Project One

       The issue that I would like to explore for Project One is rising sea levels.  Climate change is a hot topic in today’s media.  It’s discussed and deliberated on everything from daily talk shows to political debates.  We’re living in an age when technology is propelling our culture into the future, and making our lives more convenient.  The downside to this industrialization and technological expansion is that a lot of waste and pollution is added to our already fragile ecosystem.  While there are those who dispute the legitimacy of the climate change threat, it is hard to ignore all the facts scientists worldwide are sharing. 

National Geographic explains that rising sea levels are the result of “burning fossil fuels and other human and natural activity” over the past one hundred years.  Gasses that trap heat are being released into the atmosphere, therefore, increasing earth’s temperature.  As water warms up it expands which adds to the accumulation of melting water from glaciers and ice caps (NOAA).

Rising sea levels create an innumerable amount of problems to those living by the coast.  Homes are lost, land is eroded, agricultural soil is contaminated, massive flooding ensues, and there’s loss of wildlife habitats.  It is projected that if the seas continue to rise most U.S. cities on the coast will be flooded, and if a “complete meltdown” happens then London could be completely submerged (National Geographic).

I would like to explore the idea that in the future, due to rising sea levels, humans have had to adapt to their environment by altering their way of living.  I will create compositions of stilt houses in water that will document how people will have to live more eco-friendly and self-sustainably.  Instead of letting a dire situation get worse, we will have altered our lives in order to protect the earth we have and save ourselves.

http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/sealevel.html

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/sea-level-rise/

http://climate.nasa.gov/vital-signs/sea-level/