Tag: sustainability

creativity

What a Corn Stalk’s DNA Taught Me About Solving the Climate Crisis

Christa Avampato
Photo by Marek Studzinski on Unsplash

The urgent global challenge is feeding a rapidly growing population while fighting the uncertainty of climate change. As a storyteller and a biomimicry scientist, I often ask: How does nature solve a massive, existential crisis? The answer, it turns out, lies not in some distant super-technology, but in the subtle genius of a single plant cell.

New research from the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory has illuminated a fundamental biological “master switch” in the DNA of food crops like corn, giving us an actual blueprint for creating a resilient, thriving future. This isn’t just botany; it’s a profound lesson in survival written right into the plant kingdom.

The Inner Wisdom of the Plant

Plant growth, from the deepest root to the ripest ear of corn, is governed by its stem cells—unspecialized cells that hold the potential to become any part of the plant. The challenge facing plant scientists has always been figuring out how to balance these cells: when should they grow and when should they specialize into, say, a fruit or a thick stalk?

In a breakthrough study, scientists mapped the gene expression in these cells, revealing the network of regulators that act as the plant’s precise internal control panel. This network balances growth and stress response, allowing the plant to strategically allocate its resources for survival.

This knowledge is a gift to us all because it shows how nature manages risk. A plant facing drought doesn’t just despair; it shifts resources to deepen its roots. A plant under pest attack doesn’t just succumb; it redirects energy to fortify its cell walls. It’s a marvelous, elegant system of risk mitigation through metabolic flexibility.

A Blueprint for Humanity’s Resilience

As my work focuses on biomimicry—integrating nature’s genius into the human world—I see in this discovery a direct path to solving our human challenge of food security. We are not meant to struggle endlessly against the elements; we are meant to learn from the masters of endurance.

This plant study provides us with three clear takeaways for building a better world:

  1. Precision over Force: Instead of overwhelming fields with more fertilizer and water, we can use this genetic knowledge to engineer plants to be more efficient—to use nitrogen more effectively and direct energy precisely where it’s needed most for resilience.
  2. Unlocking Latent Potential: We are now able to see and manipulate the plant’s own evolutionary solutions. We can develop crops with deep-seated, natural defenses against drought and disease, built on the plant’s own wisdom, not on chemical dependency.
  3. The Power of the Foundational System: The corn stalk teaches us that true resilience comes from perfecting the foundation. By understanding and replicating the simplest, deepest biological controls, we can build human systems that are robust and adaptable, just like an ecosystem.

A Brighter Future Ahead

This breakthrough is more than just a scientific finding; it is a fundamental shift in our relationship with nature. By finally decoding the genetic “master switch” that plants use to govern their own destiny, we are handed a powerful blueprint for survival. The challenge of global food security has never been greater, but this research proves that the solution is not an endless technological sprint, but a deeper engagement with the patient, profound wisdom of the living world. The era of resilient agriculture is not just on the horizon—it has already begun, written in the complex, hopeful language of a plant’s own DNA.

If you’re interested in learning more about how I apply nature’s genius to human challenges, check out my work on biomimicry here: Christa Avampato: Biomimicry Stories Can Help Us Build a More Sustainable World



Now, I want to hear from you: How can we apply the corn plant’s principle of ‘metabolic flexibility’ to urban planning in our own cities?

creativity

Head, Heart, and Hands: The Great Triumvirate of Change

Christa Avampato
Image created by Christa Avampato.

I just attended Dr. Katharine Hayhoe’s Climate Week NYC talk at the American Museum of Natural History, and it was the most empowering climate message I’ve ever heard. It reframes the entire discussion around three simple ideas: Head, Heart, and Hands.

A research-backed truth: Dr. Hayhoe shared that most people in this country and in the world (~60% on both counts) are worried about climate change. We, the worried, don’t need more doom and damning data to get us concerned because we’re already there.

The challenge: Even though we’re worried, we aren’t taking enough action to alleviate our worry because we don’t know what to do about it.

The solution: Sync up our head, heart, and hands – what I’m calling the great triumvirate of change – and sync with others.

