Cupertino seniors celebrate sustainability with art project
Dragon made from repurposed materials will be on view for Earth Day event.
A piece of environmentally friendly art created by residents of a Cupertino senior living community will be the centerpiece of its Earth Day event on April 19.
Residents of The Forum at Rancho San Antonio spent four months making a 12-foot-long dragon from old bubble wrap, grocery bags, pillowcases and toilet paper rolls. The work honors the Year of the Dragon.
“We wanted to create something special for the Lunar New Year, and what better way to do it than by creatively repurposing materials,” said resident Rowena Chow, who organized the artistic effort.
Repurposing materials into artworks is in line with The Forum’s strategic plan focus on sustainable development, with the goal of being a carbon-neutral campus by 2030. Executive director Nancy Kao and resident Nancy Grove are leading this effort.
Grove, a retired physician, said she’s always been a climate activist, and it’s been empowering to see her neighbors interested in having a positive impact on the environment. “We all want to leave the world no worse off than we found it,” she said in a release.
Since moving into the community three years ago, Grove has helped to organize panels and promote The Forum’s Sustainability Committee and Green Team, which hosts lecture series, recycling initiatives and other activities around environmental awareness.
The Forum boasts a fully electric shuttle bus and rooftop solar panels. The campus is a National Wildlife Federation-certified Wildlife Habitat and an approved Pollinator Habitat for bees, butterflies, hummingbirds sand other nectar-sipping birds and insects.
To help spread awareness of its green initiatives, The Forum hosting its third annual Earth Day event, where local businesses and residents will showcase sustainable products. Master gardeners, resident artists and the local Audubon Society will all be in attendance, along with a local refillery, where consumers can bring empty bulk-size containers to replenish their personal care and cleaning products.
The event is scheduled for Friday, April 19, 2-4 p.m. at The Forum at Rancho San Antonio, located at 23500 Cristo Rey Drive in Cupertino. To RSVP, visit https://theforum-seniorliving.com/event/april-earth-day-extravaganza-in-person.