Corrente n.2 – A Kind Future

Stories of changemakers

From the headlines to the incessant notifications on our devices, we find ourselves constantly immersed in an uninterrupted stream of negative news, characterized by catastrophes and seemingly insurmountable problems. This is where Greencome comes in, a ‘new media’ that aims to mobilize people and organizations in the fight against climate change, creating awareness and giving the tools to combat the most important challenge of our time. The goal is to promote purposeful dialogue, focusing not only on problems and negative news, but also on solutions and stories that “do good” for the Planet. Below are some of the extraordinary changemaker stories that can inspire change in each of us.

“The House of Fish,” Paolo Fanciulli
Paolo Fanciulli, a Tuscan fisherman, has been campaigning since the 1980s against bottom trawling, a technique that destroys the seabed and causes irreversible damage to biodiversity. In 2006, with his non-profit organization, he installed marble sculptures on the seabed of Tuscan seas. The sculptures act as obstacles to trawling, making it impractical. In the areas where the works are present, nature has regained the upper hand and organisms have repopulated the seabed. Today, thanks to this project, a true underwater museum has been created.

‘’FabBRICK”, Clarisse Merlet
While studying at Paris-Malaquais University, Clarisse Merlet became aware of the enormous environmental impact of the construction industry, which is responsible for 37 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions. But it is another fact that particularly upsets her: every second the equivalent of a truckload of textile materials is thrown into landfills. From the very combination of these two problems, Clarisse develops an ingenious solution. She turns discarded clothes into fibers, molds them, and then adds an environmentally friendly glue: an environmentally sustainable brick is thus formed. From this project she later founded FabBRICK, a company that helps businesses recover their textile waste and turn it into design products, furniture and thermal/acoustic insulation.

“Releaf”, Valentin Frechka
When Valentin Frechka, a bioengineering student at Kiev National University, discovers that about 3 million hectares of forests are being cut down each year for paper production, he decides to address this issue with an innovative idea. He collects leaves from sidewalks and parks, breaks them down into fibers, mixes them with water and environmentally friendly additives, and thus obtains, an environmentally sustainable pulp that is then processed into quality paper. From this idea born between school desks, Valentin later founded Releaf, a company that produces sustainable paper from organic waste, cutting CO2 emissions by 78 percent.

Greencome
In 2022, among the corridors of the University of Turin, Duccio Travaglini, Ginevra Zolli and Simone Cagnazzo started Greencome, a vertical “new media” on environmental sustainability.
@greencome_ita

What are we leaving to future generations?
Probably a starless sky, according to estimates by the German Research Center for Geosciences. Unless certain measures are taken, such as shielding outdoor lights or pointing them downward.

Technology, often a source of pollution, however, can offer help in reducing its impact on the environment. This is the case with the experiences of murals made with anti-smog paints, or the hydrogen-powered factory, or even the use of artificial intelligence to optimize the use of resources.
Many disciplines have become aware of the need for concrete action to address climate change: from innovations from the fashion industry to the adoption of architectural solutions from Arab countries to hydroponic agriculture inside buildings.
An open knot remains that of e-waste management, on which Italy lags behind the required European standards, but this could change: awareness of the issue is growing and there are numerous proposals to encourage recycling.

The choice of language and the way in which these issues are communicated affects the possibility of getting the message across; thus, a new film genre, somewhere between science fiction and dystopia, called “Climate fiction” was born that explores the consequences of climate change. And the Design Declares communication campaign reminds designers and designers around the world that they can play a crucial role in encouraging sustainable actions.

While the battle to save the Panda, WWF’s iconic animal, has made significant strides to the point that it is no longer considered endangered, under threat now is the human species. With this message, WWF brings attention back to the importance of reducing pesticide use to protect the planet and people’s health.

Concern about the future of the environment is widespread, so much so that it has made it necessary to coin a new term: eco-anxiety. However, every cloud has a silver lining: parallel to the rise of this phenomenon is an increase in activism and attention to climate-related policies. From Arizona also comes good news: tropical forests are showing resilience to rising temperatures, preserving their role in absorbing CO2.
To reduce the impact on the planet, everyone can do their part: the Too good to go app, for example, helps limit food waste. But choosing how we treat our bodies at the end of life can also help reduce our environmental footprint.
The proposed selection is the outcome of the editorial workshops conducted with Class IIIF of the European International State School “Altiero Spinelli” in Turin, following research that each student conducted independently and within the Alberto Geisser Library.

Students: Giulia Barile, Caterina Bosco, Vittoria Bottacini, Giorgia Bracciani, Olivia Bresso, Rebecca Costamagna, Alessia Cottafava, Viola Crisafi, Silvia Dalle Nogare, Aurora Della Torre, Lorena Fartadi, Aurora Giordano, Letizia Jitaru, Stella Lunardi, Victoria Marquardt, Simone Martino, Andrea Minasso, Lorenzo Moreschini, Francesca Renzone, Elena Ricca, Matilde Scimeca, Gabriele Tarditi, Bianca Turletti, Irene Volpe, Giulia Zecchini

Fridays For Future Torino: the Kontiki and the challenges of 2024

The Kontiki, the first home of the climate movement.
In 2023, Fridays For Future Torino realized a dream: to open the first Italian headquarters of the climate justice movement. It is called the Kontiki, after the raft with which Thor Heyerdahl crossed the Pacific Ocean to prove that the impossible can become possible.The Kontiki is an open, inclusive space, a home for many girls and boys and environmental activism groups who want to imagine and build a different future.The Kontiki is also an Arci club, born from the collaboration with the Arci Torino Committee, which supports new associative realities in the area.

Our message: inform, reason, mobilize.
Through these projects, we want to send a clear message to those who are afraid of the profound changes that the ecological transition inevitably imposes: we must not surrender to the propaganda of those who want to maintain the status quo or take steps backward, but to inform, reason, and mobilize to build a different model of society. For this, the Kontiki hosts a review, “Political Paths,” where it invites journalists, writers, cultural figures to discuss climate.
And it organizes meetings, performances, presentations, aperitifs, classroom afternoons, and workshops with schools. Because fighting for climate justice also means building more cohesive, inclusive and sustainable societies.

The 2024 initiatives: from the Global Climate Strike to the European elections.
In 2024, the movement has many initiatives planned to raise public and institutional awareness of the climate crisis. These include the Global Climate Strike, the April 19 global climate mobilization ahead of the European elections in June.
A crucial date to counter the advance of the far-right and to call on the European Union to take concrete action on climate.
The Kontiki is more than a venue, it is a symbol. It is the place where new generations meet, train, and organize to change the world. It is the reference point for those who want to be protagonists of the ecological transition and a new political culture. The Kontiki is the home of the climate movement, open to all. Because together we can make a difference. Because the future is now. Because the future is us.

Kontiki activists
Fridays for Future is an international environmental movement fighting for climate justice. It was born in 2018, in the wake of the first “Climate Strikes” led by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg. In 2023, the first Italian branch of the movement was born: it is called “Kontiki” and is located in Turin, in Vanchiglietta. https://kontiki.giustiziaclimaticaora.it/