The KEEPING WATCH initiative enters its fourth year with a focus on wildlife habitat in the urban ecosystem. Beginning with an opening reception on February 24 at UNC Charlotte Center City, KEEPING WATCH on HABITAT will offer two months of programming, through April 27.
Organized in 2013 by the UNC Charlotte College of Arts + Architecture and UNC Charlotte Urban Institute with Lambla artWORKS, KEEPING WATCH is a multi-year initiative designed to foster collaboration across disciplines and interest groups to engage the public in local environmental issues.
Through the work of artists, writers, environmental experts, and scientists, KEEPING WATCH has connected community partners and projects to raise awareness and inspire action around four concerns: plastic waste and recycling (2014), water quality and urban streams (2015), air quality and tree canopy (2016), and wildlife habitat in the urban ecosystem (2017).
Integrating the previous years’ investigations, KEEPING WATCH on HABITAT explores the fragile coexistence of nature and humanity within the built environment. Loss of habitat, often as a result of human action, is the greatest threat to wildlife in the United States. Recognizing that biodiversity is crucial to human well-being, KEEPING WATCH on HABITAT seeks to connect us to the natural world, offering new ways of seeing and experiencing the miraculous diversity of life on Earth.
Programming is anchored by an exhibition in the Projective Eye Gallery at UNC Charlotte Center City, curated by Director of Galleries Crista Cammaroto. Other events include discussions and a film screening. Articles produced by the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute will address habitat issues of local concern. Learn more at keepingwatch.org.
KEEPING WATCH on HABITAT is funded by the College of Arts + Architecture with support from the Blumenthal Foundation and media partner WFAE 90.7FM. The KEEPING WATCH Alliance is a broad coalition of more than a dozen partners representing city and county government, the non-profit cultural sector, environmental groups, and UNC Charlotte. Community partners for KEEPING WATCH on HABITAT are
Anne Springs Close Greenway
Arts & Science Council
Catawba Lands Conservancy
Carolina Raptor Center
Charlotte Area Science Network
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
City of Charlotte
Clean Air Carolina
Community Alliance for Wildlife
CROWN
Green Teacher Network
McColl Center for Art + Innovation
Mecklenburg Audubon Society
Mecklenburg County
Nevins Center
North Carolina Native Plant Society
North Carolina Wildlife Federation
