Art, Farming and Sustainability: The Alaskan Way Hanging Gardens

Photo Credit: Sustainable Seattle

Sungold tomatoes, amaranth, salad burnet, broccoli and eggplant... did my tummy just grumble? No, this isn't a farmer’s market shopping list. These are just some of the vegetables found in plastic semitransparent milk jugs, attached together with twine, hanging five feet above a concrete sidewalk to a row of trees at the Seattle Waterfront, between Alaskan Way and Wall Street to be exact.

Last month, we posted on our Facebook page about this unexpected urban garden, named Alaskan Way Hanging Gardens. These sweet little plants, even equipped with a drip irrigation system, on a busy downtown street warmed our urban agriculture hearts. We just had to find out how this project came to be. Turns out, it took two city departments, one artist/urban gardener/chocolatier, and a couple sustainability minded concepts to build this garden that is actually, art.

Dream a Sound Future Final Event a Huge Success

On 10/10/10 Sustainable Seattle held its Dream a Sound Future Final Event at the Seattle Center Pavilion. The event was made possible by generous gifts from a long list of collaborators including Frog Box, Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation, SCALLOPS, Feet First, Washington Lawyers for Sustainability and a special thanks to Mike O'Brien City Council member who gave the keynote speech to launch the day.

The event had twice as many entries as was our original goal and the variety and talent of the entries were astonishing. We had musical performances including original songs, raps, and music videos shot entirely in the city of Seattle.

We had artistic visions of the future with a variety of mediums from oil on canvas, crayons, pen and ink, to collages, clay, and wood. The entries were pictures and words all around a concept of a more sustainable world with practical applications, dreams, and aspirations. We had performance art, essays and audio recordings, a break dance crew and to tie it all together we had a wonderful MC, Ania who was the program lead for the entire event.

One of the most interesting aspects of the event was an entry that was an audio recording and performance piece. The audio was of two women talking in a coffee shop about the past, our present, and talking about some of the things that we didn't know that has fundamentally changed the society in which they lived. It was an optimistic and sometimes haunting recording talking about the unlimited potential of human beings to bring about positive change if we only have the courage to start taking those initial steps.

We are already looking forward to next year's competition and if you want further information you can email us at dream at sustainable seattle.org. We look forward to making the next Dream event even more successful and far reaching than the first. Thank you to all participants and sponsors and let's get started on our next iteration!

Dream a Sound Future Press Release

April 19, 2010

Sustainable Seattle Launches Dream a Sound Future-a Dream and Design Competition

Sustainable Seattle

Phone: +1.206.622.3522
Email: laura@sustainableseattle.org, ania@sustainableseattle.org, nathan@sustainableseattle.org

SEATTLE--Sustainable Seattle, in collaboration with Sustainable Cascadia, SCALLOPS, Seattle Climate Partnership, Washington Lawyers for Sustainability, Feet First, Great City, and Seattle Parks & Recreation is pleased to announce the launch of Dream a Sound Future, a dream and design competition inviting members of community to think creatively and dream up a vision of a sustainable future for Seattle and the Central Puget Sound.

Far from a standard design competition, Dream a Sound Future calls on all levels of community to help create a vision and define the key transition steps in achieving that vision by the year 2100. In conventional or unconventional ways, through paintings, performance arts, architectural models or artificial intelligence, the only limitations are the participants' own imaginations in how they choose to articulate and present their own vision of a sustainable future.

Sustainable Seattle is also pleased to announce that there are still slots open for the K-12 Challenge portion of the Dream program. The K-12 challenge is open to school age young people who have a vision for what their future will look like in the greater Puget Sound region. Students are encouraged to participate as individuals or teams in open ended designs or projects. There will be prizes, recognition, accolades, and most importantly the chance to see their vision put into practice by inclusion into a Library of Dreams that will inspire and educate future dreamers.

The launch event for Dream a Sound Future Challenge is being held at the Golden Gardens Bathhouse on April 29, 2010 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. There is no fee and participants are encouraged to donate whatever is their comfort as we will not let price be a barrier to attending this first annual event. There will be food, fun and music and a special guest speaker, Dr. Sharon E. Sutton.

Dr. Sutton is an internationally recognized leader in the field of education and innovative teaching methods. She has a focus in architecture and community development and her research has received funding and recognition from a wide range of organizations including the Ford Foundation, the Kellogg Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Registration for K-12 Challenge is open now and due May 5, 2010 with a possibility of extension if needed. Further information about the competition is available at www.sustainableseattle.org.

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Sustainable Seattle

Founded in 1991, Sustainable Seattle (S2) is a non-profit organization that promotes sustainability in the Central Puget Sound, nationally and internationally. S2 creates cutting edge products, processes and leadership that propel people and communities forward in reaching sustainability. S2 strives to create healthy communities, economies, and ecosystems by serving as an incubator for emerging people, projects, and ideas, as a convener of diverse citizens and practitioners, and as a catalyst for turning indicators into action

Sustainable Seattle’s mission is to advance an integrated vision of urban sustainability by measuring progress, building driving coalitions and undertaking key initiatives. We accomplish this mission by working with diverse individuals, communities, businesses and government agencies to build awareness, assess progress, and take action on collective sustainability goals.

Journalism that Matters part three

On Saturday the conference was in full swing and the sessions that were offered were varied and relevant to journalism and to sustainability. The session I choose was not even a choice, but a directive. The session hosted by Michell Ferrier was on the connections and opportunities between local food and journalism. Anything that has food in the title sure is persuasive.

