The Future is Unwritten: People of America, Initiated by Mel Chin - Fundred Project

By The United Nations

An Exhibition by The Future is Unwritten & UN75: Artists for Tomorrow

Artist Mel Chin initiated the Fundred Project to raise public awareness of and advance solutions to the devastating problem of lead poisoning. The initiative invites the public to create their own $100 bill to represent the value of a person’s expression against the invisible threat of lead poisoning that undermines health, intelligence and behavior, particularly in children. To date, over 480,000 Fundreds have been created and presented across the US. 

History and Highlights by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

While visiting New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2006, artist Mel Chin learned about the silent storm of lead contamination that had been plaguing the city and the rest of the country for decades. Hundreds of thousands of children were being exposed each year, with far reaching consequences that played out over lifetimes. Recognizing the scale of the problem, he saw that existing resources were inadequate to respond. Mel believed that children could be part of the solution, which led to the Fundred Project. Through individual drawings, their voices can be tangibly represented in a powerful call for a lead-free future.

CAPITAL TO CAPITOL: The Story of Fundred by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

CAPITAL TO CAPITOL: The Story of Fundred

The Fundred Project is an artist-driven, national effort powered by the people to advance solutions to the devastating problem of lead poisoning by raising awareness of the issues of lead and creating a model of engagement and action for lead-safe communities. This documentary has been created by Ben Premeaux.

Fundreds for Health by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

In addition to creating a public display of action-oriented art and inviting community involvement, the initiative has brought together local public health specialists, educators and scientists to talk about the challenges and solutions to lead poisoning.

Fundreds for Health by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

Why is Lead a Problem?
Children have a high sensitivity to lead as their bodies and brains are developing. There are serious consequences resulting from children exposed to lead dust. Lead poisoning can affect brain development and cause learning disabilities, lowered IQ, behavior and attention problems, hearing damage, nervous system and kidney damage.
Many studies indicate a direct connection between lead poisoning and poor performance in the schools, learning disabilities, juvenile delinquency and violent crime.

A growing body of literature is detailing the societal costs of lead poisoning. Lead poisoning is related to attention deficit-hyperactivity disorders and the need for special education. The correlation between early lead exposure to adult-onset health problems is proven. The financial impacts are evident when considering lifetime earning potential, health care, education, and the direct costs of crime.

Fundred Guards and Trucks by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

In 2009-2010, a specially designed armored truck was sent to hundreds of schools, museums and community centers across the country. Hundreds of thousands of Fundreds were collected.

Fundred Guards and Trucks by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

As students handed their Fundreds over to truck guards for safekeeping, schools held events that raised awareness of the gravity and persistence of the lead in our environment. These events gave local elected community, press and officials a chance to connect their local efforts to national participation.

A Public Service Announcement by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

A Public Service Announcement
The Fundred Project offers classroom discussion, hands-on exploration and important lessons.
Through the project, students:
- See how art can change perspective and create awareness
- Experience a creative approach to democracy
- Contribute to making a safe environment for other children
- Initiate important environmental, health and social change
- Collaborate in a nationwide, well publicized public artwork
- Bring learning to life by connecting classroom lessons with community service projects

Fundred's Impact by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

Fundreds offer a visual way to engage around lead poisoning. It’s 2020, and millions are still at risk of lead poisoning. Mel Chin’s concept is simple: express your value and stop lead poisoning.

Socially Engaged Art by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

This message is delivered through outreach, education and artmaking. Lead poisoning leads to learning disabilities, lowered IQ, behavior and attention problems, hearing damage, nervous system and kidney damage, and makes people more prone to violence and crime.

Where Does Lead Come From? by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

The project has continued for 12 years, reached all 50 US States, amassed more than 480,000 Fundreds, and been brought to our nation’s leaders.

Fundred in the Classroom by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

Fundred was designed to especially encourage and highlight the voices of children.

Fundred in the Classroom by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

Educators from all over the US have brought the project into the classroom to support a variety of learning goals. Fundred is a play on words which combines the words “Fun,” “Fund,” and “Hundred.”

Safehouse by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

The Fundred Project was launched in 2008 with an initial focus on lead issues in New Orleans. Mel and his team transformed a previously unoccupied house in St. Roch — a New Orleans neighborhood plagued by high levels of lead contamination — into a vault that became project headquarters.

