Sara Chavdarova Gradinarska

Main inspiration and idea:

For my midterm project, I plan on creating several pieces of jewelry. The jewelry will, of course, contain plastics, and I plan on using thread to bind the pieces of plastic together to turn it into a wearable. I will also use thin wire as the means of attaching the earring to the wearer’s ear. 

I chose to create jewelry, since I believe that this is a beautiful way of repurposing plastics creating something new, useful, and fun to wear.

I hope to combine weaving and twisting methods to create jewelry similar to the following:

Here are some images that I will use as inspiration for my wearable:

Environmental facts that address the importance of repurposing plastic waste and justify the creation of my project:

My midterm project will include pieces of plastic and cloth waste with a central theme around the Earth’s oceans. Each of the materials for the creation of my earrings represent a main pollutant of our oceans-plastic lids, plastic packaging, cloth fragments, metal wires. In addition, the lacy cloth on top of the earrings is meant to allude to the discarded fishing nets that marine life often get entangled in and unfortunately result in fatalities. Lastly, the shape and symmetrical design of the earrings represent a ship’s wheel and the colors are chosen to compliment an overall nautical theme.

Collecting the necessary materials and producing my wearable:

I will be using materials i find in the IMA labs such as fabrics, plastic pieces and wire, as well as plastic bottles that I have previously purchased.

Midterm project progress:

I have already made significant progress in my midterm project. I collected pieces of cloth, blue thread, 2 plastic chips can lids, metal wire and cookies plastic packaging in an attempt to create a jewelry set. I also used discarded multicolor wires from the IMA lab on the 8th floor, which I twisted into one piece, as decoration for my earrings. I have already completed the earrings from my jewelry set. The sketch below illustrated the materials I used for the earrings and the way in which I combined the materials to create the final product.

Preparation:

I used the chips can lids as the base of the earrings. Then I cut the bottom part of the cookies container and pasted it with tape to the lid. Then I placed the colorful, twisted wires on the border of the lid and attached them with tape to the plastic cookie packaging. Afterwards, I wrapped the blue woolen yarn around the earrings in a star pattern, which I once again attached with tape. Then I cut circles from the plastic bags I collected, with random patterns which I pasted on the center of the earrings to tie the whole piece together. 

To create the earrings hole for attaching to the ears, I twisted a metal wire I found in room 823 and pushed it through a whole I made in the yellow chips lit. Finally, I found a rather interesting piece of cloth in the IMA lab, which was a white lace-like material with holes. It worked nicely as the final touch to the piece, which gave the jewelry a dainty feel. Lastly, I recreated the same process to create a second earring, using the same materials and process of creation.

 

Continuation:

By the end of the midterm project deadline, I plan on creating a matching necklace for these earrings using plastic trash in similar colors and similar material combinations, provided that I am able to find them in the IMA lab.

Testing the plastic heating press:

During last class, I partnered up with a classmate to test out the heating press, which would aid us in the creation of our midterm project. We chose to use the heat press, rather than the irons to practice molding/fusing together multiple bits of plastic, in an attempt to learn the right amount of heat and time needed for type 2 plastics.

We chose two regular plastic bags and placed them between two baking sheets in the heat press. Initially we did 120 degrees celsius for 9 seconds to see if the plastic fused together, however, we discovered that the time was not enough and the two plastic bags were unattaching from one another as soon as we removed the plastic bags from the press. 

We made several attempts of fusing the two bags together to create a plastic “purse”. We tried different time settings, as well as different heat settings but ultimately, we discovered that at a temperature of about 120 degrees for around 15 seconds, the plastic bags seemed to steal pretty securely. It would be interesting to try a higher temperature of heat, however my partner and I were worried that the plastic would start burning, since we noticed that the machine began to emit a rather chemical smell once we attempted to change the degrees of the machine to a higher amount.

 

 

Conclusion:

All in all,  the method was rather effective at fusing the bags together, however I am not quite sure I will be using the knowledge I gained from this experiment in my midterm project.

Trash video research and documentation:

In an attempt to gain facts about trash sorting on campus and its disposal, my team sought out the Academic Building’s property manager and had a conversation with the head of the trash disposal team to fully understand the efforts that NYU Shanghai uses. We learned the trash disposal and sorting process in the B2 level of the cafeteria as well as the lengths the school ayis go through to resort improperly sorted trash.