The group was diverse with journalists, professors, new media entrepreneurs, self described citizens, students and techies. The conversation veered from the local food industry into the heart of journalism and its connection to a well informed and healthy public.

The local food phenomenon has made many people aware of the positive benefits to eating local. The cost of transportation, inefficient packaging and the damage to the health and taste of food transported from all corners of the earth have brought the idea of sustainable living from the theoretical to the dinner plate. Local food not only benefits the minds and bodies of those who eat it, but also helps the local community become more strengthened as money stays in the community instead of flowing out of town, or out of state.

The session focused on the use of food and local producers of food and the concept of engagement in the community. Food as a gathering apparatus is well known, and no major human event takes place without someone snacking on pretzels in the background. The session touched upon the need for communities to have their stories told and the need for media to cover what is happening on the local level.

One suggestion that was given was to use Festivals that celebrated the local community's speciality. Festivals could be used as a gathering of social import as well as a celebration of all things local. One participant gave the idea of using Salmon as the focal point for Pacific Northwest Festivals.

After the session was over I stayed to talk about what Sustainable Seattle is planning for this year and I was even interviewed for the Journalism that Matters live stream about how journalism and healthy communities are inextricably linked. Sustainable Seattle also made some connections to local media sources and possible collaborative efforts may be the fruit of this labor.

Journalism that Matters, part two

Notes from the Journalism that Matters Conference breakout hosted by The Daily of University of Washington.

Eeeek. It was so hard to pick a session. The sessions were created by attendees who had a desire to host sessions, so totally on-topic…..and so desirable! Sustainable Seattle attended the session focusing on respect in communications. We attended with Ashoka/Youth Venture (an organization that creates continuous chain of empathy for youth 12-20, empathy in action, and a change maker campus program, and changemakers.com where there is a local and global) and WA Farm worker Housing Trust (a nonprofit that does policy and advocacy to ensure farm workers have a safe place by working with all the stakeholders to find common ground, a strategy that is working with state legislature!).

Our session host, Kristin Millis, posed the notion if journalists listen and respect the public, readers, and those we write stories about, news and media entities would be more trusted and would stay in business.

• · All stories are newsworthy: What ever anyone has to say, has value to them, so that individual should be treated with respect. If you can’t provide them coverage, offer them resources.
• · There is always a story: There is always truth in a story: Stop, listen, ask, find out more, take the time to find out more. Take the time to listen.

With a journalist at the table with three nonprofit representatives, we adapted these lessons to our efforts: Nonprofits tell stories too- we need to ensure the stories we tell are accurate to our community, and we can do this by listening, and by telling the stories that fulfill our goals and provide information for better decisions (by nourishing people and encouraging action) and that provide a context – the good, the norm and the bad – not just the bad. Nonprofits also are conduits for changing behavior. Collaborating with others in getting the message out is a great way to get the message out, and is cost effective- in many ways! Collaborating in communicating also allow the nonprofit and all to get a better idea of the story.

Journalism is funded by advertisers. So- we asked about the proof in the pudding: As the UW Daily focused on respect, it took leaps and bounds in national advertising and has done well comparatively in the economic times, with drops about half as much as others. Local advertising composition changed, with overall growth in local advertising. New room costs dropped because staff became more effective at their jobs.

Tips for non-profits -How to sell a story: Come into a newsroom and talk to someone. Don’t make an appointment and show up in the mornings or early afternoons. Try to find a reporter and build rapport. When you send a press release, don’t make it look like a press release- use real working, from the heart. Give the journalist something to write about. Tell the journalist what the nutgraph is (what is the heart of it? What is the story about? What is the most important thing) Give the journalist a list people and their contact information and why that person is a good person to talk to. Send photos that connect the journalist to the story. Give the other side of the story- even a hint – of who and what that story is. Who have you talked to? Let us know who.

Journalism that Matters part one

Sustainable Seattle was invited to host a table and participate in Journalism that Matters. We came to learn, to change and to affect change from this un-conference for transforming our world through the communication.

Norm Rice spoke to being a green city council member in 1978. As a grad from the School of Communications, he identifies the importance of effective communications. Norm talked about how he once worked to address the issues of how minorities gain access to electronic media and how access to electronic media transforms lives. He said that while he did not find the solution, seeking for it transformed his life. Civic engagement was and is fundamental: Being heard. Can you frame the question to bring out hopes and dreams so we can articulate and work with strategies for moving forward. Do not frame in the negative, Norm cautions us, ask for a transformation in specifics: What does sustainable transportation look like? Gathering people, facilitating meetings, helping people speak and ensuring people listen creates consensus on issues. When organizations- governmental, non-governmental and others partake in active learning after bringing people together to discourse, people step up to the plate, engage in working together to solve a problem. Accountability and political will on the part of policy makers are key to implementing civic engagement. Communicate the aspirations and goals on a civic engagement process- this process is key – it is a long process, and this process is key in success. The civic engagement process is about life and hope – civic engagement is a process by definition. Life, hope and aspirations are the engine that keeps the process alive. When the task is accomplished, the people will remark- “we have done it ourselves.” This is the mark of success.

Chris Jordan came on and asked us to reach into our hearts, to think with our hearts, to speak from the heart. Allow your heart to be broken, and to be broken again. Speak authentically. Take the templates off. Care. This is the key to transforming space, shifting our world. This is the key to reaching the wisdom we all carry, to reaching those big huge goals we are seeking, and feeling so close and yet, like Tantalus, so far. Chris Jordan is a visual artist who uses consumption products to depict and emphasize the amount of waste in the American culture.