Curating a Creative Life as a Storyteller, Scientist, and Business Leader
Thanks to inspiration from my friends, Ashley and Erin, I started studying for my New York City Sightseeing Guide License. Yes, we license everything in this town!
I’m excited to do this homework and take the exam. If you’d like to join me on a study walk in this glorious city, let me know! I like curious company.
Received a lovely writeup in Untapped Cities for the New York City’s Secrets & Lies show on August 8th. Our storytellers are diving into dusty archives and busted up boxes of historical footage to bring you the craziest pieces of NYC history we can find. Looking forward to seeing you at Caveat. Doors open at 6:30pm and the show starts at 7:00pm! Tickets available at http://caveat.nyc/event/new-york-citys-secrets-and-lies-8-8-18
Some news. Shark mucus sounds like an odd inspiration. Stay with me. After the podcast Ologies released its shark episode, I re-examined biomimicry as a way to marry my product development, business, and storytelling experience with my love for science. I owe host Alie Ward and Chris Lowe, who was the shark expert on the episode a million thanks. Here’s why:
I always loved science and actually started college in the engineering school. After a professor told me I didn’t “have a mind of physics”, I believed him and left all my dreams of working in science behind. I changed majors entirely and have always wondered what might have been if I hadn’t let this professor get into my head.
Fast forward a number of years. I’ve continued to learn about science and its applications. Over the years, I’ve thought about different ways that I could have a career that combined science with all my other experience & interests. Enter Ologies and sharks…
Shark mucus acts as a built-in antibiotic bandaid that allows sharks to rapidly heal. This may contribute to their long life spans of – wait for it – up to 470 yrs! We should apply this to our own medical research, right? We do! In the field of biomimicry.
Biomimicry is an applied science field in which the wisdom of the natural world plants and animals is studied and applied to the human-built world of products & environments in a sustainable way that benefits all beings.
After some research, I learned there’s a Masters of Science in Biomimicry through Arizona State University Biomimicry 3.8 that’s a dream program. Multidisciplinary, online, created for working professionals, and with a travel research cohort component. Best of all, it leverages ALL my prior experience.
I’ve been a fan of Janine Benyus‘s work since reading about her 10 yrs ago. She founded this program. It’s exciting how much the field has grown & how vital it will be to use design + business + science to build a better world for all beings as we grapple w/our changing planet.
I’m now in application and scholarship hunting mode, hoping to begin the program in 2019. Finding the work we’re meant to do is a long and winding road. I hope my story inspires you to stay curious and to keep reaching for a life fueled by passion and goodness. The world needs us.
On Wednesday, August 8th, my storytelling show New York City’s Secrets and Lies has a special guest. Tom Rowley is a filmmaker from Ireland and he’s creating an incredible geolocation-based mobile app of storytelling about New York City’s secret history. He’s going to share all the details of his project and he needs your help with it. Learn how to get involved by coming to the show. Tickets on sale now at http://caveat.nyc/event/new-york-citys-secrets-and-lies-8-8-18/.
I’m trying out something new in my social media feeds – short poems about daily learnings. You can check them out on my Twitter and Instagram feeds. Here’s the one I put up yesterday:
What if you
could run hard
to the edge of the cliff,
take to the sky,
and fly?
Where would you go?
What would you do?
And why?
Me?
You’d find me
soaring higher, higher, and higher,
just to see how far I could go.
~CRA
The only work you have to do is find and do the work you’re meant to do. That’s enough; that’s always been enough. Just do that.
Thank you to Children’s Museum of Manhattan for the tour of this church that’s been abandoned for 15 yrs & will soon be the new home for the museum. My museum-loving friends & I had a blast! This church is across the street from the apartment building where I used to live and I’ve admired it from the exterior for years. It was fascinating to actually be able to go inside and explore it. From an abandoned ballroom to vaulted ceilings, a sealed safe, and the stunning stain glass, I was completely inspired by this space! Pretty sure Emerson Page is going to find her way in here…
Day #1 of books that influenced my life. This book came into my life at a critical point when I was very much trying to figure out what I would do with my life to make this world a better place. 6 months after finishing it, I went to South Africa w/ 30 of my Darden classmates. That trip changed me in ways that I am still discovering all these years later. It made me a writer & storyteller. On his 100th birthday, I am thinking of Nelson Mandela, grateful that we had him in this world. Grateful for his teaching, his wisdom, and his passion. And also sad because we could really use a man that great of heart now.
What impact are current developments in immigration laws having on New Yorkers? How can we help NYC public high school students resolve their immigration status – and what are their stories?
Join the Immigration Project of Volunteers of Legal Service (VOLS) on Friday, July 27th at Caveat for a lively talk about the current legal landscape and its actual impacts on our clients, as well as a screening of the documentary _4 Stories for New York_. This 29 minute documentary features four clients of the VOLS Immigration Project sharing personal stories about their immigration trajectory, including the role legal assistance played in their lives. Elizabeta Markuci, Director of the Immigration Project at VOLS, will lead a discussion on immigration law developments, including Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) litigation and legislation.
The mission of the VOLS Immigration Project is to resolve immigration issues for New York City public high school students so that they can work, attend college and have an opportunity to achieve the American Dream. VOLS recruits, trains, and mentors pro bono lawyers to help these youth overcome their immigration issues and give them a chance to succeed. Proceeds of the event benefit the Immigration Project, allowing the Project to continue and augment our important work in securing the immigration status of vulnerable NYC youth.
Tickets available at:
https://volsimmigration.eventbrite.com
Doors 6pm, program 6:30pm. Friday, July 27th, 2018 at Caveat, 21A Clinton Street, New York, NY 10002. Seating is limited and on a first-come, first-served basis – arrive at 6:00pm for best seating.
If you cannot attend, please consider making a donation by following the same link for tickets. More information on the Immigration Project is available at http://www.volsprobono.org/projects/immigration-project
Christa Avampato 