groWorld is developed in three trajectories - Sym, Bio and Sys. 'Sym' researches growth and transformation deployed in synaesthetic cultural experiences; including food production and consumption (e.g. experiments in blending molecular gastronomy with Ayurvedic principles), biomimetic design and responsive environments (blurring the edges between materials and media). 'Bio' works in biologically de-activated areas (urban centres, waste-dumps, abandoned industrial sites), addressing the decrease of biodiversity through 'guerilla gardening' (following Masanobu Fukuoka's seed-balling method). 'Sys' is about technology that is 'electricly green' technology, able to shed light, circulate energy, purify the elements, shelter or adorn a place in which all living things can delight.

groWorld's long term goal is to develop a set of DIY proposals, publications and events aimed to influence and guide fundamental behavioural changes, moving from a wasteful consumer society to a
responsive and responsible participatory society.

In the short term, Sym people create experimental situations by combining food, materials and media to visualise the entanglement of pleasurable sensory experiences, food, energy economies and climatological events. The outcome is a series of synaesthetic experiments, integrating scientific and traditional knowledge about food production and consumption (e.g. combining molecular gastronomy and Ayurveda), researching new and forgotten tastes (e.g. the recent discovery of the human ability to differentiate five bitter tastes, which can guide new recipes using wild plants), etc.

In the bio strand we grow a network of urban gardens. The groWorld team works with local communities, gathering information about the current conditions of the regional eco-systems, potential threats and benefits. Different species of (endangered and/or edible) native plants are chosen, seeds thoroughly mixed together with plant compost and red clay and rolled into 'seed-balls'. The team engages in mapping potentially fertile, but neglected sites in city-centres, industrial and residential areas. The seed-balls are scattered on these sites, marked on the streets, on photographic maps and street directories. After the first rains, the seed-balls decompose, providing enough nourishment for the fragile seedlings. To celebrate the planting, 'seedy-dinners' are communally cooked, consumed and discussed. In 2-3 years, with the help of local gardeners, the gardens should become fully grown and self-sustaining.

Sys: encourages the development of technological systems inspired by biological and cultural life (not restricted to biotechnology) ; rather than reducing life to a machine, we attempt to make technology and its processes more life-like. One of the results of Sys will be a flexible visualisation system for energy footprints and carbon economics, extending and elucidating the often simplistic connections between energy consumption, lifestyle choices and social decision making (aka. carbon footprinting, environmental impact, environmental footprint analysis), by collating data form a variety of sources to be able to present a more holistic understanding of the various economies and their wider
environmental impacts

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Project details

About the Author:

Maja Kuzmanovic (Belgium, the Netherlands, Elgaland Vargaland)
hybrid reality generator & integrator, alchemical storyteller, grocery and food geek
FoAM: http://fo.am
maja@fo.am