Advocating climate change on a green blog journey
Sustainable Solo cup is a green blog brimming with information on sustainability in the design of space. It talks about the most pressing environmental issues and their implications on the environment. Sustainable solo cup examines topics such as adaptive reuse, sustainable materials, and energy efficient sustainable strategies in buildings. |
Photo Credit: AP Photo/ Josh Edelson Ghost ship – this name will bring chills for quite some time for all of us. Ghost ship ironically turned out to be a ship that carried away 36 beautiful souls early this December 2016 in the Fruitvale neighborhood of Oakland, California. Called out as the one of the deadliest fire accidents after the West Warwick, Rhode Island fire which claimed 100 lives. Ghost ship was a warehouse which was not suitable for a multi-use development or at least not zoned for it. There was no ‘change of occupancy’ request provided to the city nor was any permit taken for organizing a special event on the premises. The fire department also stated that the database of the buildings they hold was compiled 15 years earlier and that no updates have been made. The city officials during the mass grave hunt in the site called it a “labyrinth of artist studios”. It was stacked with antiques, music equipment and furnishings mostly wood. The building had been constantly reported for space overrun by rats or faulty electrical system caused by circuit boxes. The fire department did not find any records of inspections done at the Ghost ship. So was the ghost ship completely invisible before this incident? Photo courtesy : SF Gate The manager of Ghost ship Derick Almena when asked by NBC news said that he was just trying to build an artist collective and did not want to harm anybody. He did confess that he didn’t have enough money to make the changes that were required and so had to do good with whatever was existing. While questioned if he is accountable for this, Mr. Almena broke into wild emotion and talked about the plight of artists and how “an Artist's Dream is bigger than pocket book “. So, who should be held accountable for such a tragedy? Who can help so that we don’t have any more Ghost ships? As a designer, I question myself if design could solve and save lives? I would like to believe that the answer is a Yes! Here is some design strategies I looked into for this particular design problem. Would you call this a design problem? Absolutely! Design problems are unique and complex and often require innovative solutions. Design problem solving involves creativity, not just dealing with the aesthetics but a way of life. A question addressed in the current research is how design can build on the stated idea of “artists collective” and also solve the issue of housing problems. Can there be buildings with more than one use? Yes. But, with the right knowledge and coordination in all aspects of design, some of the factors that should be considered for a new development are illustrated below: The present work was limited to the study of one such problem. Further research can be done and innovative solutions can be explored by creativity and informed decisions. If you do believe that design could help solve problems in the society and it can enhance the way of live, share this article with your peer folks and comment what other issues design thinking would be able to solve.
0 Comments
I dreaded those Saturday mornings when I had to attend the community clean up with my coworkers as a part of the corporate social responsibility for the company I work for. But by the afternoon it would turn into a great staff bonding for the team, thanks to the service man who guide us throughout the day. I enjoyed every single of those community clean up’s and the value it was bringing to the community. It’s simple tasks like this that remind us that without the community helpers, we would be living a city filled with cigarette butts and trash everywhere. From snowflakes sparkling on Market street to cleaning roads, planting trees, constructing design facilities and educating communities, SF public works has done it ALL. Established in the year 1900 known as Board of public works and now as San Francisco Public works has an annual operating budget of 256$ million. It operates directly under the city administrator and the mayor of the city. Whether it is weathering El Nino or organizing spectacular annual parades and celebrations, their dedicated staff works strategically and around the clock to ensure that our city is always presentable. Here is a glimpse of the projects they have worked on the last year. Above: Snowflakes adorn the market street Above: Street resurfacing Above: Public works week Above: Creating street parks Above: Starbucks clean up program Above: Urban cleaning program Above: Arbor day planting Above: Urban forestry
