Collective Impact & Environmental Awareness: Community BLOOMS

Community BLOOMS features over 350 jellyfish made from upcycled plastic—much of it rescued during South Coast Massachusetts beach cleanups—to draw attention to ocean pollution. Since 2022, artist Katy Rodden Walker, has worked on this project to raise awareness about plastic pollution in our oceans, waterways, and food chains, and the resultant phenomena of jellyfish blooms. She has initiated collaborative workshops in which more than 200 community members have created art. All participants were named as collaborators on the project. Community BLOOMS, in other words, showcased the collective community voice—with many coming together to promote environmental change.

Community engagement—specifically in the New England coastal area of New Bedford, Massachusetts—is critical to connecting with the communities affected. It represents a cultural shift by exposing the benefits of collaborative and multidisciplinary approaches toward environmental resilience. Community BLOOMS culminated in an exhibition—a room-sized installation that included an array of 3D jellyfish blooms that came to life with rotating motors, LED lights, projection, and sound. The informative and immersive experience contextualized the alarming ecological data from New Bedford waters and beyond, leaving visitors more aware of shared spaces with nonhuman counterparts and functioned as a call to advocate for environmental and community stewardship. The striking visual installation reminded viewers to consider nearby shores in environmental advocacy efforts, whether closer to home, in the classroom, or at the state government level.