Paper, an everyday material deeply integrated into our lives, currently operates on a very linear path- manufactured, used, and discarded. Envisioning a shift towards a curricular economy model for paper seems promising. By redesigning its composition and connected infrastructures, paper could embrace a closed-loop system. Firstly, altering the production process to incorporate refueled fibers or sustainable sources like agricultural residues could diminish reliance on virgin wood pulp. A redesign focusing on eco friendly materials and innovative production methods could foster a circular paper economy. Enhancing recycling technologies to efficiently collect and process used paper products becomes crucial. Instituting policies and infrastructures promoting paper recycling at both individual and industrial levels would help a lot. Overall , transitioning paper into a circular economy demands a holistic approach and seems very doable if we could get everyone on board and working towards the same goal which is nearly impossible it seems these days.
Author Archives: Lillith Davies-Smith
Archaeology
Picture an archaeologist, a millennium from now, unearthing a commonplace item: a discarded toilet. This artifact, once an integral part of daily life, could offer significant insights into our culture and societal practices. Firstly, the material design of the toilet might convey a great deal about our technological advancements and priorities. The craftsmanship and materials used could indicate the level of our sophistication and our emphasis on sanitation (or lack thereof) and comfort. The location where the toilet is discovered could also speak volumes. If it was around a lot more rubble perhaps stuff like plastics, non perishable foods and all the other long lasting items we have created they might see us as a consumer driven society valuing convenience and mass production (pretty accurate). However they might make wrong assumptions about hygiene and the way we care for ourselves based on the condition or area it’s located in. Or as the book I love that talks about this discusses perhaps the toilet was an ancient throne to worship the gods. The interpretation of a material object requires much nuanced understanding and consideration as it takes layers of both societal and basic knowledge to really understand what an item might be. 
Power dynamics
Waste often conceals a narrative about social norms and power dynamics that we tend to ignore. It’s mixed in with the leftover odds and ends from our daily lives that we toss aside and hope to never have to see or speak of again. This mundane seeming action of throwing something out is far more complex then surface levels show. One big example of this that we talked about last class is the use of it in protests. Activists block the street with garbage or stage disruptive protests that bring attention to trash and the trash crisis. Seemingly one of the easiest ways to get attention as no one can ever fully ignore piles of stinky in your face garbage. Police use the disorganization of waste in less marginalized communities that don’t have the money as an excuse to crack down twice as hard on the community. Justifying their actions by saying that these areas are disorderly due to their waste and therefore they are in the right for heightened surveillance and control.
It’s a harsh reminder that even in the seemingly mundane normal actions, power dynamics are hard at work shaping our perceptions and interactions in ways you might not fully be aware of.
Wasteful Phones
I was thinking about this prompt a lot and trying to figure out what waste I take for granted when it comes to pollution and having an effect on the environment. Break was the needed inspiration for this post.
Over thanksgiving break my phone decided to not charge anymore (among other small problems) and I decided it was finally time to upgrade. In this process I was handed back my old now useless phone which I then added to my parents graveyard of dead devices waiting for proper disposal. This is a process I have done several times in my life by now and often without thought. We use them and use them until all the battery life is drained from them and they are reverted back to useless scraps of metal, tossed aside for the new one. It’s a process of mass production and mass consumption that leaves a massive rarely talked about carbon footprint. It’s deemed a necessary item and small/harmless enough not to make a big difference but once taken to a larger worldwide scale creates a big impact. If I was to be on my phone less and use it for things I deem important or trade it in for say a flip phone which only has the basics perhaps that would make a difference. Unfortunately with it being a necessary item in the common day to day life it seems impossible we will get out of the trap of mass producing.
Dirt
I chose dirt which may seem weird at first but if you think about it dirt is one of the most diverse. Dirt is waste only based on perspective and the perspective changes for every situation. If you were to look at it from Moores conceptualizations for example when it’s out of place (someone mentioned that in a class) it is negative and seen as waste, disposable. But outside on the ground it’s (usually) a positive, manageable thing. Of course if you were to then get some of it on you it would be labeled as filth and even possibly a risk depending on the perspective.
