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More waste creativity, please.
What do these problems have in common? They are all symptomatic of a bigger problem: WASTE.
Let’s fix it.
About Us
Art of Diversion (AOD) began by imagining what the world might look like if the most creative, innovative, resourceful people decided to come together to tackle the problem of waste. In short, we believe waste is entirely preventable and that collective creativity is the solution.
Specifically, we’re on a mission to eliminate Construction & Demolition (C&D) waste by:
1) Encouraging more people to divert building materials from landfill (the ‘Why’) and
2) Inspiring and empowering more people to get creative in repurposing those materials, be it in the form of art, architectural applications or new products (the ‘How’).
THE PROBLEM: WASTE
Buildings and infrastructure are unrivalled in their consumption of non-renewable resources and are largely to blame for much of the world’s pollution and environmental degradation. Globally, new construction can barely keep pace with growth and urbanisation, and yet current efforts to curb the building industry’s wasteful tendencies and insatiable appetite for non-renewable resources are insufficient. That has to change.
We can do better. We need better ways of building and making things, but in many ways, that starts with better ways of unbuilding and unmaking things. Above all, we need to close the loop between the unbuilding process and the building process. The building industry needs an upgrade from the traditionally linear system of take-make-waste in favour of a more circular system of take-make-reuse.
THE SOLUTION: CREATIVITY
Instead of demolishing buildings and sending a large portion of the materials to landfill, we need to deconstruct buildings and recover as much existing material as possible (this is sometimes referred to as architectural salvage or urban mining). We then need to find ways to creatively reuse or repurpose those materials in new projects and products (this is sometimes referred to as upcycling). This is not a new idea. However, unfortunately, it’s still the exception instead of the norm. AOD wants to change that. How?
The answer is creativity. We’re here to inject some more creativity into the conversation about C&D waste. Nature is abundantly creative, and yet there is no waste in nature. We need to model our building processes after nature: i.e. creation without waste.
NO ENDS, ONLY NEW BEGINNINGS
We want to help accelerate the adoption of regenerative design practices and circularity within the building industry, and we believe that creativity is the 'accelerant' that is needed. The uptake of urban mining as an alternative to wasteful forms of construction and demolition depends on more people taking action and demanding change, which depends on raising awareness, which we believe starts with capturing people’s imaginations through inspiring examples of the Art of Diversion.
We need the so-called ‘end’ of a building’s life to be treated with the same care and ingenuity that we apply to the design of new buildings.
It’s about creatively extending the lifespan of building materials.
We need to design new buildings with future deconstruction and material reuse in mind, but we also need to apply creativity and design thinking when dealing with the ‘end’ of existing buildings.
CARING AND SHARING
There are plenty of talented designers, makers, artists and innovators out there doing their part in the fight against waste, and that’s encouraging, but their work needs more visibility. AOD wants to fix that. That’s what our Advocacy, Organisation and Diversion x Design are all about: content, communication, curation, connections, co-creation and collaboration, all in an effort to to amplify collective creativity.
We’re all about showcasing the good that's happening through both grassroots initiatives that engage the local community and sharing innovative best practices from around the world. We want more people to get inspired about diverting waste from landfill creatively. We want everyone—including you!—to join the Art of Diversion movement.
ON THE VERGE OF A PARADIGM SHIFT
Our goal is to help nudge the building industry past a tipping point and into a new era where waste is a thing of the past and reclamation and creative reuse are ubiquitous. Check out our Manifesto to learn more about our vision and what we stand for.
We have an uphill battle ahead of us, but we believe that anything is possible if we harness the power of collective creativity. It will no doubt take a team effort to overcome the obstacles along the way. If you’d like to work together or help us keep the proverbial ball rolling, check out the Support page and get in touch.