So, next time u see a group of people in orange safety coats working in your neighborhood, you should definitely go down and thank them for their service. If you would like to enroll yourself in their volunteer community cleanup opportunities, or to inquire about specific events, please send an email to [email protected]. If you did like this post and would want to know more about what’s happening in and around San Francisco, bookmark my blog and come back for more such articles. redit: Courtesy of Kathmandu post On the recent Fox News Sunday interview, President-elect Donald trump promised he would quickly take a stand on the Dakota pipeline access and the keystone pipelines as soon as he takes office in January and he also stated that he is “ studying the Paris climate deal and wants to know if the United States has any competitive disadvantage over other countries”. So what is the Paris climate deal and why is it so important in the coming year of 2017. According to the UNFCC – United Nations Framework convention on climate change, the Paris climate agreement for the first time brings all the nations into a common cause to undertake ambitious efforts to combat climate change and to reduce their individual carbon footprint. The main goal of the agreement was to mitigate greenhouse gases, adapt to new technology and finance technology that supports the effort. The Paris agreement requires all agreed countries to work towards nationally determined contributions also called NDC’s. The agreement went into effect on the 4th of November, 2016 and the countries will report the NDC’s to all the parties in the year 2018. According to the UNFCC, the aim of the convention is described in Article 2, "enhancing the implementation" of the UNFCCC through: "(a) Holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels, recognizing that this would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change. (b) Increasing the ability to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change and foster climate resilience and low greenhouse gas emissions development, in a manner that does not threaten food production. (c) Making finance flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development." This agreement works on a ‘name and shame’ system where no parties are held responsible by a committee. As the agreement provides no consequences if countries do not meet their commitments, consensus of this kind is fragile. A trickle of nations exiting the agreement may trigger the withdrawal of more governments, bringing about a total collapse of the agreement. So far, 193 out of 195 countries have signed the agreement. Credit: Guardian Graphic
Source: World resources institute Above is a graphic showing the percentage of greenhouse gas emissions by the country. It’s no new news that United States comes second with 17.89% of greenhouse gas emissions after china. China also the world’s largest coal producer has reached its peak in coal usage in the year 2013. Now after the US election result, the Paris agreement is in uncertainty. President-elect Trump promises to expand gas and oil drilling and to scrap Obama’s signature clean power plan which was set to fight the US emissions. So would President-elect Trump withdraw from the deal? What we do have to understand from the fine print of the pact is that NO single country can cancel the deal without the other countries agreement to abandon it. Also adding to it is a clause which states that the action of withdrawal cannot happen within the first 3 year period and thereafter a yearlong notice of withdrawal period. Ironical how it equals the presidential term period of time. So let’s say, there is no taking a back step for all the countries that signed the deal, there is only going forward and it’s time for the United States to keep up with the other innovative and economically competitive countries who have already moved onto low carbon system and sustainable living solutions. If you believe and share the same sentiments as me, bookmark this blog and stay tuned in to know whats happening in the climate change movement. Credit : damcretu.tumblr.com Do you all remember the famous Willy Wonka 3 course meal chewing gum which turned out not so fortunate for Violet Beauregarde? There was also speculation that this gum stick would eradicate malnourishment and food deficiency from the face of the planet. Though we still haven’t reached that day, we continue to struggle to feed the poor and ironically throw out an average of 133 billion pounds of food into landfills every year. Here it is of how it looks like when we finally run out of resources to grow food and turn to synthetic food to feed ourselves. Would you eat protein induced bio-plastic? Or dust vitamin and mineral powder into your mouth? Johanna Schmeer in collaboration with Christian Schmeer imagines the future of food with her conceptual artistic project – Bioplastic fantastic, where she believes that that instead of growing more food, we need to rethink food in its entirety. Bioplastic Fantastic from Christian Schmeer on Vimeo. Credits: Director of photography: Christian Schmeer Creator and Director: Johanna Schmeer If you did enjoy this story, bookmark this blog and come back for more such intriguing stuff. |
AuthorHarini Meda is a Interior designer based in San Francisco, California. Interested in Environmental Change advocacy and believes in leading a happy and a sustainable life . Archives
December 2016
Categories |