A recent study from The NPD Group, a market research company, reports that weekday lunches carried from home reached a new high point in 2007, with adults 18 and older carrying some 8.5 billion brown bag lunches last year. More than half of these lunches are consumed at the workplace, and most often at the diner’s desk or workstation.
According to Greenopia, a website that provides consumers with the means to make daily decisions that reduce their impact on the environment, the average school-age child who carries a lunch daily generates 67 pounds of waste per school year. That works out to 18,760 pounds of lunch waste for just one average-size elementary school. While brown-bagging might be good for family finances, in the long run, it can cost people more in terms of waste removal and environmental damage.
To decrease the amount of trash generated by home-packed lunches, Greenopia suggests:
–Replace paper napkins with cloth versions that can be washed and reused.
–Pack stainless-steel utensils instead of using disposable plastics. Do not send knives to school.
–Use reusable drink containers instead of disposable juice boxes, juice pouches, cans and plastic bottles.
–Avoid using plastic wraps, plastic bags, wax-paper bags and aluminum foil whenever possible. Opt for reusable containers instead.
–Cut down on packaging waste by purchasing foods in larger containers that can be divided into individual servings at home rather than buying many smaller packaged products.
–Choose sturdy lunchboxes or backpacks over paper or plastic bags. Remember to wash lunchboxes thoroughly before packing the next lunch, or at least wipe them out with a cloth soaked in an antibacterial product.
As we call try to cut corners every way we can to save money during these tough economic times, a tried-and-true method is regaining popularity: "brown-bagging" it.
A recent study from The NPD Group, a market research company, reports that weekday lunches carried from home reached a new high point in 2007, with adults 18 and older carrying some 8.5 billion brown bag lunches last year. More than half of these lunches are consumed at the workplace, and most often at the diner’s desk or workstation.
According to Greenopia, a website that provides consumers with the means to make daily decisions that reduce their impact on the environment, the average school-age child who carries a lunch daily generates 67 pounds of waste per school year. That works out to 18,760 pounds of lunch waste for just one average-size elementary school. While brown-bagging might be good for family finances, in the long run, it can cost people more in terms of waste removal and environmental damage.
To decrease the amount of trash generated by home-packed lunches, Greenopia suggests:
–Replace paper napkins with cloth versions that can be washed and reused.
–Pack stainless-steel utensils instead of using disposable plastics. Do not send knives to school.
–Use reusable drink containers instead of disposable juice boxes, juice pouches, cans and plastic bottles.
–Avoid using plastic wraps, plastic bags, wax-paper bags and aluminum foil whenever possible. Opt for reusable containers instead.
–Cut down on packaging waste by purchasing foods in larger containers that can be divided into individual servings at home rather than buying many smaller packaged products.
–Choose sturdy lunchboxes or backpacks over paper or plastic bags. Remember to wash lunchboxes thoroughly before packing the next lunch, or at least wipe them out with a cloth soaked in an antibacterial product.
Labels: brown-bag lunch, ecotopia, lunch bag, lunchbox
¶ 11:24 AM 0 comments
