Teacher / Alumni Feature: New Horizon Initiative

New Horizon Initiative

Lecturer Dirk-Jan Visser and alumnus Gus Drake traveled to the Sinai desert to create and present first images of their new collaborative project 'New Horizon Initiative' at COP27.

The project analyzes and visualizes the different interests of non-juman life in a landscape to facilitate inclusive decision-making.

by Dirk-JaN visser aND gus Drake @newhorizon_initiative

① Just landed at the UN Climate Change Summit (COP27) in Sharm-El-Sheikh, working on New Horizon Initiative which we will be going to present here in collaboration with What Design Can Do. Over the next few days, we are working in the Sinai desert to photograph different landscape elements highlighting the needs of plants and animals to survive. All our images will be used to do a visual stakeholder analyze. With the support of Artificial Intelligence, we will envision an imaginary landscape of Sharm-El-Sheikh could look like, taking the interests of non-human life (plants and animals) into account.

② Roaming the desert around, surveying and photographing the needs of plants and animals in this fascinating landscape. What is the perspective of a snake when its sees only heat (thank you FLIR Systems). Capturing over 2500 images to envision an imaginary landscape of Sharm-El-Sheikh could look like, taking the interests of non-human life (plants and animals) into account.

③ During the last few days we have been surveying over 2500 images of vegetation and landscape elements that are important for different types of species to be successful. Taking the research of Mohamed Z. Hatim from Wageningen University & Research University as a starting point, we are creating through Artificial Intelligence two landscapes on how SharmEl-Sheikh can look like taking the interests of non-human life into account as part of New Horizon Initiative.

④ What an amazing opportunity it was to present our prototype of the New Horizon method at the UN Climate Change Summit COP27 in Sharm-El-Sheikh.

Through this method we envision alternative views addressed to policymakers, CEOs and politicians to include the interests of non-human life in designing policy, and advocacy for the rights of nature as part of a legal framework. We had interesting conversations and made arrangements for follow-up.

To be continued …