Well, that’s all well and good, but how do we do that? Dr. Hayhoe’s advice: Get clear about what we care about, how climate change will impact what we care about, find others who care about what we care about, and start talking!

Here’s our action plan:

Head: Define Your Why. Clearly identify exactly why you’re worried. Finish this sentence: “I care about climate because I care about…” How is your personal well-being, favorite place, or dearest value already being affected by climate change? Keep it simple, personal, and jargon-free.

Heart: Connect to Community. Now that you know what you care about, find communities, groups, and individuals who share that passion and are also affected by climate change.

Hands: Turn Conversation into Action. Get in touch with those communities and start talking about your shared worries and values. That act of conversation and connection will lead to meaningful, collaborative action or project to protect what you care about.

Climate change will affect everything everywhere all at once. It is a global issue, and no one will escape it so no matter what you care about, it will be impacted and there are communities of people who care about it, too. Let’s dive into an example from my personal life to see this action plan come to life.

An example:

Head: I’m worried about climate change because I love New York City. Since most of our city is at or near sea level, we will be subject to serious impacts from sea level rise, and we have a lot of issues now with rain flooding the streets and subways – our main modes of transportation. We also have a lot of people living in a small amount of space so there is a lot of pollution that impacts our health and well-being, and often crowds out green space, which is causing more heat, dirtier air, and health issues.

Heart: I love this city, and I do believe we can make it greener, cleaner, and healthier for all beings who live here – people, pets, wildlife, and plants. I want to find other people who also care about nature in NYC.

Hands: I run a live storytelling game show called NYC’s Secrets & Lies all about the secret history of NYC. This month, I decided to make the show all about stories related in nature in NYC and applied to have it become an official Climate Week NYC event. They accepted it (hooray!). I found a terrific venue – a hidden theater inside Port Authority Bus Terminal (a great tie into the transportation issues impacted by climate change here in NYC!) We had a wonderful cast of storytellers who were enthusiastic about the topic and told a wide range of stories. I also invited Josh Otero from the Natural Areas Conservancy to be our special guest to talk about all of the amazing work they do to make NYC greener and healthier. We had a sold-out show with a waitlist of 33 people, and all of the stories talked about interesting aspects of the history of nature in NYC. We had so much fun, and it was a great way to get the message out there! This show gave me a place to put my worries about climate change and turn them into action with others. I’m planning to do more of these shows – stay tuned!  

Our climate anxiety is reaching new heights and as Dr. Hayhoe explained, the way to use that anxiety for good is through stories. Storytelling is about conversations. Every great idea, every meaningful action, every ounce of change – it all begins with a conversation. Get out there, start talking, and see what change you can create with others.

creativity

The Climate Film Festival Storytelling Collective

Christa Avampato

I’m really happy to have joined a new collective created by Climate Film Festival that’s bringing together sustainability professionals with filmmakers to raise the bar on and expand opportunities for climate storytelling. As someone who has one foot in each of these worlds, I’m so excited to be part of this new professional group and to help craft and fund these stories that drive action.

Yesterday I went to the Essex Market coffee hour for our first in-person event and attended an excellent panel about climate documentary making. As someone who studied how to use storytelling to drive more climate investment from family offices, I felt like I was in just the right place at just the right time because financing was a key part of the conversation. I heard a number of filmmakers talk about the challenge of finding financing for their climate films, especially with the current situation in D.C.

What filmmakers need to consider is that private funders don’t want to just fund a movie. They want to fund systemic change, especially when it comes to protecting and restoring the health of the planet. Filmmakers need to show how their films, and the platforms and supports they are building around their films, will get viewers to engage in creating meaningful change. That change needs to be measured and reported on.

Is that asking more from filmmakers? Yes. Is it asking them to be skilled business people, entrepreneurs, and community leaders on top of their filmmaking expertise and beyond the creation of the film? Yes. Isn’t making a movie already a Herculean task? Yes. Is that a challenge? Yes. It’s also today’s funding reality.