During the collection of our research we visited the 10th to 13th faculty floors in school and examined the way trash was discarded there to gain awareness of whether different age groups recycle in different ways. Upon inspection, we discovered that regardless of whether we visited a student-populated floor or a floor with solely faculty offices, there were mistakes made in trash sorting in all cases.

Poster we created for the awareness campaign:

 

Link to my team’s trash awareness video:

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1kBoO54Mq2tAhDIGwLf1sOsZb3Qr7jOFF

Idea for midterm project:

 

An idea that I have for the midterm project is maybe a wearable hat or visor made out of fused and melted together plastic pieces which could act as the visor hood. For now, I plan to use a heat press and maybe the vinyl cutter to add creative elements to the design of the hat. As for the strap of the hat, I plan on using a band or elastic materials from cloth bags or totes. in addition, I would be interested in creating jewelry out of cords or thread or other recycled materials woven together.

 

(to be continued)

 

UseDem company: the first denim upcycling company in Shanghai

We were introduced to the company UseDem which is run by a Russian-born lady that was previously in the fashion industry but realized the amount of pollution that the industry contributes to the environment and decided to make a change. During the talk we learned that 70 million units of denim clothes are discarded by Shanghainese. We also learned that jeans require special conditions to decompose although they are decomposable. A concerning fact was that the washing process for 3 jeans is 16000 liters of water, which is shockingly enough water for a person for 22 years. Jeans require a disconcertingly long process to be created. 5% of a company’s jean production are thrown away and discarded and often never repurposed. The main idea behind the company is not the production of a product but rather the production of the idea and message of saving the environment.

 

She released that one pair of jeans can make 1 backpack. One backpack retails for 660 rmb. The company’s main competitor is the company Freitag which also uses plastic materials and upcycles them to create different variations of bags with unique designs. In addition, the company encourages donations of jeans from consumers, which results in a discount for that consumer should they wish to purchase a backpack.

I found the guest speaker talk particularly interesting as it presented a creative and innovative way to repurpose textile waste, significantly decreasing the environmental pollution, with a primary focus in denim fabric.

 

Trash Collector Guest Talk

In today’s class, we were visited by a trash collector that works in the Shanghai area. He told us about his job and the various kinds of waste that he deals with on a daily basis. He shared various interesting facts with us about trash collection in Shanghai. Here are some notes that I jotted down during his talk:

• Residual trash is most common
• It often contains dirty paper which needs to be sorted by hand
• Wet trash is a significantly smaller category and it consists mostly of food leftovers
• Toxic trash includes medical waste and is collected by his team after a company calls in trash collectors
• Residual trash contains: clear trash is recycled but if it is black or brown or dirty then it goes into residual
• Textile waste is counted as recyclable
• Textile waste is priced depending on how much fabric you get from each piece
• Friday and Saturday are good business days since on those days most trash is produced
• Recyclables are mainly collected from companies
• Rising prices reduce the amount of trash available
• Holidays are bad business days
•  

He also shared various notes on his day-to-day schedule and shed light on the challenges he faces on the job:

• His workday typically starts at 5:30 am when trash from the day before is collected
• Wet trash trucks come at noon
• 6am-8pm are his general working hours and he does not go to bed until 10:30pm
• he says that after the policy was implemented in Shanghai there is less trash and the trash that is present is relatively cleaner

In terms of the recycling habits of local Shanghainese citizens in the compound in which he collects trash:

• There are still people who randomly throw trash and refuse to adopt trash recycling laws
• Shanghainese families tend not to listen to proper waste disposal, while foreigners and the elder population is particularly receptive to proper waste disposal
• He now receives less money than he did before for trash per kg

Class Time and Trash Awareness Video Project:

(to be added)

Trash Map Group Assignment

The group assignment for the week was the Trash Map. This assignment consisted of creating a visualization of the trash route on campus. Together with my teammates from the trash installation piece, we created a visual representation of the path of trash in NYU Shanghai and the ways in which the campus ayis dispose of and sort the trash.

