Link About It: This Week’s Picks

The potential of seaweed farms, public art's influence on safety, video games for depression and more from around the web

How Women in Bolivia Honor Their Indigenous Roots Through Skating In Cochabamba, Bolivia, an all-women skate crew called ImillaSkate uses skateboarding as a way to honor their roots, empower each other and stand against the persecution that Indigenous people have historically faced in the country. The women, who hail from Bolivia’s native Aymara and Quechua populations, skate in polleras—colorful, layered skirts traditionally worn in their …

New Study Reveals Public Art Decreases Traffic Accidents

During the pandemic, the US saw an unprecedented 21% increase in pedestrian fatalities. As the country looks to update its federal traffic safety guidance to mitigate this, a new report entitled Asphalt Art Safety Study from Sam Schwartz Consulting and Bloomberg Philanthropies offers solutions. The study examines the impact that asphalt art—which includes intersection murals, crosswalk art and painted plazas and bridge underpasses—has on the …

A New Building in Manhattan is Made of 577,367 Pounds of Waste

At the corner of NYC’s 47th Street and 11th Avenue now sits The West, a new building made up of 219 residences and 577,367 pounds of recycled waste. From StoneCycling, the building’s bricks comprise 60% of byproducts from the construction industry—the first time this material has been used in the US. Not only are these bricks more sustainable than traditional ones, but they’re also design-forward. …