FUTURE MINERS: EXAMINING FUTURE FABRICATION AND MANUFACTURING MODELS WITHIN LIVING SYSTEMS
LIVING SYSTEMS, MATERIAL RESOURCES, SUSTAINABILITY, 2017
JENNY LEE (GB)
This piece was created in collaboration with iCRAG, the Irish Centre for Research in Applied Geosciences which includes Science Foundation Ireland amongst its funders.
As the global population rises, so does our dependence on nature's resources to sustain human life. But humankind’s activities have had a detrimental effect on our ecology — climate change, a rapid decline in biodiversity and a growing population are stretching our planet beyond its ability to regenerate.
With depleting resources, we are facing critical challenges in how we continue to meet the growing needs of society.
In the not-so-distant future, humankind has run out of resources; in order to sustain human life, humankind must become nature’s preserver, protector and carer. No longer can humankind continue to exploit nature; instead it must develop a symbiotic relationship with nature to enable both living entities to co-exist in the future. Humankind must not only embrace nature, but also question how each precious material is utilised — should we save lives using gold for disease detection, or to adorn the body for aesthetic means?
The mining industry has provided the fundamental building blocks for human development. The supply of metal and mineral products has underpinned human endeavour through millennia. However, Earth’s resources are finite and current mining methods are not sustainable.
Biomining is an innovative extraction method using existing living systems in nature to obtain desired metals from ores.
BIO
Jenny Lee’s work stems from her perception that we are living in a state of flux, an ever-changing landscape shaped by disruptive technologies, which impacts on society and our future environment.
Jenny’s work is driven by design fiction methodologies, creating speculative narratives and design probes to elicit critical debate and discussion around the social, ethical and environmental implications of how we choose to utilise science and technology to craft a better tomorrow.
The hybrid approach of her practice is grounded in aesthetic sensibilities and inherent codes of human design, which has inspired the cultivation of original ideas that make tangible the most poignant of our social, ethical and environmental futures.
Jenny describes herself as an agent of change using materiality and design as a tool to provoke meaningful public engagement in questioning mankind’s role in the preservation of our future environments.
iCRAG, the Irish Centre for Research in Applied Geosciences, is Ireland’s national geoscience research centre, supported by Science Foundation Ireland, the European Regional Development Fund and industry partners. Their mission is to transform geoscience research and education in Ireland, by driving discovery, delivering economic and societal benefits, and advancing public understanding of their science.
iCRAG’s multidisciplinary research transcends industry and academic boundaries to address key research challenges in the fields of energy security, raw materials supply, groundwater protection, and safeguarding the geomarine environment.
Comprising 150 researchers and seven research institutions across Ireland, and collaborating with more than sixty industry partners, their vision is to help unlock Ireland’s natural resources through developing improved technical knowledge and innovative techniques, which are embedded within the industry.