Ecologies and climates have always changed over time. Globalization, urbanization and human-driven climate change have accelerated these changes, continually restructuring global ecologies. We cannot return to the past, and altering the current trajectory of global warming and CO2 emissions is unlikely. In this context, this project looks at the changing vegetation of Mount Desert Island, to reflect on past, present and future vegetation as a way of understanding evolving climate conditions and the migration of plants and animals. Today, the migration of species (human, animal, vegetative) is accelerated by natural disasters and climate changes that challenge the fixed spatiality of national boundaries and demographics. This project proposes thirteen new islands within and adjacent to the island, that can serve as sites of research and comparison with present conditions, helping humans to be more open to change. These new ‘wild gardens’ will function as petridishes, moments of experimentation and proposition, accelerating future botanical conditions, some of which may include plants that are today considered undesirable but realistically are expected to expand their ranges north. The project aims to help people recognize that 1) all species move in response to climate changes, 2) that we are all part of a planetary climate 3) that we as humans choose how we respond to the changes.
