EACAP team, Reimagined Rubbish, consists of Michelle, Pao, Sam, and Nigel.
left to right: Sam, Nigel, Michelle, and Pao
Sam and Michelle are freshmen at Berks. Sam is majoring in Global Studies and Michelle is majoring in Business Management. Pao and Nigel are the sophomores of our group. Pao is majoring in International Business and Nigel in Writing and Digital Media.
Service
We worked with Dr. Chambers to create an art piece made entirely out of trash for the art exhibit, Breaking Barriers Building Bridges to be displayed in the Freyberger Gallery. Our team decided to create a piece that tied back to the pandemic, utilizing trash that held relevance in terms of quarantine trends. For example: covid test kits, disposable masks, banana bread box recipes, to DoorDash orders.
The Weight of Waste
Our group chose to construct a globe made entirely out of trash we collected either individually or during our trash collection days on campus and at Gring’s Mill. The base of the piece is made from the hubcap of a tire found at Gring’s Mill park. From there, the globe is supported by two opposing end caps made of Starbucks cups. Inside of each are references to pandemic-related issues. Some of the things that are featured are: disposable masks, mask and test certification papers, Covid test instructions, latex gloves, toilet paper rolls, and DoorDash order tickets. The core of the globe consists of trash we collected such as wrappers, plastic, bottle caps, and pen caps. It was then wrapped in layers of plastic and paper to create the crumpled looking effect of the globe itself. Blue and green trash scatters around the globe to give it familiarity. Then, the earth was encased in a clear plastic lining. More trash can be spotted stuffed into the gloves on the piece that symbolize the need for all of us to reach out and take both individual and collective action to better the health of our planet. In the background is a broken clock our team found and used to emphasize that time is of the essence. We set the clock to 4:22 as a nod to Earth Day.
Below are our “honorable mentions” that we found and although were cool, just were not able to make it into the final piece.
Research
Our inspiration for this piece came from a global event that has truly left its mark on all of us. We often heard about the environmental benefits the pandemic brought as people travelled and worked less. Carbon emissions plummeted, water quality improved, and ecological systems were restored due to declines in tourist traffic. That said, our group wanted to approach the topic in terms of the harmful environmental impacts the pandemic brought, and what better way to address medical and quarantine-related waste than through a project that uses that trash to create an art installation!
We broke down research responsibilities down to 3 specific categories with 4 group members. Those topics were general waste (quarantine related waste), medical, and mask related waste.
We first delved into broad research detailing the overall causes and effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on people and the environment. To highlight more specific aspects of life impacted by the pandemic, our group researched its impact on medical waste usage and disposal methods, emphasizing sustainable development goals created by environmental organizations like the WHO to be met by several sources as well.
Reflection
All in all, our group realized through our trash collection days how often we simply overlook the litter around us. It doesn’t take a lot of time to simply put trash where it belongs, but if we can take a second to pick up litter, it truly makes the difference. We learned the importance of doing our part. The project itself taught us how to collaborate as a team and incorporate different visions together. Our initial idea entailed stuffing a transparent trash bag with all the trash we collected. This plan did not go accordingly, as we lost the spherical look and it also wasn’t balancing. We adjusted accordingly and downsized. The next challenge we faced was balancing the globe with the added weight of the curved metal piece. We used the glove to help support the piece, and added the other to show that the hands are reaching out, urging us all to action.
Our group efforts taught us all valuable lessons. We learned to work with each other’s strengths, and also helped one another in areas of weakness. We also all became more aware of our waste-related impact on the planet. It was eye opening to see how much waste resulted in quarantine. It made us reconsider disposable masks and the consequences of things like overconsumption and instant gratification.