The late afternoon light, filtering through the ReLeaf Cooperative’s windows, cast thin, angular shadows across the workshop floor. Outside, the city simmered in its usual haze, indifferent to the quiet revolution happening inside. Jasmine, a mentor at ReLeaf, stood before a group of volunteers—her mentees. They had gathered in the cluttered, half-forgotten space where discarded technology came to die or, under her hand, to be reborn.
The e-waste, delivered earlier that morning, lay scattered on the tables, a jumbled mess of plastic and silicon. Circuit boards, stripped of their purpose, broken radios, forgotten smartphones. It was, in every way, a graveyard of the recent past. Jasmine stood in the center, her fingers brushing absently over a worn Arduino board as if coaxing a pulse from something already dead.
“Today,” she began, her voice quiet but edged with something that made them all lean in, “we're going to build a soil moisture controller.”
The words, simple as they were, carried an unexpected weight. They all knew this wasn’t about the machine. Not really. They had come here for reasons that ran deeper than a desire to make technology work again. Beneath the surface of their collective task, something darker lingered—a sense that this was all part of a larger, more desperate attempt to reclaim a world slipping out of their grasp.
Scavenging for Components
They moved with a strange reverence, searching through the wreckage for components that might still hold some trace of life. An Arduino here, a soil sensor there, wires tangled like the veins of a long-extinguished system. Jasmine watched them, noting their quiet determination. She had seen this kind of urgency before, though it was not born from any need to create. It was born from the realization that creation was the only thing left between them and despair.
As they gathered the pieces—a solenoid valve, resistors, a salvaged battery—Jasmine’s thoughts wandered. This e-waste, these broken tools—they were relics of a time when we believed in the permanence of what we built. But now, there was an unsettling awareness in the room that everything, even the things we thought would last forever, had become fleeting.
Building the Controller
The group worked in silence, following Jasmine’s instructions with a precision that felt almost ritualistic. She connected the Arduino to a computer, uploaded a basic sketch to check if it was functional. The small blink of light that followed should have brought some relief, but it didn’t. Instead, it felt like a fleeting flicker, a heartbeat in the chest of something that had long since given up trying to live.
“VCC to power, GND to ground, and SIG to A0,” she muttered as if reciting a prayer, though no one there believed in miracles anymore.
Next came the solenoid valve. “This will control the water flow,” she said, but the words felt thin, as if she didn’t believe them. In the back of her mind, Jasmine wondered how long they would be able to keep coaxing life from dead things, how long they could keep making the broken pieces of the world function in ways they weren’t meant to.
She connected the valve, a brittle piece of plastic and metal, to the D2 pin on the Arduino. It clicked into place with an unnerving finality, as if it understood the gravity of its role—perhaps better than they did.
Testing the Creation
When it was done, the device sat on the table, an ugly thing, a mockery of what technology had promised to be. Jasmine placed the soil sensor into a pot of dry earth and stood back, her breath caught in her throat.
The valve clicked open with a sound that felt out of place—like the turning of a lock in a forgotten room. Water flowed. The soil darkened as it absorbed the moisture, and when it reached the prescribed level, the valve shut again, with the same uncanny precision.
But no one cheered. There was no sense of triumph here. The device had worked—exactly as it was supposed to—and yet, it felt like a warning. They had managed to keep the earth alive for a little longer, but at what cost? There was something grotesque in the idea that they had become caretakers of decay, bending the remains of one broken system to support another that was already on the verge of collapse.
An Unexpected Twist
Just as the tension in the room seemed to release, Marcus, one of the younger volunteers, spoke up. His voice was quiet, almost uncertain. “Jasmine…?” He was holding a different Arduino board, his face marked by confusion.
Jasmine walked over, her body stiff, as though already sensing something was wrong.
“There’s… something here,” Marcus said, pointing to the screen where a series of numbers scrolled, illuminated in the dim workshop. “It’s showing a Life Story metadata ID.”
Jasmine stared at it, her blood running cold. The Life Story metadata system had only been introduced recently—a way of tracking the components that passed through the cooperative, marking them with the story of their journey. But this board… it was old, older than the system itself.