Safehouse by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

Safehouse became a unique venue for exchange between visitors and neighbors, and the space hosted many events and continuous workspace for the creation and display of Fundreds.

What are the Effects of Lead Poisoning? by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

What are the Effects of Lead Poisoning?

- Permanent brain damage
- Lowered IQ
- Liver damage
- Kidney damage
- Digestive problems
- Nervous system damage
- Impaired muscle coordination
- In acute cases, the effects of lead poisoning can include convulsions, coma or death.

Symptoms of Lead Poisoning Aren’t Easy to Detect. They Include:

- Tiredness, weakness or lethargy
- Irritability or crankiness
- Reduced attention span
- Loss of appetite
- Inability to retain information
- Weight loss
- Trouble sleeping
- Constipation
- Stomach aches or pains
- Increased violent behavior
- Swelling of the brain

Creativity and Collective Action for Health by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

This is an ongoing collective art project made by people across America. Their hand-drawn interpretations of $100 bills are original works of art that together call attention to the danger of childhood lead poisoning and remind us that every child’s future has value.

Creativity and Collective Action for Health by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

Created, by the people, for a future free of lead poisoning.

Fundred Reserve by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

The growing Fundred Collection was brought to Washington, DC in Spring of 2017 for the Fundred Reserve exhibition, held at the Corcoran School of the Arts & Design.

Fundred Reserve by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

Multiple events were held, attended by lawmakers, dozens of congressional staffers, artists, educators, school groups, families, leaders in the arts and health communities, and the public.

Fundred Dollar Hill Day by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

April 25, 2018 was Fundred Dollar Hill Day - an impactful day of advocating for lead safety for ALL, on the 4-year anniversary of Flint's water crisis. Families, artists and activists from Flint were represented, along with representation from New York, Ohio, North Carolina and District of Columbia. The hand-drawn Fundred currency, made by individuals across the country, was brought to the Capitol to demonstrate how much we value the lives of children and a future free of lead poisoning. The team made several Congressional office visits and co-hosted a press conference with Rep Dan Kildee (MI-5).

Fundred Artists of America Program by People of America, initiated by Mel ChinThe United Nations

Mel Chin (b. 1951, Houston, Texas) is known for the broad range of approaches in his art, including works that require multi-disciplinary, collaborative teamwork and works that conjoin cross-cultural aesthetics with complex ideas. In 1989, he developed Revival Field, a project that was a pioneer in the field of “green remediation,” the use of plants to remove toxic, heavy metals from the soil. From 1995 to 1998 Chin formed a collective that produced In the Name of the Place, a conceptual public art project conducted on the popular prime-time TV series, Melrose Place. In KNOWMAD, Chin worked with software engineers to create a video game based on rug patterns of nomadic people facing cultural disappearance, and his hand-drawn,24-minute film, 9-11/9-11, won the prestigious Pedro Sienna Award—the “Oscar” of Chile—for best animation in 2007. A current project, Fundred, focuses on national awareness and prevention of childhood lead-poisoning through art-making. Mel is also well known for his iconic sculptures and installations, works that often address the importance of memory and collective identity, and for inserting art into unlikely places, including destroyed homes, toxic landfills, and most recently working with advanced augmented reality (AR) technology, investigating how art can provoke greater social awareness and responsibility. A multi-venue exhibition of Mel’s work titled All Over the Place was presented in New York City in 2018. He has received many honors, grants and awards, most recently a MacArthur Fellowship in 2019.

Credits: Story

Artists for Tomorrow is organised by The Future is Unwritten in collaboration with UN75 and curated by Stephen Stapleton and Danielle Sweet. The exhibition is presented in partnership with the Open Mind Project.

The Future is Unwritten (TFIU) is an initiative by CULTURUNNERS and the World Council of Peoples for the United Nations (WCPUN) Arts & Culture Advisory Council, launched in 2020 in collaboration with UN75. As 2020 marks the beginning of the UN’s Decade of Action, TFIU facilitates urgent cooperation between the international Arts and Culture sector and the United Nations in order to accelerate implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

www.thefutureisunwritten.org

Special thanks to Jahan Rafai and Lisa Laskaradis, UN75; Asya Gorbacheva and Saheer Umar, Production Department; and Kuba Rudziński, Art Department.

All images courtesy of the artist.

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
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