 "Photo: Samantha Pearson")
The alley between The Outback and Durham House of Pizza in downtown Durham is getting a consciousness makeover.
Splashes of blue and green cover the old cinder blocks, filling the alley with island and ocean scenes and declaring “The Future Is In Our Hands,” raising awareness of sustainability within community.
Youth activists from the Durham Students for a Democratic Society and the Student Environmental Action Coalition are working together to paint a 40-foot climate change mural on what used to be a blank white wall.
Alex Freid, a UNH freshman representing the SDS, a student group based at Oyster River High School, said the idea for a mural was proposed within the SDS a few months ago. When he came to UNH in September and got involved with the SEAC, the two groups banded together to work on the project.
Diana Carroll, a member of the Durham town council, said she got to know Freid through his involvement in promoting sustainability. She presented the sustainability scholarship to him last year and said she was very excited when he approached her with the idea for the mural.
“I’ve lived in Durham since 1974, so I know all of the store owners,” Caroll said. “When the students came to me with the idea, I knew which walls in town were blank and who to talk to.”
Carroll presented the idea to Roger Hayden, owner of Hayden Sports, and said he immediately jumped on board for the project.
Hayden said he is excited for the mural and that he agreed to let the students paint on the wall as long as they agreed to maintain it. In addition to donating the wall, Hayden also donated $200 for supplies.
“I think the sustainability programs at UNH are great, solid things,” Hayden said. “I’ll do my part if they’ll do theirs.”
The mural will be unveiled on Saturday, Oct. 24 at 11 a.m.
Freid said the unveiling is part of a massive international movement under the organization 350, which advocates the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions for a sustainable future. The event is among over 3,700 actions that are taking places in over 160 countries, all which will take place six weeks before the international conference on global climate change in Copenhagen.
“Each section of the mural has a 350 embedded in it,” Freid said. “It’s all about a good future.”
Sarah McGraw, co-leader of the SEAC, said several artists were involved in the construction of the mural. The 40-foot painting contains four environmental scenes; the forest, the arctic, the sea, and the mountains.
McGraw said each scene depicts endangered species as well as human influence on the environment, and interconnects the problem of sustainability with human livelihood and species protection.
In addition to the four environmental scenes, a large section of the mural will declare “The Future Is In Our Hands.” On Saturday, members of the community who attend the unveiling will be asked to place their handprints on the wall as a sign of their support.
“Literally ‘hands on’ will help people understand what it means,” Hayden said.
Carroll agreed with this assessment, adding that the handprints extend ownership of the mural to everyone in the town, even if they are not physically present on Saturday.
Freid and McGraw both emphasized the goal of getting younger kids involved and excited about living a sustainable lifestyle. Carroll said that this goal is more than achievable. She said that college students have a significant amount of influence over younger generations, more so than parents or teachers, because they are closer in age.
Freid sees Saturday’s unveiling is a “call to the community.” The SDS and SEAC have posted flyers all over town and sent copies to local organizations and institutions, including schools and churches, to let people know about the event.
“We want to get them involved in something bigger than themselves,” McGraw said.
Carroll also sees this as a great example of the university and town working in unison.
“This is a great example of the best that can happen between the university and the town,” Carroll said. “If the earth isn’t sustainable, we aren’t sustainable.”
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