Resources: Parks, Organizations, People

VISIT

The Mass Art Neighborhood: Cross into the Fenway, visit the Muddy River and see one of the “jewels” of the “Emerald Necklace.”

The Muddy River Restoration Project

The eastern and northern buildings of the MassArt campus are only a few hundred feet west of the Muddy River, a waterway integral to Frederick Law Olmstead’s “Emerald Necklace,” a comprehensive plan for park design and water control which he began to design in the late 1870s.

Check out the webpage to learn how parts of the Muddy River long covered by concrete are being restored to “daylight”—this project is the reason for all of the construction on the Fenway heading north to Brookline Ave.

The “Emerald Necklace” starts at the Public Garden/Boston Common, and winds its way all the way through to Franklin Park. Mass Art is very close to many of the parks of the Emerald Necklace. See this website for information and a map.

Get on the 39 Bus, heading west, and visit:

 The Arnold Arboretum

The word “arboretum” means “a collection of trees.” The Arnold Arboretum is a collection of trees—and many other plants—in a park which open to the public, from sunrise to sundown, 365 days of the year. (Frederick Law Olmstead designed the Arboretum as a link in the “Emerald Necklace.”) A department of Harvard University, the Arboretum supports specialist research into the plant kingdom, collects plants and trees from all around the world, and holds tours and lectures for the public. You can download an app from the website which enables you to take self-guided tours and get detailed information about the plants you see.

Boston Food Forest Coalition: Boston Nature Center Food Forest, Mattapan, MA and other sites
The Boston Food Forest Coalition (BFFC) is a non-profit community land trust for neighborhood “forest gardens”, with member sites in Dorchester, JP, East Boston, West End, and Mattapan. We engage hundreds of annual volunteers, host the Greater Boston Permaculture Guild, a Meetup with hundreds of annual events, and are building a growing community of practice sharing skills and gardening help. 

LEARN

What is climate change?

Yale Project on Climate Change Communication: Bridging Science and Society  
If scientists have ever-stronger evidence for climate change, why are Americans not listening and acting? This site presents research on why this gap between evidence and action exists, and also proposes “visions of a sustainable world and practical strategies to achieve them” to end the impasse. Because the Project’s aim is to figure out better ways to communicate information on climate change, this site is also an excellent resource for information on the science of climate change. Click on the tab, “What Can I Do?” for information on climate science, how to reduce your own carbon footprint, how to become a citizen scientist activist, and how to take political action. Includes links to relevant articles in the media, articles, and videos of presentations.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)      The UN Environment Program and the World Meterological Organization established the IPCC to provide “a clear scientific view on the current state of knowledge in climate change and its potential environmental and social-economic impacts.” This site is directed more at policy makers than a general audience, but it does present information about developments across the globe. Check out their “News and Outreach” tab for useful information.

Richard Monastersky “Anthropocene: The Human Age” Nature-News Feature, 11 March 2015.    What is the “anthropocene”? The term “anthropocene” is a proposed new division of geological time, intended to characterize the inseparability of geological transformation from human action. While the word “anthropocene” is used in the arts and humanities, it is still a controversial term within the field of geology. This article, from the authoritative scientific publication, Nature, reviews the controversies around the adoption of the term and examines the arguments for when and how the “anthropocene” began.   Check out the article, as the events proposed as the “beginning” of the anthropocene may surprise you.

for more resources go to the MassArt Godine Library
Research Guides

• Art, ecology, and climate change
• Climate Change: Science Politics, and Policy
• Sustainable Design

LOOK

Sustainability and the arts

The Center for Sustainable Practice in the Arts (CSPA)   
The CSPA is a “think tank for sustainability” for artists working in a range of practices, including performance. Based in the UK, but with an international range, the CSPA publishes its own quarterly and research reports, and aggregates information about conference, new books, and educational programs on topics on sustainability and the arts.

RECYCLE/REUSE

Local options for finding materials (stop at the MassArt ReStore first!)

Extras for Creative Reuse      
20 Wheeler Street, Suite 301, Lynne MA 01902
For thirty-four years Extras for Creative Reuse, a non-profit organization, has made reusable, recycled, and surplus material available to teachers for use in the classroom. Students (bring your id) can purchase a cart full of materials for $25, sign on as a day shopper for a different rate, or purchase a yearly membership to make more frequent visits—check the web site for details.

Save that Stuff, Inc. is a commercial waste management and recycling company, based in Charlestown, with the goal to “Reduce/Reuse/Recycle” materials. Save that Stuff has made recycled materials available to Mass Art students. Send an email to info@savethatstuff.com requesting an appointment, or to inquire about materials that are currently available.

Habitat for Humanity Greater Boston ReStore   
1580 VFW Parkway, West Roxbury, MA
This is one of a national group of stores run by Habitat for Humanity