A common myth about writing: It’s a solitary art. But I’ve never been very good at writing alone and while the image of the lone writer in a secluded cabin might be romantic, it’s appeal starts and stops in my imagination. Functionally, writing is always an act of reaching outward: to the anticipated reader, a future self, a time unknown. I write because I’m trying to understand the world, what I owe it, and how to love it.
SEEDS is a project that stands for Social and Environmental Exercises for Design Beyond Sustainability. I learned from working with Norah in Livable Futures that sustainability too often means sustaining extractive practices. In a time where the term sustainability has become overused, but fails to strengthen our connection to the Earth, I found the opportunity to look at design practices beyond sustainability. These are practices that invite us to remember our part within the intricate systems of the Earth, creating personal and professional action that integrate life of all beings, minerals, plants and unseen forces into our work. I call this way of being (and thinking) Earth-centered, meaning that it shifts our perspective from prioritizing the human species to considering the totality of the Earth when making choices in our lives. Through this intention, SEEDS was born, offering activities that inspire us to take Earth-centered action towards a better collective future for all.
Since 2015, Livable Futures artistic director and co-founder Norah Zuniga Shaw has been creating performance experiences as climate justice activism. As she shared in a recent interview, “it is not about instrumentalizing dance to talk ABOUT climate change, although that is really important as well, but in our work, we are using the intrinsic practices of dance improvisation and sonic arts to do climate activism directly, like a 21st century techno-poetic teach-in.”
With support from Livable Futures, Design student Susan Booher spent the summer working with Elizabeth Speidel and the elders and children at Columbus’ Champion Intergenerational Center to plan to a garden, maintain and harvest together. The intention of planting a garden is to foster intergenerational interaction and education.