You aren’t just making a movie, not anymore. You’re building a movement, and that movement is what’s fundable with a movie being one cornerstone of many.

creativity

From Black Gold to Golden Opportunity: A Kentucky Coal Mine’s Bright New Future

Christa Avampato
Martin County Solar Project, Kentucky. https://www.martincountysolarproject.com/

One of my great joys is to uncover stories about abandoned places sustainably retrofitted to get a new lease on life. This transformation made my heart sing: a former coal mine in Kentucky, once a symbol of industrial might and negative environmental impacts, is now gleaming with thousands of solar panels, powering a cleaner tomorrow. It offers a powerful beacon of hope for a sustainable future.

For generations, communities in places like Martin County, Kentucky, built their lives around coal. It was the “black gold” that fueled homes and industries across the nation while also degrading the land and human health. As the energy landscape shifted, so did these communities, often leaving behind economic hardship and vast, altered landscapes stripped bare of the nature they once harbored. The Martiki coal mine, closed in the 1990s, stood as a stark reminder of this past complicated, painful past.

A Phoenix Rising: The Martin County Solar Project

Today, that same landscape is being reborn. The Martin County Solar Project (MCSP) is transforming 900 acres of reclaimed mine land into a massive 111-megawatt solar farm. Picture this: over 214,000 bifacial solar panels, designed to capture sunlight from both sides, now stretch across the terrain where heavy machinery once toiled.

The Martin County Solar Project’s website shares that it began commercial operation in December 2024. It will generate enough quiet, clean renewable energy each year to power approximately 18,529 Kentucky homes.

This isn’t just about replacing one energy source with another; it’s about intelligent, hopeful repurposing. The beauty of this project lies not only in its clean energy output but also in its clever use of existing infrastructure. The former mine site, already flattened and with clear access to sunlight, still retained its transmission lines and substations. This meant less new construction, lower costs, and a faster path to bringing clean energy onto the grid—a truly smart way to leverage the past for the future.

Beyond Energy: A Boost for the Community

The benefits extend far beyond power generation. This project is a successful example of how the transition to a green economy can revitalize communities. The MCSP created hundreds of good-paying construction jobs, bringing much-needed employment to a region that had experienced significant job losses as coal production declined. Looking ahead, the solar farm will provide ongoing maintenance jobs and generate stable tax revenue for Martin County, helping to diversify its economy and build a more resilient future.

Major corporations are taking notice, too. Toyota Motor North America, for instance, has committed to purchasing 100 MW of the solar energy generated through a long-term agreement. This partnership highlights how businesses are increasingly seeking out sustainable energy solutions, not just for environmental reasons, but for economic stability and to meet their own ambitious climate goals.

The Martin County Solar Project is more than just a power plant; it’s a testament to human ingenuity and our ability to adapt and innovate while reconciling with a difficult past. It’s a story of turning a painful environmental legacy into a vibrant, job-creating clean energy future. It shows us that even the most challenging landscapes can be repurposed for the good of both people and the planet. It’s an inspiring vision of what’s possible when we embrace sustainable solutions, proving that a green future is also a prosperous future.

creativity

Planet of the Grapes: The Future of Sustainable Materials is Found in a Vineyard

Christa Avampato
Planet of the Grapes clutch and the wine waste that made it. Image from https://planetofthegrapes.fr/.

In the sun-drenched vineyards of Provence, France, where winemaking is an age-old tradition, a new kind of harvest is taking place. Instead of producing bottles of Rosé, one innovative company is collecting the leftover grape skins, seeds, and stems — known as “grape marc” — to create a revolutionary biomaterial. This is the story of Planet of the Grapes, a company proving that the solution to fashion’s waste problem might just be found at the bottom of a wine barrel.

Founded by Samantha Mureau, a fashion industry veteran, Planet of the Grapes was born out of her desire to counteract the devastating environmental and social impacts of fast fashion. She found her inspiration close to home when she realized the abundant grape marc left over from winemaking could be given a second life. Instead of being discarded or composted, it could be transformed into a high-performance, eco-friendly alternative to traditional leather and textiles.

