“You have to hold yourself accountable for your actions, and that’s how we’re going to protect the Earth.” – Julia Butterfly Hill People today are tired of listening to talks about the levels of harm we are causing to the environment in order to please our needs and wants. Instead they are busy celebrating consumption, enjoying the latest trends, and becoming more ignorant about the costs of their actions. Once we destroy Earth, where and how will the upcoming generations live? Our brief has directed us to work around the circular economy, and throughout my deep research not only have I understood the value of these two words, but I came across interesting principles that I decided to focus on for my final project. One of these principles was designing out of waste and pollution. The final project started with a news article and five profiles that described the clients we are designing for and the concerns that we determine will exist in 2050. I looked into how the country will deal with the levels of air pollution that killed 40,000 people in 2018, in England. My profiles were victims of different types of pollution, such as air, water, soil, and thermal. After studying our site and its surroundings, I analysed that Shadwell has many pollution and waste sources. Littering, food waste, soil rubbish and recyclable waste are disposed incorrectly. That is why I wanted to create a statement about waste through food. My souvenir was an inedible cake, made out of sugar, chocolate, grated coconut, and caramel coated recyclable materials, such as plastic. The souvenir was a celebration of all the food restaurants and markets in Shadwell revealing their ugly truth, which is that the waste comes from them. I wanted to look into a sensory environmental phenomena, which is why I investigated noise pollution in depth, creating a device that represents the invisible vibrations visually in order to raise awareness. My device was set into three different frequencies (using Arduino, sound sensors, and LED lights) at two height levels, car exhaust and average human height to pick up different sounds. My interest in noise pollution grew from my device. Therefore I wanted to investigate it further by making it my main project focus. I aimed to create a venue that makes people experience sound with their senses; hear it, see it, and feel it. I had a list of questions that led me to my program. What forms of architecture influence sound so people could feel them? What other methods (other than using light) can I use in order to make it visual? And how could I design something that meets the principles of a circular economy? That is what led me to achieve my final project, creating a music venue at St. George’s Town Hall, celebrating sound with minimal noise pollution.
