Where will the tideline be in 50 years?
Image: Witness King Tides via Flickr CC
The David Suzuki Foundation recently conducted a guerrilla campaign to remind people about the effects of climate change. The Tideline uses art to directly confront people with images they might otherwise not think about. It makes climate change pertinent to everyone—as it should be.
About 70 million tons of carbon dioxide is released into atmosphere every day. The release of these “greenhouse gases” essentially creates a greenhouse effect on earth. As more gases are added to the atmosphere, it becomes thickened and traps more and more heat. This results in a global warming effect and climate change.
Glaciers and polar ice caps have already begun melting at an alarming rate. This will in turn make the sea levels rise. World water supply will be in danger of contamination from salt water. And many endangered species, like penguins and polar bears, are increasingly having their natural habitats threatened.
The Tideline Project at work
Photo: Jeremy Grice / pubsub.com
These things are enough to make some people look up and pay attention. But there are a frightening number of people who continue to ignore the effects our everyday actions have on global warming, which is why the Tideline Project was created. It shows us the answer to the question, “What will it look like when our cities are underwater?”
Artists and environmental activists collaborated on the project. Using real shells, clay, paint, and hot glue guns, artists created realistic scenes of barnacles, mussels, and starfish on tarps. After creating several of these scenes, members of the Tideline Project took Vancouver by storm, wrapping them around power poles, creating a striking display of what would be normal if sea levels continue to rise.
Global warming is closer than you think.
Image from springad / YouTube
A sign was stapled above each display, reading “Global warming is closer than you think,” and referring people to the David Suzuki Foundation website. To get word out past those who saw the displays, the group also created a short video that addressed climate change and showed the project at work.