What happens when you give creative, passionate people pipettes, aluminum soda cans, hospital gowns, and other waste destined to rot? Art! You get beautiful, thought-provoking, MoMA-worthy pieces.
That is what the annual Waste to Art challenge is all about.
"We are incredibly proud that with the support of the Office of Sustainability and the Office of the President, Waste to Art has become an annual tradition at UCSF," said Seema Gandhi, MD, professor in anesthesia and medical director of sustainability and co-founder of the challenge.
There are two goals:
- To gather support and active participation from the diverse communities at UCSF and UCSF Health;
- to encourage people to reflect on the waste in their practices and think about ways for waste reduction and transitioning into a more sustainable future.
Every year, the Campus Engagement Climate Fellow undertakes the planning and execution of the challenge with support from the UCSF Health and UCSF sustainability teams. This year, Madeleine Matthys, a fourth-year medical student entering residency in surgery, oversaw the event. "The Waste to Art event is a heartening reminder that like-minded folks are all working towards the same goal– reducing waste. This event inspired me to collaborate, and I can't wait to contribute in the future as a UCSF doctor," Matthys.
Drum Roll for the Winners
Re-Gown by Ana Figueroa, California the Beautiful by Hemra Cil, Kaiyi Wang, Elizabeth Whitlock, Seema Gandhi, Mother by Luis Martinez Roman
Re-Grown on a model.
This year, 16 pieces were displayed at the Millberry Union for one day to give the public and the judges a chance to see the work up close and vote. The judges – Maddy Pearson, DNP, RN, NEA-BC chief nursing executive and vice president, Patient Care Services; Amy Van Cleve, director, Art for Recovery; Deborah Munk, manager, Artist in Residence, Recology – rated the pieces on four areas: originality, quality, sustainability, and social impact.
The 2024 winners:
- Re-Gown by Ana Figueroa
- Mother by Luis Martinez Roman
- California the Beautiful by Hemra Cil, Kaiyi Wang, Elizabeth Whitlock, Seema Gandhi
"It is heartwarming to know that we have created a community for folks at UCSF who share a passion for the therapeutic power of art and the passion for sustainability and waste reduction," Kaiyi Wang, MS, sustainability utilization analyst and co-founder of the challenge, stated. In addition to building a community, Gail Lee, Office of Sustainability director, sees hope for the future of waste awareness. "Already staff are inspired to see waste differently, and hopefully, they will be inspired to find ways to reduce waste in our work environment," Lee says.
The Bright, Rubbish-Free Future
The challenge brings creativity into a messy, dirty issue of excess waste. It forces people to think about what can be reused, and to avoid single-use products. Of course, this is a hard feat for hospitals because supplies must be sterile. Individual packages mean no chance of being reused.
Gandhi and her team are at the forefront of tackling this waste problem for UCSF Health. At the Waste to Art event, she announced a partnership with the Art for Recovery programs, the San Francisco Unified School District, and the Recology Artist in Residence program to donate excess medical supplies to be used creatively for art. "Through these partnerships, we hope to strengthen our community relationship and showcase UCSF's efforts in waste reduction," Gandhi said.
For future events, the planning team hopes that more people will be able to participate, either by submitting artwork or by coming to the exhibit to vote. They understand that hosting an event at the Parnassus Campus during regular business hours doesn't work for a diverse workforce like UCSF. "We are also actively working with leadership to showcase some art pieces at our hospitals and administrative buildings. Several art pieces from last year are displayed at the Parnassus Heights hospital lobby and administrative buildings on Minnesota and Owen Street," Kaiyi mentioned.