The process is as fascinating as it is sustainable. Planet of the Grapes sources its grape marc from local, organic vineyards in Provence, fostering a low-carbon, community-driven supply chain. The grape waste is then dried, ground into a powder, and mixed with other natural ingredients to create a paste. This paste is spread out to create a supple, leather-like material. The entire process is designed to be as animal-free and petroleum plastic-free as possible, adhering to strict EU regulations.

The resulting biomaterial is not just a sustainable substitute; it’s a new material with its own unique character. Designers who have worked with it say you can feel the subtle texture of the broken-down grape marc, a tangible reminder of its natural origin. This “grape leather” can be colored using a palette inspired by different wine shades, from a rich merlot to a crisp chardonnay, making it a beautiful and versatile material for fashion and lifestyle products.

Planet of the Grapes is a prime example of the growing “biomaterials” movement, where companies are finding creative ways to turn agricultural waste into valuable resources. By valorizing what was once considered waste, they are creating a more circular economy and reducing the fashion industry’s reliance on harmful materials. It shows how innovation can be a powerful force for change, proving that a more beautiful, responsible, and nature-friendly future is within reach.

Follow Planet of the Grapes on Instagram to see their behind-the-scenes process.

creativity

Copenhagen: From Concrete Jungle to Sponge City 🌊

Christa Avampato
Photo by Nick Karvounis on Unsplash

Copenhagen, the vibrant capital of Denmark, is renowned for its design, cycling culture, and high quality of life. But beneath the charming canals and green spaces, a pressing challenge looms: managing increasingly intense rainfall due to climate change. Rather than relying solely on traditional infrastructure like pipes and sewers, Copenhagen is embracing nature-based solutions, transforming itself into a “sponge city.”

The sponge city concept, originating in China, focuses on absorbing and retaining rainwater where it falls, mimicking how nature manages water. This involves integrating nature-based solutions into the urban landscape to capture, filter, and slowly release stormwater to mitigate flooding.

“If you want to survive, you have to be spongy,” says Yu Kongjian, dean of Peking University’s College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, and founder of Turenscape, one of China’s largest landscape architecture firms. “Trying to protect cities with hard, gray infrastructure made of concrete is doomed to fail.”

Copenhagen is a frontrunner in the spongey revolution, and its journey offers valuable lessons for cities worldwide grappling with similar climate-related challenges. My dear archipelago home city of New York, I’m looking at you!

One of the key elements of Copenhagen’s sponge city transformation is the creation of what’s known as green infrastructure. Parks and green spaces are being redesigned to function as rainwater retention basins during heavy downpours. These areas, often featuring sunken lawns and permeable surfaces, can temporarily store significant volumes of water, reducing the strain on the city’s human-made drainage system and reducing the risk of flooding. For example, Enghaveparken has been renovated to include a large underground reservoir capable of holding approximately 22,700 cubic meters of water. This dual-purpose space serves as a recreational area for residents while providing crucial stormwater management capacity.

Beyond parks, Copenhagen is incorporating blue infrastructure into its urban fabric, giving water a place to flow. The city’s numerous canals and harbors are being leveraged to manage excess water. Innovative solutions like floating wetlands and constructed ponds not only enhance biodiversity but also help to filter and retain stormwater. Furthermore, permeable pavements are being increasingly adopted in streets and public squares, allowing rainwater to seep into the ground rather than running off into drains. This reduces surface runoff and helps to replenish groundwater levels.

The driving force behind Copenhagen’s commitment to becoming a sponge city is its ambitious Cloudburst Management Plan, developed after a severe storm in 2011 caused widespread flooding. This comprehensive plan outlines a series of long-term projects aimed at making the city more resilient to extreme weather events. It emphasizes a collaborative approach involving the municipality, utility companies, businesses, and citizens in implementing nature-based solutions across the urban landscape.

The benefits of Copenhagen’s sponge city approach are manifold. Beyond reducing flood risk and alleviating pressure on drainage systems, these green and blue infrastructure initiatives enhance the city’s livability. They create more green spaces for recreation, improve air quality, support biodiversity, and even help to cool urban heat islands during hot summer months.

