Ivanova / Autotrophic Economy

Autotrophic Economy An example economy echoed by the sun

Author: Pepa Ivanova, KU Leuven

Supervisor: Esther Venrooij, KU Leuven; Stefaan Poedts, KU Leuven

Research stage: Intermediate doctoral stage

Category: Artefact

Abstract

Autotrophic Economy is a speculative concept and an art project about biosphere processes on the earth, powered by solar radiation. In this later stage of my Ph.D. research, I look into the light-fueled evolution processes. How to redraw ecology through biomass, oxygen production, and pollution in a society of sleep-deprived consumers. This is a sensible deviation from the initial data modeling looking into the interspecies dependencies and how diversity is a key factor in ecological survival. Instead of modeling an estimation, volume, or scale of the visual light using techno-centric data collections, this reformulation of the research focuses on light-harvesting mechanisms in living organisms.

How the sun and the earth are cohabitants in a constant transformation through interdependent ecosystems intertwined in electromagnetic frequencies?

How do plants provide an example for the human economy and survival?

This seeming deviation from the main research topic I find close to the thematic of the DDr framework, where researchers can reflect and add new reformulations to their research framework. The Autotrophic economyI presented during CA2RE+, Ljubljana is a draft of my future post-doc research project.

Keywords: Ecocentrism, interconnection, sun-earth