SLOW TRANSFORMATION

situating change within existing structures

Can we selectively metamorphose the fabric of lived environments?

State A

State B

In the winter of 2039, the United Nations passed a reformative but anti-capitalist resolution to divide the world into two types of states. The two states would drastically alter the urban landscape of cities in the years to come. State A zones would become a high tech haven hurtling into the future with automation and science, whereas State B would be radically vernacularized, returning to older forms and techniques of communal living.

The UN EcoSoC teamed up with a small non-profit organization called the Slow Transformation Corps to immediately start the process of creating State B.

In the early 2000’s the corps had found a new material called Olivine. They realized its potential and started developing building materials out of it, and their first project with olivine based paints was launched in 2023.

Olivine had the ability to sequester carbon. It did so by reacting with the carbon dioxide and water in the air to form an inert sand. It could sequester up to 1.25 tons of CO₂ per 1 ton of material. Breaking it up into sand particles and mixing it with paint would multiply its ability to sequester carbon.

When they started, they thought about the world as it was and how images of the built environment transcend ages. It is not an easy feat to get communities to accept change. Hence, they coined the term Situated Transformations. The idea was to transform images associated with urban cities in a gradual manner, almost surgically, allowing the new world to become intrinsic to people without shocking them. And hence they formed the “Slow Transformation Corps”.

Imagining New York City with a new skin of carbon sequestering paints

They imagined a world with a new skin, where every living building could contribute to the climate crisis at hand. The cities were so dense that we had an abundance of resource to propagate this change without starting from scratch. The new skin of carbon sequestering paint made out of fugitive pigments and olivine would also make visible the realities of climate change. However, what seemed like the right way to bring in change in 2023, for the corps, is no longer a viable option.

There is simply no time to allow for a Slow Transformation.

Now it is 2041. We have crossed the 2 degree limit set in the Paris Agreement. The UN EcoSoC suggested that they blow up the Slow Transformation Corps initiative multifold and double down on all efforts. As an environmental advocate, Macy John, the newly elected mayor of New York City, has volunteered Brooklyn to be the test site for implementing State B.

State B introduces a new set of rules that she has developed through her organization, The Olivine Action Initiative, in collaboration with the corps. Starting in February 2042, Brooklyn will have a new credit system that holds each citizen accountable for their environmental responsibilities to the city. This system includes a carbon credit system that aligns with the social credit system, requiring every individual to contribute their efforts to address the crisis at hand. Mayor John is setting up a training headquarters in Dumbo to equip citizens with the knowledge of these building materials.

Every citizen is expected to sign up, attend, and learn the techniques of making these olivine-based materials developed by the corps.

How to make Olivine-Painted Blocks

1. Apply an even layer of paints made from fugitive pigments.

2. Evenly lay out olivine sand particles.

3. Using a roller, embed the olivine into the paint.

4. Allow the paint and olivine to dry.

5. Sand the paint off olivine particles for atmospheric exposure.

6. Olivine turns to sand and the paints fade over days.

How to make Olivine-Mycelium Blocks

1. Add a layer of mycelium + hemp hurd + flour as growing medium.

2. Add a layer of olivine sand particles as fine aggregate.

3. Crush a brick and add brick debris as coarse aggregate.

4. Add adequate amount of water and mix the materials thoroughly.

5. Cover mixture with cling foil and let it set and dry.

6. Allow olivine block to reach with the atmosphere or moisture directly.

Mainly, the materials include paints, olivine mycelium regular blocks, and paver blocks. The citizens will have a hands-on training experience in the maker space, where they will learn to make these materials. The techniques used to create these materials are easily scalable and can be assembled with simple equipment, without the need for complicated machinery. It functions like a small kit of parts that could get multiplied. There will also be an open to public testing garden for them to test these new materials and for new experiments.

But what happens after training?

Every citizen is expected to take on post training responsibility and join either the painting crew or the greening initiative. The greening initiative, led by the HQ's Olivine Associates, aims to facilitate the construction and maintenance of roof gardens using new olivine-based materials in every building across the city. These roof gardens will require periodical upkeep as the olivine exhausts its sequestering abilities.

As the name suggests, the painting crew will handle the painting and repainting of all buildings across the zone using olivine-based paints. Similar to the roof gardens, the buildings will also have to be repainted as the paint pigments fade, the olivine turns to sand, and indicates the need for a new coat.

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OLIVINE ACTION INITIATIVE

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The Beginning of a Commitment to Change
Project 1 : Bringing a regenerative layer of olivine to Brooklyn—building by building, block by block.
Project 2 : Reimagining rooftops as shared green spaces, where residents cultivate community gardens with support from the Olivine Associates.

01 carbon Meter
02 olivine - mycelium base
03 pavers
04 waterproofing
05 adjustable pedestals
06 insulation
07 olivine - brick planter

The aim of the project is to create a sustainable building model that is community-driven, similar to how it was done in older, smaller communities to create State B. The new face of State B will look something like this: a slow, deliberate reshaping of the city, one in which the built environment becomes a living partner in our survival.

DUMBO in 2042

All characters in this work are fictional and created to support the narrative of slow transformation.
Any resemblance to real individuals is unintentional and coincidental.

Location

Typology

Year

Critics

New York, United States of America

Material Research + Community Design + Narrative Building

December 2023, Fall Semester, Academic

David Benjamin

finding spatial alter egos