Disposability
Receipts are what came to my mind when I was asked to pick something disposable. You know when you go to cvs and they give you the miles of receipts? The ones that always end up forgotten in a pocket or crumpled and thrown on a dresser. It’s more trees and more landfill waste in a day and age where everything’s going digital. A lot more stores are offering a digital option but I wish it was more common. Or they could be shortened and cut out all the unnecessary ads and coupons that just get you to buy more. The worst part about them though is that they are printed on a paper that can only be thrown out. There is never another use for a receipt other then for it to be thrown out. Continue reading
Distancing infrastructures
The place I chose on campus was the Hitchcock Center for the Environment. According to the Hitchcock website it is the 23rd living building in the world and 4th in Massachusetts. Now many of us probably know what a living building is as we have one directly in the middle of our campus, but it is a self sufficient building. It creates its own water, energy and light among many other things. I could keep talking about that part but that is not my main focus. The building is just the surface level, the spark needed for a conversation. What’s so great about that being this building is that it is a nature center that has classes for kids from a wide range of ages. Now the classes that I worked with were always of the younger age (6-7 year olds usually) and part of the afterschool program so a curriculum was not something we had. Instead they were more or less set free in the outdoor areas or we went on walks around campus. With the help of the living building and the use of mainly recycled materials used for crafts there is a constant conversation of the planet and waste. Something that I find adults often struggle to discuss openly. Instead Hitchcock Center created a safe space for all ages to have that conversation. It’s not judged or hidden but in your face and openly discussed.
Matter out of place
A big discussion point this week was the concept of dirty and dirt, the idea that as long as it’s in its designated space it’s not noticed. In class we discussed for example how if you were to find dirt in your house you would be unhappy and complain about how dirty it is, and then clean it by tossing the dirt. Stepping outside there is dirt everywhere but we wouldn’t call it dirty in the same way. It shows that the idea of trash and “being dirty” is a concept that we as a society created. It’s a system of unspoken rules that tell us exactly what is considered dirty and disgusting and what is considered clean and proper that seems to fluctuate based on the person and place.
Responsibility: Plastics
In my house back home my mom had our towns recycling key sheet up in the kitchen so you could check not only the type of plastic but also the different ways you could dispose of them. Already with our campus having compost and recycling bins I have been trying to be more conscious of sorting my food/compost, recycling and trash. In an ideal world I believe that this should be common, a good 50/50 between consumer and corporation. The creators of the product should have recycling and the environment in mind when creating and packaging their product, the community should have easy access to different levels of waste and it should be on the person consuming said product to then bring it to the necessary places it needs to go. Not a flawless system but with tweaking and work from all sides I do feel that we could easily solve the plastics problem. Reading about waste workers especially the garbageman’s stories really put it into perspective how one sided the concept of waste removal is in our country. It depends entirely on overworked, underappreciated people trying to keep up with entire towns and cities worth of waste. A basically impossible task. So in the end I think it’s a much more simple issue that we have made extremely complicated, like trying to untangle string we have somehow created a knot.
Thrown away finds
I am someone who is constantly on the lookout for lost objects and a firm believer in the saying “ones man’s trash, another man’s treasure”. I have rescued many an Item from the side of the road or trash cans; old magazines, cigar displays, chairs, plants etc. While this item itself didn’t come from me it represents that mindset. I was told by my parents who were on vacation going through the national parks in the west that I should check my mailbox on Monday. It arrived later than expected of course but one day when checking for mail I discovered the weirdest lumpy package stuffed in my mailbox. Opening it up I found this duck my family had found either on the road or in the trash at one of the rest stops and mailed to me. It is the creepiest weirdest looking duck I think I’ve ever seen but is also apparently a vintage item?? I feel very blessed but also cursed…