On April 12, 2011, the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)
opened the flood gates of sustainability during its 5th
Annual Sustainable Business and Design Conference. Motivated by
last year’s oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, this year’s theme
was “The Liquid Planet” (www.fitnyc.edu/sustainability)
and focused on water as one of our most precious resources.
Guest speakers including academics, biomimicry experts,
scientists, CEOs, photographers, and explorers ushered in tides
of inspiration, enthusiasm and knowledge.
Rise and Shine
Attendees awakened to the “Local Water Issues” morning panel as
Kevin McAllister, Peconic Baykeeper, led the discussion and
introduced guests to “nutrient pollution.” Although the term at
first sounds like an oxymoron, he went on to describe that it’s
in fact “a plague to our waters” (http://peconicbaykeeper.org).
This type of pollution occurs when too many plant nutrients,
such as phosphates from manufactured products, i.e. fertilizers,
detergents, etc., enter the waters and cause an over production
of algae, leading to the loss of seagrass beds and other forms
of life. Kevin provided the audience with further insight and a
plea, akin to his comments from a recent press release:
“Nutrient pollution from the tens of thousands of cesspools in
our region is a monumental threat to our waters, yet it has been
largely ignored. Suffolk County regulations limiting the amount
of nitrogen from onsite wastewater treatment systems (OWTS) that
enters our groundwater to protect drinking water are clearly
inadequate in protecting surface waters. Maintaining superior
water quality should be a priority. We must act now to save our
bays.”
Sharing the story of one New York family who cannot drink or
shower using their tap water, Andriene Espositio, Executive
Director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment discussed
Hydrofracking and the consequences of gases and carcinogens
entering the environment and drinking water (http://www.citizenscampaign.org).
She explained how the family uses bottled water to drink/bathe
because the chemicals in their tap water caused their children
to become ill and burned their skin; once a week they go to
their relative’s home to take a “safe shower”.
The conversations inevitably flowed from local water issues to
regional and global concerns. Andriene talked about the
importance of our Great Lakes, which contain 1/5 of the planet’s
fresh water, yet society continues to dump toxic waste and other
pollutants into them (http://healthylakes.org).
She also described the Vortex of plastic bags in the oceans,
which are annihilating sea life. For example, animals mistake
them for food, i.e., jelly fish, and the bags either choke the
animals or disrupt their digestive systems, which could lead to
starvation or dehydration. Andriene displayed photos of an
animal’s carcass that washed up on shore; most of the flesh
disintegrated and what was leftover was the animal’s bones and
the plastic bag. Although devoid of a heartbeat, our artificial
plastic bag lives on to destroy nature again. She urged the
audience to rise up to a new way of thinking and to make wise
decisions.
Mother Nature’s Intelligence
Look to Mother Nature as “mentor and model” was the message
given by Mark Dorfman, green chemist and water expert from the
Biomimicry Guild, during his “Nature’s Myriad Water-based
Technologies” session. He detailed some of nature’s creative
solutions for survival, such as modifying the physical
characteristics of various animals, insects and plants (www.asknature.org).
For example, beetles living in the Namibian Desert have
hydrophilic bumps on their backs. The beetle sticks its back
into the air and the bumps allow it to capture moisture, which
then runs along its body and into its mouth. Mark also
described how the water bear organism can remain un-hydrated for
decades, trees pump water upwards to survive and lotus leaves
are designed so water runs off and keeps the leaf clean in order
for its cells to absorb the sunlight.
Waves of Light
The momentum of enthusiasm and curiosity flowed like waves
through the audience, generating whirlpools of conversation and
interactions among attendees as they navigated around FIT’s John
Reeves Great Hall, absorbing luminant exhibits that were created
by our bright students, and as they attended the conference
breakout sessions. On display were garments made from organic
materials, accessories made from recycled products, green
architectural designs and sustainable business projects from
FIT’s Schools of Art and Design and Business and Technology.
Highlights of the breakout sessions included “Our Common Water”
by David Hopkins, an Environmental Coordinator from Patagonia,
and a tour of FIT’s green roofs, where vegetation is thriving
several stories above NYC.
Deep Heights
Light radiates not only from above but also from below. During
the lunch break, guests enjoyed a video of underwater
sculptures, photos of which are included in this article, by
Jason deCaires Taylor (http://www.underwatersculpture.com/pages/gallery/film/film.htm).