This is the illustration of our trash map. We followed the ayis to the B2 area of the cafeteria, where the trash sorting takes place everyday. The first step in the trash sorting process begins with the students that sort their recyclables and food waste after their meals. This is done in the 3 large trash cans by the dishes conveyor belt area.The trash is then collected by the ayis.

It is interesting to observe that a lot of the ayis end up placing the trash which is previously sorted in the 3 containers(recyclable, residual and household waste) in the same container, which is then taken to B2. Surprisingly, this trash is once again sorted into different types of waste. This is done by hand by the ayis in the B2 area.

This is a video taken by my team member James Chou of the trash sorting in B2.

The following are some facts we collected about trash sorting on campus, after our interview with one of the B2 ayis:

-The NYU Shanghai building actually has two different companies of ayis working. One group works from 10F-15F and the rest works from B1-9F. 

-The Ayis from 10F-15F only collects the trash and throws it down to B2, they do not do any sorting.  

-Then, the Ayis from B2 start their work of sorting at 2pm, and finish around 3:30 sometimes to 4. Then at night they do another sorting from 6pm to around 8pm but sometimes to later time as well.

 

In addition, we discovered several interesting facts about trash sorting on campus from our talks with camPus employees. Since its start in 2014, trash sorting awareness has been gradually implemented at NYUSH. According to the ayis, an average of 15 buckets of trash are produced a day, excluding wet waste, which is estimated to be around 10 buckets. As a conclusion, ayis were adamant that around 70% of the trash produced on campus is not sorted properly.

 

For last week’s in-class assignment I was partnered with Kimmy, Joyce, James, Mehr and Eva. We decided to create a table that “serves” food, which is made entirely like plastic. The meal and its contents would be displayed on a glass stand, identical to the one used in most restaurants in China. The symbolism behind our piece is the idea that the amount of plastic pollution is so high that marine animals mistake plastic waste such as plastic bags and food packaging for food. This results in their entanglement, endangerment and in some cases, death. I proposed the idea of the table with different meals to illustrate this issue.

 

The materials we had for the realization of our project were numerous plastic bags, food packaging parts, food takeout bags, straws and an abundance of bubble wrap and foil. 

 

I was in charge of the creative aspect and created the flowers for the table out of straws and apple packaging. In addition, I created “sushi” out of styrofoam and bubblewrap. I also created “guacamole” out of yogurt packaging.

My other teammates created “salad” by shredding plastic bags and placing them in original salad packaging. Desserts were also created through styrofoam rolls that were meant to represent cake rolls.

A major observation I had in the course of this project was the immense amount of waste that each of us as citizens produces. Although the trash was only from a week and not all students brought all of their trash, the amount of waste was considerable. The fact that we used the trash to create art with meaning is one form of “use” for the trash, however it made me think about all the trash that each individual produces everyday. The amount is so massive that, even if recycled or disposed of properly, the production of trash is considerably faster than its reproduction into useful materials.

 

This brings attention to the importance of creating recycling facilities and the investment in better plastic trash disposal infrastructure, which while allowing for economic growth does not contribute to the pollution of the environment and its inhabitants.

 

Our installation titled :”You are what you eat” a.k.a. trash was set up in the school’s cafeteria. Numerous friends and acquaintances of mine informed me that they were very intrigued by its design and took multiple pictures which they proceeded to post on social media. Hopefully this will raise awareness among campus as to the amount of trash each student produces in a single week and draw attention to magnitude of today’s waste crisis.In addition, my team included the description of various facts about plastic, as well as the different types of plastic that exist. I believe that our installation was both striking in its presentation and thought-provoking. It prompted our peers to take a second look and stop to read the descriptions. It is my hope that at least half of the people that view the installation will think about the amount of plastic products they consume and take action to limit this amount.

Guest Lecture: Richard Brubaker

Last week’s lecture was particularly enlightening. I had always had a heightened interest in sustainability and was very glad to have the chance to absorb some of our guest speaker’s impressive knowledge about sustainability. The speaker was Richard Brubaker and he is the founder of Collective Responsibility. In his talk, he addressed the ways in which he works with a multitude of well-known brands such as Adidas and Nike to educate them about ways to grow their business while at the same time limiting the harmful impact that economic development can have on the environment and its natural resources. He addressed multiple issues such as the wastefulness of the textile industry and the lack of sustainable solutions for the disposal of recyclable material.