“That’s impossible,” she murmured, but the screen didn’t lie. The metadata ID was clear, sharp, as if someone—or something—had placed it there deliberately.
The group gathered around the screen, their faces pale in the fading light. No one spoke, but the silence was thick with unspoken questions. How could a piece of e-waste from the past bear a mark of the future? What had they stumbled upon?
Jasmine felt a chill creeping up her spine. It was as if time itself had bent in on them, as if this small, innocuous board held the weight of something far larger than any of them could understand.
“Well,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper, “it looks like we’ve found something that wasn’t meant to be found.”
The room, once filled with the sounds of creation, now felt like a tomb. And as Jasmine looked at the faces around her, she realized with a sickening certainty that they had not built something to save the world—they had merely delayed the inevitable.
The world outside had already moved on. And perhaps, now, they had no choice but to follow.
To be continued…
🚮 W.A.S.T.E.: Words Assisting Sustainable Transformation & Ecology
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Ambrosia trifida (0.00) | Ambrosia trifida, the giant ragweed, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to North America, where it is widespread in Canada, the United States, and northern Mexico. DistributionIt is present in Europe and Asia as an introduced species, and it is known as a common weed in many regions. Its common names include great ragweed, Texan great ragweed, giant ragweed, tall ragweed, blood ragweed, perennial ragweed, horseweed,buffaloweed, and kinghead. DescriptionThis is an annual herb usually growing up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) tall, but known to reach over 6 m (20 ft) in rich, moist soils. The tough stems have woody bases and are branching or unbranched. Most leaves are oppositely arranged. The blades are variable in shape, sometimes palmate with five lobes, and often with toothed edges. The largest can be over 25 cm (9.8 in) long by 20 cm (7.9 in) wide. They are borne on petioles several centimeters long. They are glandular and rough in texture. The species is monoecious, with plants bearing inflorescences containing both pistillate and staminate flowers. The former are clustered at the base of the spike and the latter grow at the end. The fruit is a bur a few millimeters long tipped with several tiny spines. As a weedThis species is well known as a noxious weed, both in its native range and in areas where it is an introduced and often invasive species. It is naturalized in some areas, and it is recorded as an adventive species in others. It grows in many types of disturbed habitat, such as roadsides, and in cultivated fields. Widespread seed dispersal occurs when its spiny burs fall off the plant and are carried to new habitat by people, animals, machinery, or flowing water. The plant is destructive to native and crop plants because it easily outcompetesthem for light. Herbicide resistant giant ragweed populations were first identified in the late 1990s. Across much of the midwestern United States, populations resistant to group 2 (ALS-inhibitors) and group 9 (glyphosate) are present, though resistant to multiple herbicide modes of action has not yet been documented. There remains concern that herbicide resistance is more widespread than documented and many states like Minnesota offer free screening of giant ragweed for herbicide resistance. For chemical control, use of group 4 (2-4D) and group 10 (glufosinate) are effective. As an allergenAlso, interest is great in preventing the spread of this plant because its pollen is a significant human allergen. It is one of the most familiar allergenic ragweeds, and residents of different regions begin to experience allergic symptoms as the plant spreads into the area. UsesNative Americans had a number of uses for the plant as traditional medicine. The Cherokeeused it as a remedy for insect stings, hives, fever, and pneumonia, and the Iroquois used it to treat diarrhea. Giant ragweed has been used successfully as a compost activator and an ingredient in sheet mulch gardens. |
| Arrival Hour (0.00) | A moment outside of chronology when a crowd gathers not to witness but to be witnessed, waiting for something that may never fall. |
| Cultural Shift (0.00) | This section tracks how values, habits, and public space change when a city commits to circular practice. In Austin, neighbors trade skills, repair before buying, and design for reuse. Rings of contribution replace price tags. Libraries, depots, and gardens become the new main street. The mycelial network carries stories, trust, and logistics. Culture moves from me to we without losing room for individual expression. What you will find here: • Signals: new words, rituals, and cues that mark progress. • Practices: repeatable actions you can start this week. • Places: sites where the change is already visible. • Stories: Organic Fiction that lets readers rehearse the future. • Metrics: simple counts that show whether care is growing. Use this to learn, copy what works, and leave your own trace. The shift is live. Help steer it. |