Copenhagen’s journey to becoming a sponge city is not without its challenges. Retrofitting existing urban areas with green and blue infrastructure requires careful planning, investment, and community engagement. However, the city’s proactive and integrated approach serves as an inspiring model for how other cities can adapt to the increasing impacts of climate change by working with nature, rather than against it. As extreme weather events become more frequent, the lessons learned in Copenhagen offer valuable insights for building more resilient and sustainable cities for the future.

You can read more about Copenhagen’s plans to manage climate change at https://urbandevelopmentcph.kk.dk/climate.

creativity

Living Roman

Christa Avampato
Photo of St. Peter’s through Rome’s Aventine Keyhole by my sister, Maria Avampato Waldrep

Italians have their priorities straight. I had the privilege to be in Rome for a week with my sister. It’s her favorite city and I see why. (Also huge thanks to her for arranging our entire trip and for taking this photo of St. Peter’s through Rome’s Aventine Keyhole with a line of ornery, inpatient teenagers behind her!) It was so fun to see dear friends, Julie and Brian, who were also in Rome. And Julie was one of the people who encouraged me to take this whole trip!

Rome is a thriving, livable city. It feels comfortable and easy. Forgiving. It takes its time because it knows it has time. Weathering thousands of years of history, often brutal and bloody, gives Romans perspective. People don’t rush in a place that’s eternal. They go out late. They linger. They rest.

Art is everywhere. Everything is art – a statue, the way the water runs through a fountain, a twirl of spaghetti, the language, the winding of a road, a sculpted scoop of gelato, a swirl of rich balsamic vinegar in green-tinted, earthy olive oil. A Roman life is a masterpiece that goes on and on.

Only take what you need. Just enough food. Just enough water. Your salad doesn’t need to drown in dressing. Your house doesn’t need to make a statement. Your tiny car is parked sideways to make room for more people traveling via different modes of transport. Take what you need and leave the rest for others. It’s a minimalist life, not a maximalist one, that offers a greater reward – freedom from the weight of physical things and knowing that neighbors have what they need because you didn’t overindulge.

Walk the streets at any time and be entertained, be joyful, be at ease. It’s not about spectacle. It’s just about living every simple, singular moment. That’s all there is. That’s all there needs to be.

There’s fresh spring water from fountains available to everyone all over the city. More hydration, less plastic bottle trash. Laughter and live music provide the soundtrack for the streets. On these days of simple microjoys, I wanted for nothing. Everything I needed was here. In a city of abundance, I found it made me want less because I wasn’t worried about having enough. What a gift.

Now back home in America, I’m going to keep Roman living top of mind and close to my heart. It has much to teach us about living well and sustainably, thriving in hard times, and caring for our neighbors.

creativity

How Fungi Are Illuminating a Sustainable Future

Christa Avampato
Photo by Igor Omilaev on Unsplash

Imagine a future where the gentle, natural glow of wood guides you along a park path or illuminates your home, all without a single watt of electricity. This isn’t a scene from a fantasy movie; it’s a groundbreaking reality being forged by scientists who are harnessing the power of nature itself to create a sustainable alternative to traditional lighting. At the forefront of this innovation is Francis Schwarze, a fungal researcher at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa), and his team, whose work on bioluminescent wood is nothing short of revolutionary..

In their research, Schwarze’s team demonstrated a remarkable example of biomimicry, the practice of drawing inspiration from nature to solve human design challenges. They looked to the forest floor and the eerie phenomenon of “foxfire,” the natural glow emitted by certain fungi in decaying wood. By isolating and studying the ringless honey fungus (Desarmillaria tabescens), they were able to understand and then replicate this process in a controlled laboratory setting. The team discovered that this particular fungus could be introduced into wood in a way that maintains the wood’s structural integrity while it is imbued with the fungus’s natural ability to glow.

