Sculptural refuse: The chair dragon by Benjamin Jones and Anna Hecker

I enjoyed this neat art project in NYC of  a 30ft dragon made up of discarded chairs, kept more or less in their original shape to tell a story of trash and recovery.

Chair Dragon by Benjamin Jones and Anna Hecker

From Discarded:

While the sidewalks of New York City on trash night are a rich resource of useful items and cultural artifacts, most New Yorkers hold pre-conceived fears of tapping into this resource: practical fears of dirt and vermin, and emotional fears based on the societal perception of welcoming discarded items into our homes. The resulting obsession with new purchases saps the world of natural resources, and the ease of shopping versus crafting creates a psychic distance from our belongings that enables us to acquire and discard at will. By refocusing our communities on the process of foraging and creation, we can help transform our society into one that values originality and sustainability rather than purposeless consumption.

Mount Trashmore

We live in an area that’s heavily populated by students. At the end of every term, the amount of ‘garbage’ piled in and around the dumpster and on the curb is truly mind-boggling. Allow me to demonstrate:

Exhibit 1 – Garbage piled along the back fence, around the corner from the dumpster

Exhibit 2 – the overflowing dumpster

Exhibit 3 – the front lawn

Crazy, right? A lot to take in, eh? Let me distill it down to two points: (1) that is a LOT of garbage that’s going to end up in the landfill and (2) most of that stuff is still in great condition. So why’s it being thrown out? Here’s my theory: these students are completely and hopelessly swept up in today’s pervasive ‘throw-away’ culture. They get to the end of the semester and, for whatever reason – maybe they don’t feel like moving their stuff home or maybe they’re just tired of this year’s trendy Ikea dresser – they just toss it and say, “It’s OK, mummy and daddy will buy me a new one next year.”

Now, I could tolerate this if these students disposed of their unwanted furniture responsibly. There are lots of organizations that would come pick it up. And of course there’s always craigslist or kijiji. But alas, it appears that making a simple phonecall or taking a few minutes to post an ad online is too difficult for these youngsters when there’s beer to drink and booty to shake.

So what can be done? Well, for starters, I think the university’s housing office should make an effort to educate students about how they can get rid of their unwanted (but still useable) stuff without throwing it in the dumpster. It could be as simple as putting together a resource list, but even better would be to rent a big truck at the end of a semester and organize a mass pick-up of those large household items that are tough to transport. Or what about a giant garage sale? Or a university version of craigslist?

Also – and this is going to sound harsh – I think a lot of these students need to be taught some responsibility, and what better way than for their parents to cut them off? Not completely, necessarily – they could still cover tuition, books, and other essentials. But mummy and daddy could start saying “You’re on your own” for the beer money and that terribly funky accent mirror that will inevitably be out of style and in the trash at the end of the year.

And finally, students need to start embracing their inner poubelle chic. Scavenging is environmentally friendly. It’s cheap. And it’s an adventure – it’ll give you great stories to tell over beer, which you can buy using the money you earned selling your unwanted stuff on craigslist. “Did I ever tell you about the time that I found a pair of amazing retro chairs sitting on the curb…?”