| At any given moment in the history of mankind our sun has been burning 93 million miles away providing energy for every form of life on our planet. Changes of climate and geology have moved at a rate and pace often described as “glacial.” Up until relatively recently. Using a calendar based upon the life of our planet, it was only a moment ago that mankind figured out how to use fire to stay keep wild animals away, stay warm, and cook food. With a population of nine billion, contemporary civilization has changed local landscapes, the chemistries of our atmosphere, drinking water, and even our planet’s oceans. During the past twenty-five years dramatic changes in our planet’s climate and ecosystems have been documented in journals, photographs, videos, first-hand testimonials, peer-reviewed presentations, and more. Consumer/rate-payers embrace a culture based upon disposable packaging, ease of use, and lowest cost. |
| I came across the graph below when researching concepts for the assignment of creating a “year-long film.” |
 The NASA website uses CO2 changes as a marker for climate change. |
| I do not understand what the impact of that graph will have on me, my family, or my community. What I do understand is that the chemistry of our atmosphere has been dramatically altered – within our lifetimes. It is axiomatic that the business of business is business. Pandering to unlimited demand, multinational oil corporations are changing every aspect of our planet with their work – multiplied by a population of nine billion (and increasing) consumers.  |
| I elected to combine satellite imagery of the sun, video of swimming jelly fish, and an OF generated layer which simulated the rise of CO2 in our atmosphere. The animation below shows interactivity through mouse movement – an optimistic approach to reversing Carbon Dioxide levels in our atmosphere. I also chose to use two songs by seminal performance artist and New Yorker, Laurie Anderson. This is a good moment to thank Lia Martinez for hours of patient help with OF. This work wouldn’t have been completed without her (Thank you, Lia!). |
| [quicktime]http://www.terezakis.org/itp/video/mouse-drag-desktop.m4v[/quicktime] |
| Big oil has been the articulating hand in the sock puppet of more than one U.S. presidency. From Wikipedia:” In 2005, Council on Environmental Quality chairman (and former oil industry lobbyist) Philip Cooney, was accused of doctoring and watering down descriptions of climate research from other government agencies. The White House denied these reports.[27]Two days later, Cooney announced his resignation [28] and conceded his role in altering the reports. “My sole loyalty was to the President and advancing the policies of his administration,” he told the United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. In addition, the administration thanked Exxon executives for the company’s “active involvement” in helping to determine climate change policy, including the US stance on Kyoto.
Our federal government’s actions regarding irreplaceable, vital natural resources for the past decades is analogous to putting pedophiles in charge of primary schools. As long as the taxpayers don’t start screaming rape, the portfolios of the vested will continue to throb, and the unbridled exploitation will continue. |
| [quicktime]http://www.terezakis.org/itp/video/year-long-laurie-anderson-terezakis-desktop.mov[/quicktime] |
| (Quicktime of year-long project above. Click to begin.) |
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