| Detective Langley (0.00) | A weary investigator navigating the submerged veins of Future Austin, Langley carries the scent of rain and rust wherever he goes. Once part of the city’s official order, he now works in the shadows beneath the Air Canopy, where moss grows on forgotten walls and secrets ferment in the damp. Haunted by fragments of memory and guided by instinct more than allegiance, he moves through the city’s underworld like a reluctant archaeologist of truth. Langley’s strength lies in quiet observation—his ability to read a room, a person, or a silence. He distrusts clean answers and prefers the grime of uncertainty. Though the world above glows with sustainable illusions, he stays below, chasing whatever still feels real. |
| Eva Marquette (0.00) | A brilliant strategist and field operative driven by conviction more than faith. Once a scientist within ReLeaf, Eva turned rebel after uncovering The Gardener’s manipulation of bioengineered ecosystems. Focused, sharp, and quietly defiant, she balances intellect with intuition, often serving as Langley’s moral compass and tactical equal in the fight to reclaim Future Austin’s freedom. |
| Glitchtotem (0.00) | A misprinted vertical banner turned neighborhood shrine where broken instructions pose as belief. |
| Glyphseed (0.00) | A fungal mark or symbol that plants in soil or screen alike, sprouting decisions as if they were seedlings. |
| Hyper-algae (0.00) | A bioengineered strain of algae designed to purify air, absorb toxins, and restore ecological balance at accelerated rates. In Future Austin, it serves as both a tool of renewal and a potential weapon—capable of cleansing the city’s atmosphere or, if misused, destabilizing it entirely. Hyper-algae represents the blurred line between sustainability and control in a world trying to rebuild itself through living technology. |
| Irrigation System (0.00) | Practice of local repair, reuse, mutual care, and shared access. People use scrap, skills, and trust to keep each other safe and resourced when official systems fail. |
| Lake Exhale (0.00) | The felt breath of Lady Bird Lake offering quiet forgiveness that loosens the day. |
| Mimicry Commons (0.00) | A shared field where imitation is not theft but nourishment, each copy germinating into something new. |
| Organic Media and Fiction (0.00) | The rapid pace of urbanization and its environmental impact has inspired various speculative genres in literature and media. Organic Media and Fiction, a recent addition, offers a refreshing counter-narrative to dystopian futures, focusing on optimistic, sustainable societies powered by renewable energies. ReLeaf, an Organic Media and Fiction-inspired platform, epitomizes this genre by blending reality with narratives that envision a world where humans coexist harmoniously with nature and technology. ReLeaf's ethos is rooted in the belief that a hopeful future of sustainable living is not just an ideal but a reality. It combines engaging storytelling, visual arts, and direct action to showcase the possibilities of an Organic Media and Fiction future. By merging immersive narratives with tangible solutions, ReLeaf serves as both a creative outlet and a catalyst for change. The narratives in ReLeaf are set in cities that integrate renewable energy and green technology into their architecture, infrastructure, and daily life. From urban gardens atop skyscrapers to solar-powered public transport, these stories offer a glimpse of future urban landscapes grounded in existing technologies and practices. They provide an encouraging perspective on how our cities could evolve by amplifying sustainable practices we are already exploring. ReLeaf's stories feature diverse, inclusive, and community-oriented societies, emphasizing social justice, community empowerment, and equitable resource distribution. These narratives reflect societal structures that could foster a balanced coexistence, highlighting the importance of these values in creating a sustainable future. Beyond storytelling, ReLeaf engages in direct action, promoting real-world initiatives that echo Organic Media and Fiction principles. By supporting community-led renewable energy projects and sustainable urban farming, ReLeaf bridges the gap between the Organic Media and Fiction vision and our present reality, making the dream of a sustainable future feel achievable. ReLeaf broadens the understanding of the Organic Media and Fiction genre by presenting a balanced blend of reality and narrative. It underscores that Organic Media and Fiction is not just a literary genre or aesthetic movement, but a lens through which we can view and shape our future. The Organic Media and Fiction vision put forth by ReLeaf invites us to imagine, innovate, and create a future where sustainability is the norm. By intertwining fiction with reality, it presents Organic Media and Fiction as a plausible future, offering a hopeful counterpoint to narratives of environmental doom. ReLeaf helps us believe in—and strive for—a future where humans live in harmony with nature and technology. |
