INQUISITIVE NATURE
The original idea for this blog manifested years ago. I wanted to create a space where I could research and share the hidden stories and consequences behind the everyday things we consume. I attended a few ocean clean ups, did a little digging on how long “compostable” forks actually take to degrade (it’s a long time), designed a logo in 5 minutes, and then essentially forgot about it. It’s funny how we can be inspired to start something in a particular moment in time, only to realize it was meant for a completely different one.
The 5-minute logo
I am not, either by vocation or skill, a writer. My chosen path is as an Architect. A profession which plays an outsized part in the extractive and consumer-driven mindset that is rapidly altering life on this planet. In my 17 year career I have had the privilege of working with a handful of incredibly inspiring firms whose mission is to reverse this trend, whether it be through the use of carbon sequestering natural materials or through a design ethos built around life-cycle and carbon analyses. Each inspired me to appreciate the bigger picture, and see the intricacies in the relationship between how we live and how our buildings are made. This, coupled with an indescribable fascination with waste, has inspired me to want to finally dust off some old ideas and put them to paper.
There are plenty of places to go for facts and figures about the climate and waste crisis our planet faces, and I may reference a few of them here. But for the most part, I want this blog to focus on everyday consumer habits and offer some perspective, hopefully, on where they came from and what we can perhaps do differently. There’s a strong chance nothing I say will be novel and this all already exists on one of the billions of websites suffocating this increasingly digital world (insert Squarespace discount code here). But this exercise is new to me, and an attempt to find my own voice amidst the cacophony of voices out there. I’m not here to shame anyone’s behavior. I simply want to practice writing, practice thinking more systemically, and learn more about the origins and impacts of the choices we make as consumers.
As I have shifted my practice towards Regenerative Design, I have come to see the importance of connections in every aspect of our lives. Nothing exists in a vacuum, and even seemingly small and insignificant choices have consequences that ripple through both time and space in all directions. Call it my inquisitive nature, but I refuse to accept that a single-use disposable world is the only choice we have, and through this forum I hope to shed light on the many brilliant solutions that already exist out there to avoid a future where convenience and consumerism dominate all else. My goal here is to use my training as a designer to inform you as a consumer, so you may do so armed with the bigger picture. How that changes your behavior, is up to you.