 

Readings:

In the “Concepts of Sustainability” reading, there were several interesting ideas brought up. The reading addressed the various discrepancies that arise when attempting to define sustainability and the myriad definitions it has had through the years. The article mentions that the U.S. has now entered the third environmental epoch in its history and addresses the newfound dilemma the U.S. now faces with China’s new waste import policy which limits the amount of recyclables China will be accepting from the rest of the world. The articles  draws an important distinction between sustainability and environmental protection, claiming that sustainability is less about targeting specific environmental issues and more about finding a steady state so that the Earth can support the human population and its need for economic growth, without threatening the health of its species and biosphere. Another point of distinction is that sustainability focuses on long-term dynamic processes, while environmental protection focuses on tackling specific environmental threats. 

The reading defines the 3 E’s of sustainability as: environment, economy and equity. The importance of this concept is that sustainability can be achieved only by simultaneously protecting the environment, preserving economic growth and development and promoting equality. the theory rejects the notion that there is necessarily a trade-off between economic growth and the environment or between economic growth and equity. Brown focused on “sustainable biological resources use”, “sustainable agriculture”, “carrying capacity”, “sustainable energy”, “sustainable economy”, “sustainable society”, “sustainable development”.

 

Response to “Bag It” screening:

The video was extremely eye-opening and quite frankly terrifying. I was always familiar with the threat that plastics and their disposal pose for the environment, however the extent to which this issue was affecting human and marine life, as depicted in the video was shocking. There are several key points that I acquired from the video. Firstly, the data about the high number of hazardous chemicals present in everyday plastic items we use: from soda bottles and product packaging to baby toys. As stated in the video, nearly all everyday household items made from plastic contain high levels of BPA and Phthalates. These chemicals end up in the human body after the life cycle of the plastic is completed: from when it it first thrown in the recycling bins to when it is discarded in the ocean and absorbed by marine life that ultimately ends up on our plates. This harmful intake of hazardous waste over prolonged periods of time will affect not only the health of our future generations through complications such as heart problems and infertility, but also decrease the levels of masculinity in young boys, studied have shown. Furthermore, the video drew attention to the frightening occurrence of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, where non-biodegradable material circulates through the ocean currents, reaching insurmountable distances and threatening the biodiversity of our oceans.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the documentary and the comedic yet grave tone it employed. It was a wake-up call that the issue of inaccurate plastic disposal is omnipresent and it is our responsibility as a generation to reduce the everyday waste we consume, so as not to contribute to the disposal of plastics in our environment and oceans.

 

Response to Vice Video:

The video drew attention to the massive shift in the recyclable plastic disposable industry, after China’s announcement that it would no longer accept a long list of plastic and paper waste. The country implemented stricter guidelines for the type and cleanliness of the waste it was willing to take, in an attempt to alleviate the country’s environmental issues. The video was important as it highlighted the fact that developed countries were now prompted to take responsibility for their trash and invest in recycling facilities locally, which would dispose of the trash in a sustainable way. This realization caused multiple recycling companies in the U.S. to scramble to find places to store and process heaps of plastics, a problem they previously seldom had to face.

Response to National Geographic Article:

 

The article also referenced the turmoil that occurred after China’s announcement that after 25 years of importing the rich world’s plastic waste, they would be imposing strict guidelines on what is accepted, now denying 24 types of plastic. Previously, China took in 45% of the world’s plastics. A sad truth presented in the article is that only 9% of the world’s plastics are recycled. With recycling fees rising, once-exportable plastics in the U.S. are being transported to landfills, where they end up in the environment, recycling markets no longer posing lucrative alternatives. A frightening study by Nat Geo reporter Jambeck showed that as much as 12 million metric tons of plastic winds up in our oceans. Lastly, the article introduced the term “single-stream recycling” which mixed paper, glass and plastics together, which reduces the amount of waste but creates less pure an d valuable recycled product that rarely gets made into new products. The hardships encountered when attempting to dispose of plastic waste should serve as motivation t use less plastic overall, encouraging greater taxes on plastic waste that is still imported, as well as funding to support the creation of waste management infrastructure.