| ReLeaf (0.00) | Welcome to the ReLeaf Cooperative, where we dive deep into an innovative and revolutionary model of sustainability and community building. ReLeaf is a pioneer in developing scalable engagement strategies that foster community participation and work towards addressing pressing social issues such as homelessness. In this category, you'll find articles and Organic Media detailing ReLeaf's groundbreaking initiatives and visions. From creating sustainable gardens in Austin elementary schools to providing transparency in a world often shrouded in deception, ReLeaf serves as a beacon of hope and innovation. ReLeaf's approach of intertwining real and fictional elements in their work—such as characters, materials, techniques, and labor—sets a new standard for cooperatives worldwide. Its business model, which compensates for labor and knowledge contributions, creates a lasting benefit and helps people who have historically been marginalized. By meeting people with compassion, as resources in need of support instead of liabilities, ReLeaf has shown that everyone has the potential to contribute to society meaningfully. Explore this section to discover how ReLeaf is redefining the way we approach social issues and sustainability, with stories of inspiration, innovation, and hope. |
| Shoal Creek (0.00) | Shoal Creek is changing. At the Seaholm Intake, the water and stone hold a new role for the city. Engineers and naturalists are close to confirming a time-bending effect in the current. Short pulses move both downstream and upstream. Standing near the intake leaves people rested and clear, as if a long afternoon just ended. This site becomes a public time commons. The cooled chambers host sensors and quiet rooms. The walkway links to Central across the water. The mycelium network listens, then routes what the creek gives: steadier attention, better recall, and a calm pace for work and care. What to expect: Check-in stones that log a short visit and return a focus interval Benches that sync with the flow and guide five-minute rest cycles A simple light on the rail that signals when the current flips A small desk for field notes and shared observations Open data on pulse times so neighbors can plan repairs, study, and gatherings Invitation Come without hurry. Sit by the intake. Let the water set your pace. Then carry that steadiness back into the city. |
| Sky-taste (0.00) | A mineral sweetness in the air under the Air Canopy after it condenses and releases purified moisture. Many say it tastes of memory. |
| Sync Vein (0.00) | A subterranean current that merges human heartbeat with hidden infrastructure, binding body and city into one rhythm. |
| Trash Transmutation Tower (0.00) | In the heart of downtown Austin, the ReLeaf's Trash Transmutation Towers have become an innovative addition to the city's skyline. Located at the intersection of Congress Avenue and Cesar Chavez Street, these vertical gardens are part of an ambitious sustainable urban network by ReLeaf. An engraved compass rose at the pedestrian walkway is a hyper-connected point on ReLeaf’s W.A.S.T.E. (Words Assisting Sustainable Transformation & Ecology) network. It unites other ReLeaf sites throughout the city, converting waste to wealth. Within this network is the magic of the HyperSeed, a digital-organic fusion designed to grow into a new Trash Transmutation Tower, turning waste into green construction materials. ReLeaf's W.A.S.T.E. platform represents a blend of digital technology and ecological wisdom, illustrating a sustainable future for urban living. |
| Waste Integration (0.00) | In a world grappling with waste management crises, Waste Integration offers a novel solution. This philosophy looks beyond mere recycling or upcycling; instead, it weaves waste into the very fabric of our everyday lives in a meaningful and beautiful manner. Explore a wealth of creative methods to turn your home and community into sustainable ecosystems, where every item has a purpose, and nothing goes to waste. From transforming scrap metal into functional art, to building modular planters out of discarded plastic, Waste Integration is a testament to human creativity and resilience in the face of environmental challenges. With a combination of theoretical discussions, practical guides, and inspiring stories, our Waste Integration content shines a spotlight on this game-changing movement, demonstrating how each one of us can contribute to a more sustainable and circular economy. |