A Personal Reflection of Connectivity & Sustainability
Curated & Created by Michael X. Yue
11.04.2018
OVERVIEW
In this picture-based narrative, personal reflections of sustainability in everyday life will be explored from an anecdotal and poetic lens. The series of photographs taken by Michael X. Yue in Prince Rupert, BC which captures moments of self-reflection, personal growth, and empowerment of environmental connectivity between nature and nurture.
RESILIENCy
We are afraid of the future, the notion of uncertainty
A world which is structured, an obstacle of rigidity
Yet we are here, breathing and and full of vigour
We are the change in our endeavours
So let a world of black and white, to be a place - revitalized
A place of home, a space of care, a nature of we with no despair
So we can be at peace with the whispers in the air
A fluid mosaic of harmony with life and care
Photograph Description: An emerging plant growing from the cracks of shale along an ocean shore.
GRowth MindSEt
Mr. Birch, can you sense me?
The CO2 of my presence?
Yet, you seem faded, obstructed from evanescence
Walking past with haste and delusion
Things to do, places to go, no time to stop for faint elusions
Yet, you are here, with vigour and reflection
So I stop and stare, breathing deepling in your air
With soothing silhouettes from your leaves fluttering up there
A smile is produced and a mind is refreshed
I am lucky to connect with a smile which not needs to be there
Photograph Description: A smiling birch tree located outside of my apartment
DISCOVERY
I am dynamic - moving and changing in every moment
To seek for the uncharted, fills one with enjoyment
I wander, I drift, I reflect in a place of unknowns
Enquiring and listening to the naturally bestowed
An elixir of wonder and self-discovery
A dimension of conservation and integrity
With innocence and harmony, and resilience and prosperity
They wander with a man of wisdom and curiosity
Learning about their interconnected similarities
Video Description: A harbour seal diving below the surface of the water
Initiation
Wind in my hair, silhouettes in my ear
Adrenaline from my kidneys, and a beautiful sight as I stare
Dreaming green is not an impossible dare
Envigored and full of life, far from stray
Cycle, pedal, kilometers away
To a place of fulfillment and to a place of peace, a type of gateway
Siting along the shale, where the waves intermits
With the splash of resilience and life on my bare skin, seamingly so lit
Rejuvenating my soul, a parsimony of ensnare
Experiences like these, I don't need to be a millionaire
Photograph Description: A picture of my electric bike during a cycling trip to Port Edward
EDUCATion
Knowledge, a powerful tool
Stronger than a physical weapon, learned beyond a school
Where wisdom emerges and captivate the scene
To pass information of legends and facts
A continual cycle of reflection and impact
When one realizes the power of their mind
Change is inevitable, a match which cannot be confined
Learning and sharing the miraculous world of life
And as one pontificate, several supports the high
A life of harmony between people and trees
We shall rejoice in memory for thoughtful expertise
Where we will continue to holistically be free with thee
A prophecy is not needed to protect santicity
As if we do not, we will drive all things beautiful into insanity
Photograph Description: Traditional, aboriginal artifacts associated with Tsimshian culture from the Pacific Northwest Coast, displayed in the Museum of Northern British Columbia
Innovation
Biomimicry, decomposition
Sustainability and innovation
Nature's lens of healing and resiliency
A biological story of self-prevailing sufficiency
A tale of circular immortality
A narrative of sanctity and preservation
For behold, a life of many dimensions
Our goal shall be devine conservation
For us, be not told, she continues to whisper every second
At moments, even echoing from any distance
We are the people of all manipulation
A cry for good, a cry for bad
We are the prophecy, uncharted
Nomads in a legacy of discarded
An agent of change, if we really want it
Photograph Description: A herbarium cyanotype of Purple Loosestrife and Red Osier Dogwood.
Curation Debrief
I hope that you enjoyed the personal curation; it may have inspired, awoken, or changed your perspective on sustainability from a personal, social , and environmental (PSE) view. The objective of this curation collection was to resonate the interconnectedness of humans to our PSE responsibilities. By using a personal, poem-based narrative, hopefully it was an inspirational and captivating self-reflection of the significance of sustainability. The story evolutionarily progressed through six main phases of environmental leadership and self-reflection: (1) Resiliency, (2) Growth Mindset, (3) Discovery, (4) Initiation, (5) Education, and (6) Innovation. These stages scaffolded the importance of holistic and transformative practices essential to be agent of sustainable change in society. This curation portrayed an anecdotal narrative of local artifacts in Prince Rupert, BC, which was inspired from Mulligan's (2018) textbook publication: An Introduction Into Sustainability.
Photograph Description: A bridge found within Rushbrook Trail.
Curation Connections to Mulligan (2018)
BIG IDEAS
Social Ecology Model of Sustainability
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Herman Daly’s Sustainability Principles
RMIT Sustainability Principles
ESD Principles
SUSTAINABILITY CONCEPTS
Personal, Social, and Environmental (PSE) Responsibility
Conservation, Preservation, and Sustainability
Ethical Morality
Accumulating Impacts
Anthropogenic Effects
Ecological Thinking
Personal Lifestyle Adaptations
Cycling
Recycling
Composting
Innovating
Gardening
Walking
Upcycing
Reusing
Photography Credit
Michael X. Yue. (2018). Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported.
CITATION
Mulligan, M. (2018) An Introduction to Sustainability: Environmental, Social and Personal Perspectives. 2nd Edition. New York: Routledge.
digital signature
Yue, M. X. (2018). A Personal Reflection on Connectivity & Sustainability. TeacherMrYue. Retrieved from https://teachermryue.wixsite.com/mysite/sustainable-connections.