Electronic Music - Accessing Alternate Dimension (Climate Awareness)
Hey folks!
I don't really want to discuss my life right now as it's way too depressing and bittersweet. I'm still not fully here, but I'm taking life as it comes while trying to be moderately productive. I uploaded this music track to youtube two weeks ago, but events have caused me to be not able to share it until now here.
This music project was started back in January. I first began with some simple beats, playing with random overwatch voices (cuz that game is awesome and I wanted to do something with the characters) when I got hung up on the idea of time. Some character was talking about "we're running out of time." Suddenly, I felt an inspiration hit me in the chest but also a warning.
We ARE running out of time
Our climate is changing so drastically. It's not a question to most people of whether or not Climate Change is happening. The real concern now is getting everyone to realize we have to come together quickly to find a way to adapt. We should have started building new infrastructures and investing in cleaner technology, but everyone kept saying "it's fine, we have time."
BUT WE DON'T
My generation likes to blame the older ones for fucking up our planet, and while yea we can point fingers, the truth is the most damaging amounts of greenhouse gases have been released ( along with other contributing variables) within the last 30 years. I'll be 25 in May. Dude; this is my problem too. and it's your grandchildren's and their offspring. I may not want kids, but I want my friend's lineages to live in a beautiful world where they don't have to wear masks just to go outside.
This project is to raise awareness on our changing planet. Our climate is at it's most unstable period in human history. We are at a tipping point and life as we know it is about to change drastically. Humans have never been in this kind of global climate that we are moving into. There is no running away from this. We are all apart of this planet and we have to come together to adapt.
This piece uses Greta Thunberg's speech from the World Economic Forum. I had been searching for some kind of environmental speech for my music and when i stumbled across her. I was moved by her words and needed the world to hear them, but in a more vivid way. The rest of the voice clips you hear are from real recordings from the 2015 Baltimore riots and the KXL Protest in 2011.
It would be a great benefit to the entire world if you shared this whether it be from Youtube, SoundCloud, or here. This isn't about you or me. It's about ALL of us. I honestly am nervous for our future but I believe we can make great changes for the better as humanity.
Here's the artwork used created by me as well:
Sources used:
Greta Thunberg Speech
Baltimore Riots Video
DC KXL Protest Video
Hope to see you all on here again soon!
Awesome job on the track. It really adds effect to Greta's speech.
I've been on top of the science and reports for climate change for quite a while now (first discovered climate change in 2008), but Greta's words have definitely had an impact on me, enough to where I actually got overwhelmed with guilt that I wasn't doing enough, even though I've done far more than most in my area. I'm a problem solver by nature, and facing a problem that I can't solve really took its toll on me. It doesn't help knowing that for every positive change I make, a few iPhones' worth of impact zeroes me out.
So, don't let the panic drag you down and cause you to do nothing but feel bad. I'm coming out of that right now and it is not how I want to feel. This problem is too big for any one person to correct, but that doesn't mean individual action has no impact. Individual action has collectively caused this situation, collective individual action is what we need to stop our emissions, reduce other pollution levels, and let our planet heal.
One hidden source of considerable emissions is technology manufacture. An iPhone 8, 256 GB model, releases 71 kg of CO2. That's 156.5 lbs., which equates to the tailpipe emissions of almost 8 gallons of gasoline. Most of that impact is from manufacture (80% to be exact). A new MacBook Pro 15" releases 366 kg (805.2 lbs) of CO2 over its expected lifecycle, which is actually down from 710 kg of CO2 over the 2013 MacBook Pro thanks to Apple changing their source of aluminum to hydro-smelted and recycled aluminum streams. What I'm trying to get at, is technology has reached a point where hardware upgrades have less impact on performance. If you need to upgrade your hardware, shop refurbished or used. There are plenty of previous gen devices out there that still run just fine. My iPhone 6s is just as fast as the current models in day to day use. As for battery life, new batteries are much cheaper and have much less impact than a new device (and yes, you can change the battery in an iPhone relatively easy, just need the right tools).
Sources for Apple product environmental reports:
iPhone 8 - https://images.apple.com/environment/pdf/products/iphone/iPhone_8_PER_sept2017.pdf
2018 MacBook Pro - https://www.apple.com/environment/pdf/products/notebooks/15-inch_MacBookPro_w_Thunderbolt3_PER_July2018.pdf
2013 MacBook Pro - http://images.apple.com/environment/reports/docs/15inch_macbookpro_retina_per_feb2013.pdf