Can Crafts be Zero waste?
Since the last few years, we have been celebrating National crafts month with various themes, like- Traditional Crafts, Crafts and Folklore, Art with Museums.
Though we have always been mindful about sustainable methods and materials, this year the theme itself was Recycled Crafts for health of Water. It wasn't a novel activity but definitely a sincere effort to cut down our waste or in a wider sense, our carbon footprint, Water footprint. (Yes, Water footprint is a thing!)
So were our Crafts a Zero waste activity? Let's check and discuss at the end….
Technically, in today's world, nothing humans do is fully zero waste; unless we are to follow the indigenous lifestyles that too from pre- industrial age.
What does Zero waste actually mean?
No thrashable waste created? No new materials used? No harmful by products created? All of the above? None of the above?
Many web pages have tried to explain Zero Waste (some have the website by that very name too but one can see a huge carbon footprint in their promotional events)
There are also many well formulated examples on net, one of them i could resonate with-
" Zero Waste: The conservation of all resources by means of responsible production, consumption, reuse, and recovery of products, packaging, and materials without burning and with no discharges to land, water, or air that threaten the environment or human health."
- under the name of EPA website
Whats important is how and how much of what we know and talk, can we put in action.
Forget the more contaminating sectors of present times, the Art market by itself can make a big difference if we acknowledge the need to be ecologically alert and environmentally inclusive by rethinking MATERIALS. Especially short term Recreational Art activities for kids, fancy art camps that use pompoms, sparkles, stickers, in overflowing quantities. Do we need these to beautify? Some might say- Yes. Can we avoid it and still create beauty? -?
#RETHINKMATERIAL- What, How Much
All the picture sequences here are from this year's creative projects that mainly ran through March (National Crafts Month) and April (Earth Day Month).
When it comes to Climate/ Atmosphere/ Land/ Water/ Air, there are no borders, The Butterfly effect is real. Whatever I do or not do affects the Whole. Its not a philosophy neither rocket science. But to realize the effects of choices we make, needs a bit of mindfulness, a bit of slowing down to be able to see what I do and what are its consequences, not with a self interest myopic eyes but open with heart for all that exists.
Traditional Festivals and Celebrations create a residue that can increase a group’s waste by multiple time in just one event. By changing our outlook towards festivals and focusing on their true essence might be more helpful moving forward.
So,
which project seems closes to Zero waste? Which is furthest from it? why?
Which products will most contaminate the land? which ones will pollute our Waters?
Even if one wants to, It is not easy to go completely green depending on where you are based. The system dictates the laws and in some measures our life styles.
As someone once said- with what we have, where we are we should do what we can.
Hope I have not come across as opposing art activities. It was an effort to share better ways of handling our materials tools and natural resources while encouraging creativity Sustainably
Efforts/ actions are individual that can turn into collective but results will always be communal- for good or bad of all.