Ethical Making @ The City of Glasgow College
The City of Glasgow College (CoGC) has been an Ethical Making Pledge signatory since 2018. We spoke with CoGC’s Ambassadors Emma Murray and Katie Hutchon to find out what they have been working on over the last year. Answers below have been written by Emma.
Within your workshop, what collective efforts towards more ethical/sustainable/responsible practice have been made this year?
In our workshop we use safe disposal chemicals. Katie and I are trying to action a potential change to an organic pickle. We also have scrap bins dotted about which contain offcuts of brass or copper, and this allows people to find use of pieces too metal that others may not need. Katie and I have also been actioning a move towards the use of towels at the sinks, instead of blue roll. We are sourcing these towels from the Hair and beauty department in the college who can no longer use them due to holes or bleach marks etc.
How has your course integrated themes of ethical making into the curriculum?
Within our course we have a module dedicated to alternative materials which focuses on the use of materials such as driftwood, seaglass, jesmonite. We had a visit and talk from Mastermelt, who are a company that take bench shavings, melt it down and send you cash for the metal extracted. We have also had talks about ethically sourced materials such as gems from ethical mines, and the advantages as well as the disadvantages of each type of source.
Have you (or any of your classmates’) addressed themes of ethical making within your creative practice?
I feel as though our class have frequent conversations and opinions that are forming to become strong about ethical making and practice. We talk about the sources of our materials; we have had multiple occasions where we have bulk bought orders from suppliers to lower our overall carbon footprint and I feel my classmates are not afraid to bring things to Katie and I’s attentions.
What progress do you envision your course making over the coming year?
In terms of the course making progress, I believe more talks are being scheduled around different topics that concern environment and sustainability in practice, and with these talks, come connections and collaborations.
How has being an Ethical Making Ambassador changed your learning and practice?
The ambassador programme has created a lot of opportunities to start conversations about our practice as individual makers as well as contributing to classroom discussions. Talks, such as that with a representative from Mastermelt, have shown reputable companies who work with makers that help create a circular practice. That is what being an ethical ambassador has aided a move towards: a Circular Practice. It has helped to create more of an awareness within us as makers. The ethical ambassador scheme has great resources to share with those who are searching for more information on how to make their practice sustainable.
