Issue #5

Water / Technology / Cosmos

This issue includes a consideration on how water connects us, nature's principles for innovation, awe and the cosmos, minute bodies and F. Percy Smith, artists exploring climate change symbolism through ice, and Jessica Lindgren-Wu's water photography.

Cover of Issue #5

Contents

Becoming Pond
The pond is a microcosm of a bigger ecosystem, reminding us that the water that constitutes us inextricably connects us to the whole of the natural world.

Growing Smart
Where the Leaves Fall talks to John Francis Serwanga, the hydroponics expert at World Food Programme (WFP). John Francis has over 17 years of experience with hydroponics projects, including as hydroponics consultant with WFP Namibia and Zambia.

Biomimicry: Where Innovation and Nature Meet
Where Innovation and Nature Meet Biomimicry educator and author Margo Farnsworth explores how we can mimic the principles and patterns of life - nature’s version of technology - to enhance our own processes.

Through the Looking Glass
Since the 1960s, satellite imagery has been a tool for contextualising our place in the universe. There may be no better example of the impact of seeing Earth from space than the Earthrise image, taken by an astronaut on the moon. Since the photograph’s release in 1968, it has become recognised as one of the catalysts for the modern environmental movement.

The Human Cosmos
When NASA astronaut Chris Hadfield climbed out of the International Space Station for his first spacewalk it was the culmination of decades of training and preparation. Hadfield had flown over 70 different types of aircraft. He had spent 50 full days practicing spacewalks in the pool. “I was completely technically prepared for what was going to happen,” he says. Yet in a sense, he wasn’t prepared at all.

Small Wonders
Still images taken from the meditatively immersive film Minute Bodies: The Intimate World of F. Percy Smith (Lucky Dog/Studio Moe/BFI 2016).

Soft Fascinations
Mental fatigue, disconnecting, and spending time outdoors.

Ten Blocks from Home
The natural world can teach us much about persistence, simplicity, and wellness.

Melting Eternity
The ice of the polar regions was once seen as a symbol of eternity and stasis. Today, as works by contemporary artists reveal, it has become a powerful metaphor for the changing climate.

Future's Echo
The places abandoned by humankind provide a new start for the natural world.

On the Horizon
The climate crisis is propelling us into uncharted territory, and our relationship with technology and nature will dictate how we navigate our way through.

Waiting Water
Words and photography by Jessica Lindgren-Wu. Gotland, Sweden’s largest island in the Baltic Sea, has 800km of coastline to explore and numerous lakes and former limestone quarries filled with clear water that are now popular bathing spots.

Issue #5

Water / Technology / Cosmos

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Stories from Issue #5