A reminder! We’ve imagined the EDC platform as an online gathering space for like-minded mingling, critical discussions, and virtual interactions at a remove from the data-mining platforms that exploit our attention and divide our communities. As we continue to improve and realize our vision for the collective, we’d appreciate it if you could take a few minutes to share your experiences via our summer survey.

In a new post, EDC member Richard Fadok describes a recent experience of leading students through a speculative design project that interrogated how we make (or do not make) space for the other animals that dwell alongside us, and explored the possibilities of design justice in a more-than-human register. Take a look!

In a recent op-ed for the Baltimore Beat, EDC members and anthropologists Chloe Ahmann and Anand Pandian trace the discriminatory history of waste incineration in Baltimore, and the urgent need for zero-waste alternatives to protect the health and wellbeing of vulnerable communities. They write in support of a civil rights complaint filed with the EPA against the city by the South Baltimore Community Land Trust.

Check out some other news our members are posting!

• Imagine 2200, Grist’s climate fiction initiative, celebrates stories that offer visions of climate progress. One of their latest, Heirloom, is a climate fiction story set in a futuristic city, where Dru inherits a magical dress from her ancestor. This heirloom connects her to the past and plays a crucial role in the city’s quest to restore a lost ecosystem.
  
  
• The Queer Climate Cabaret will be hosted by Vital Matters on October 17 at the Creative Alliance in Baltimore. A workshop series leading up to the event will begin on August 17, featuring sessions on climate, queerness, performance, drag, and writing.
  
  
• Laurie Baker's 1971 design of the Centre for Development Studies in Trivandrum, India exemplified an inspiring approach to integrating architecture with the natural landscape. The design features enhance ventilation and cooling, showcasing Baker's pathbreaking commitment to cost-effective and environmentally responsive architecture. 
  
  
• Black museums face heightened risks from the climate crisis, with their older infrastructures, coastal locations, and limited funding exacerbating vulnerability. The Association of African American Museums (AAAM) highlights damage from events like Hurricane Ida and rising sea levels threatening institutions like the Banneker-Douglass Museum and urgently calls for strategic planning and policies to protect these cultural heritage sites. 
  
  
• Check out six visual tools to help us understand the urgency of climate action. These tools forefront the environmental impact of state policies and decisions, promoting a clearer understanding of the broader implications of climate change.