As described on his website, his “underwater sculptures
create a unique, absorbing and expansive visual seascape.
Highlighting natural ecological processes Taylor’s interventions
explore the intricate relationships that exist between art and
environment. His works become artificial reefs, attracting
marine life, while offering the viewer privileged temporal
encounters, as the shifting sand of the ocean floor, and the
works change from moment to moment”.
Viewing the images, one senses the artist’s strength in
projecting creativity. He dove deep, tapped into his current,
and through brave and direct expression, was able to shower the
audience with inspiration. One raindrop from a cloud of courage
penetrates the cells of a petal more than all the mist from an
ocean of fear.
Pure Intention
Joshua Onysko, founder and CEO of Pangea Organics talked about
how the decisions society makes continue to compromise our
water’s cleanliness in his “Purity Starts with Purpose”
presentation. He covered various data on America’s excessive
water usage, the hundreds of thousands of unregulated chemicals
used in consumer products, genetically modified organisms, and
played 2 short videos.
The first video he presented documented Pangea Organic’s process
for sourcing seaweed, an ingredient in its product line. The
company obtains its seaweed from Naturespirit Herbs, a
family-owned business located in southwestern Oregon. As the
video played, it was evident that Naturespirit Herbs harvests
the seaweed in a mindful manner, with great respect for the
ocean’s resources. “We harvest an average of one out of every
four plants…that preserves the integrity of the ecosystem,”
stated James Jungwrith (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gP8DB8f2t7s).
Additionally, Joshua advised the audience that prior to
harvesting the seaweed, the people at Naturespirit Herbs say a
prayer and give thanks to the earth for its generosity and
resources. This reminded me of passages from a book that I just
read “Deep Cinema” where the author, Mary Trainor-Brigham,
references many Native American, Caribbean and Polynesian
Indigenous ceremonies, among others, and the immense reverence
the natives have for the environment.
Joshua presented another video of an impromptu interview with a
man he met on the beach, during his seaweed sourcing trip. The
man said that his favorite thing about the beach is that “it’s
where the sea meets the land….where balance happens” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPRPlai9QM0).
When Joshua asked him what is the most important thing he
learned in life, the man replied realizing that we are all part
of the same family and “connecting to the universe.”
Other Worldly Experience
Photographer, explorer and writer Anne Doubilet, of the
Explorers Club, described the feelings she has, her awareness,
when photographing as “other worldly experience”, during her
“Pole to Pole: From the Ends of the Earth” presentation. She
dazzled the audience with scenes from The Artic, Papa New Guinea
and The Antarctic and identified her amazing water images, some
of which were taken during sunrise/sunset, as “molten lakes”,
“fire to ice”, “wind brushed waves” and “glowing sea.” Several
times during her presentation, she expressed her special love
for the Red Sea and identified it as her “favorite area.” In
one of her videos (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zs_b7z_v1zo),
Anne shares the feelings that submerged her as she walked
through vast energetic crowds in NYC and sensed the similarity
to swimming among teeming schools of fish near Australia; she
realized “these people don’t know it but they are connected to
the fish”.
Finite Liquid
The message that trickled down from all sessions and rippled
through the audience is that in order to lead a sustainable
lifestyle, society should break through the dams of complacency,
become mindful of our environment and view water as a “finite
rather than infinite” resource. Surging ahead, Mary Trainor-Brigham
advises society to “perceive this Earth-Water-Heavenly Planet as
more than mere resource: as ensouled, and we sharing in that
Life”. Similar sentiments surfaced during the Lifestyles of
Health and Sustainability (LOHAS) 2010 Forum (www.lohas.com),
which I attended last summer; Dr. Elliot Dacher, MD Internal
Medicine and Shaman and Healer Brant Secunda explained how a
truly sustainable lifestyle must first start with a person’s
internal spiritual realizations and connectivity to nature
before it can be extended externally to society and the
environment. And we could use all the advice available whether
it comes from an activist, artist, shaman, farmer, academic,
CEO, photographer, scientist, student, writer, doctor, or from
meeting a newly discovered family member on the beach.
It’s uncertain how long the planet can continue providing us
with enough water needed to survive. One thing that is certain
is that our connection to water is also physically “internal.”
Water makes up over 50% of our bodies and over 70% of our
brains, with waves of energy flowing through our bodies and
thoughts; dive deep, embrace the light, claim your current and
illuminate.
