Monday, May 24, 2010

Social interactions without trash

Trash is borne out of, and is a byproduct of, our desire to control what we experience. This has led to the development of social interactions which necessarily involve the production of trash, especially because of sentiments like complacency, ignorance and carelessness, as well as notions of time. There are many simple and fundamental acts that we perform in which we allow trash to be generated. Take for example going to eat at a fast food restaurant. In that light, I am trying to envision a world, a region, a community, or an interaction without trash. I want your suggestions on situations in which you would think trash could not possibly be generated, but ends up being so. Then I want to take trash out of the picture. Say it wasn't even possible to generate trash - what would that interaction morph into? What changes in behaviour would be required to have that interaction? How is this then a critique of our social constructs? Please send in your thoughts. My wheels are turning, too.

1 comment:

  1. Check out this trash-free community event this weekend:


    Play Ultimate for the Environment!
    Ultimate Frisbee Charity Tournament
    This Saturday, May 29, 2010
    10:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
    Lillie Park in Pittsfield Township
    $10, proceeds benefit Ecology Center

    The Ann Arbor Ultimate League's Spring Charity Hat Tournament is Saturday, May 29 at Lillie Park in Pittsfield Township, just south of I-94 on Platt Rd. Sign-up will start at 10:30 am, first pull is at 11:00 am, and will go until 4:30 pm. We will provide 3 or 4 games, and a party with food and drink afterwards.

    Registration is available online and will also be available onsite before the games start. Please register online if you can. The cost is $5 for Ann Arbor Ultimate 2010 Spring League members, or $10 if you are not playing in the league. If you are a non-league member and are paying online, please remember to bring an extra $5 to the tournament.

    This will be another "green" tournament, so everyone is asked to bring his or her own plates (frisbees make great ones) and cups for beer or pop (your normal water bottle is great for this). If you have camping utensils, please bring those as well. We hope to make this a "zero waste" event!

    There will be a raffle, and you will get extra tickets for biking, carpooling or taking public transportation to the event.

    Register today!

    For more information, please contact Brian Amer.


    The Ecology Center works for a safe and healthy environment where people live, work, and play.

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