The magic of the glow comes from a natural chemical reaction involving an enzyme called luciferase, the very same enzyme that makes fireflies light up the night. When the fungus-treated wood is exposed to air, the enzyme triggers a reaction that produces a soft, green light. The result is a completely self-sustaining, non-toxic, and non-electric light source that could one day transform our approach to lighting.

While the current glow is comparable to the light of a candle and lasts for about 10 days, the research represents a crucial proof of concept. The team, including researcher Giorgia Giovannini, is actively working on optimizing the process to increase the brightness and longevity of the luminescence.

The practical applications of this innovative material are as numerous as they are inspiring. Imagine urban spaces where bus shelters and street signs are naturally illuminated, reducing light pollution and energy consumption. Think of a park where benches and pathways glow gently, eliminating the need for harsh electric lamps. In homes, this biohybrid material could be used for designer furniture, artistic wall panels, or even subtle safety markers, all glowing without a power source. This innovation could also inspire a new class of biomimicry products, moving beyond wood and into other materials that could be made to self-illuminate or possess other natural properties.

Ultimately, this research highlights the immense potential of looking to nature for solutions. By collaborating with living organisms, scientists are not just creating a new product; they are pioneering a new field of sustainable materials science. The work of Schwarze and his team is a shining example of how understanding and working in harmony with the natural world can lead to a brighter, more sustainable future for us all. It reminds us that some of the most profound innovations aren’t about building something entirely new, but about learning from and enhancing what already exists.

creativity

A dream realized – I graduated from University of Cambridge

Christa Avampato

It happened! A dream deferred, but not denied. The hope of going to and graduating from University of Cambridge was part of what kept me alive during my cancer journey in 2020 / 2021. On Friday, that hope became a reality — I graduated with my Master’s in Sustainability Leadership with my friends, family, and faculty there.

The best part of these years has been to do this programme with such a stunning group of people who have inspired me from day one when we started down this path together in September 2022 – students, faculty, and staff. No one’s more fortunate than me to have had this experience with them and to call them dear friends.

In this uncertain world, I’m not sure what my next chapter holds. I do know I’m on my way and all the better for having these gorgeous people as fellow travelers.

A profound thank you full of love and an enormous congratulations to everyone in Cohort 13. I’m beyond proud to be one of you and I’m already looking forward to our next reunion.💚 (Happy photos below!)

creativity

Embracing stakeholder theory in Finland this summer

Christa Avampato
Photo from https://events.tuni.fi/stakeholdertheory/sustainability/

Finland, I can’t wait to meet you! I was accepted into the 2025 Summer Seminar in Stakeholder Theory at Tampere University with University of Virginia Darden School of Business (my alma mater), Darden-The Institute for Business in Society (IBIS), and RESPMAN Research Group. I’ll join an incredible global group of faculty, researchers, and PhD students to learn and share how to best integrate stakeholder theory into my work in sustainability and climate change mitigation. As part of the program, I’m revising and refining the work I started in my University of Cambridge / Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) dissertation on the role of storytelling to engage family offices in climate investments. I’ve spent the last 2 months editing (cutting it in half!) and am excited to get feedback on it. In addition to that paper, I’ll also work on 3 more research projects:

  • The Stories We Eat: Narratives to Shape Stakeholder Behavior and Policy for Sustainable Food Futures
  • Narrative Power: Using Digital Media to Convey the Voice of Future Generations and Nature in Sustainability Storytelling
  • From Self-Interest to Shared Benefit: How to Adapt Finland’s Exemplar of Public Trust Amidst Power Asymmetries in U.S. Businesses

I’m so grateful for this opportunity to learn and engage with these incredible people in one of the most sustainable communities in the world. I’m most looking forward to spending time with my professor, mentor, and dear friend R. Edward Freeman, who is one of my heroes and the founder of the seminar. As the originator of stakeholder theory that transformed business ethics, his work has fundamentally changed how businesses and business leaders around the world operate. He’s the reason I went to Darden and he changed how I see the world and my role in it. I’m honored to have had his support and encouragement for all these years.

It’s going to be an incredible summer of learning. I’m excited to experience all of it and to see where it leads! Nähdään pian, Finland!