Articulating the pressing necessity for a green energy transition

McCarthy Quad on the USC University Park Campus is a favored location for students to lounge and unwind, whether on the grassy areas or in hammocks strung between the trees.

However, at noon on March 1, reclining in the quad will transform into an act of defiance against social and climate injustices during the event El Respiro / Respire, sponsored by USC Visions and Voices and coordinated by the USC Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.

Artist Carolina Caycedo MFA ’14, a graduate of the USC Roski School of Art and Design, will guide the USC community, art and environmental advocates, along with the public, in what she dubs a “geochoreography.” Using their bodies, participants will articulate the phrase “Just Transition Now” in both English and Spanish (“Transición Justa Ya”).

The phrase serves as a rallying cry for a transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy — one that is respectful of the environment and fair and inclusive towards all workers, communities, and nations.

“‘Just transition’ signifies a transition that includes everyone,” states Caycedo, a Colombian artist based in Los Angeles, whose various artistic endeavors including photography, hanging sculptures, films, books, installations, and performances have focused on environmental and social justice topics for more than a decade. “‘Now’ emphasizes the climate crisis at this pivotal moment in our world.”

Participants will receive red shirts to don during the performance that they can keep afterwards. The color red, commonly associated with emergencies, will prominently contrast against McCarthy Quad’s green grass and concrete pathways. Aerial photography with drones will document the performance from above, enabling participants to enhance their message on social media afterwards.

Caycedo aims to attract at least 160 participants — the minimum requirement to form 10-foot letters composed of strategically arranged individuals. “One of the objectives of the geochoreography is to create a diverse, collaborative body, where every individual plays a role in positioning,” remarks Caycedo.

Allison Agsten, the event’s curator, points out that the embodied nature of the geochoreography — with individuals lying head-to-toe and shoulder-to-shoulder — will empower those involved to experience the effectiveness of collective action towards a common ambition.

“When we consider an art experience, most of us don’t typically see ourselves as participants — we envision ourselves as observers,” explains Agsten, director of the USC Annenberg Center for Climate Journalism and Communication and curator at USC Wrigley. “This is an invitation to not merely remain on the sidelines, but to engage actively and work together as a unit.”

“Carolina Caycedo is an exceptional multidisciplinary artist who
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“shares Visions and Voices’ dedication to fostering community and examining societal challenges through the arts, and we are thrilled to assist in bringing her to USC,” states Daria Yudacufski, the executive director of USC Visions and Voices, an initiative encompassing arts and humanities across the university. “Her engaging performance will unite communities in an immersive and participatory manner, and I am confident it will deliver a profound and significant experience for those involved.”

Grassroots leaders collaborate

The noon geochoreography will be introduced by a panel discussion regarding equitable energy transformation, taking place at 10 a.m. in the Salvatori Computer Science Center on University Park Campus. Both events form part of a broader project directed by Caycedo named We Place Life at the Center. Introduced by The Getty’s arts initiative PST ART: Art & Science Collide, it encompasses an exhibition, publication, and educational initiatives that spotlight ecological movements and the factors that have shaped them.

“The objective of the project is to expand our understanding of energy transition,” Caycedo remarks. She emphasizes that a comprehensive transition must not only involve the elimination of fossil fuels but should also include sustainable management of water and land, alterations to food systems, and ecosystem restoration informed by Indigenous wisdom.

El Respiro / Respire will be a component of the conclusion of the traveling exhibition We Place Life at the Center / Situamos la vida en el centro, which began at the Vincent Price Art Museum at East Los Angeles College on September 28, 2024. Caycedo curated works alongside a collective of artists and environmental advocates from the United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean.

“These individuals are at the forefront, coming from grassroots and community perspectives, embodying transition initiatives and methods within their localities,” says Caycedo.

Over 30 of these creators and activists will gather for a retreat at the USC Wrigley Marine Science Center on Catalina Island for the four days leading up to El Respiro / Respire. Caycedo envisioned the retreat as not just a summit for sharing knowledge but also as an opportunity for the group to halt, reflect, and rejuvenate. She chose the title El Respiro / Respire to symbolize a collective exhalation—“a moment where you take a deep breath and sort of gather and regain strength for the long-term struggle,” she notes.

At the conclusion of the retreat, the participants will proceed to the University Park Campus to engage in the geochoreography and panel discussion, which will be moderated by Agsten. Caycedo will converse with Juan De Lara, an associate professor of American studies and ethnicity at USC Dornsife and director of the Center for Latinx and Latin American Studies; Camila Marambio, a curator from Chile and founder of Ensayos, a collective research initiative focusing on eco-cultural preservation in Tierra del Fuego; and Barbara Santos, a Colombian artist and researcher whose work in the Amazonian jungles merges art, technology, and ancestral insights.

“El Respiro / Respire presents a unique chance for our USC community to interact with this group of leaders in a direct manner,” states Agsten.

Jennifer West, professor of practice in fine arts and director of the MFA in art at USC Roski, has been following Caycedo’s work since she assessed her MFA thesis in 2014. Within the global art community, Caycedo has become “one of the foremost figures in addressing environmental and Indigenous rights,” West asserts.

West believes El Respiro / Respire exemplifies the evolution of Caycedo’s artistic endeavors over the last decade. “She has increasingly become interested in collaborative efforts,” West notes. “This is what’s genuinely beautiful about her approach—she is not merely highlighting issues but presenting art as a therapeutic means to unify around concepts.”

Trojan Family principles

Caycedo anticipates that anchoring the event at USC, a prestigious R1 research institution, will facilitate new connections between academic and community initiatives directed toward energy transition.

During the geochoreography, she intends to draw upon USC’s Unifying Values — integrity; excellence; diversity, equity, and inclusion; well-being; open communication; and accountability — as a foundation to help participants contemplate collective actions and compose captions to accompany the drone photograph shared on social media.

“While individuals are engaged in writing with their bodies, I will encourage them to consider, ‘What relationship are you forming with this location?’—not only with the campus but also with the surrounding community and the city as a whole, along with the natural systems that support us on a daily basis,” Caycedo explains. “We want to utilize the core values of USC to inspire these thoughts and reflections.”

Returning to the campus where she obtained her Master of Fine Arts degree holds significant importance for Caycedo, who acknowledges her time at USC Roski as a transformative experience that enhanced her artistry and acquainted her with the cultural landscape of Los Angeles. While pursuing her degree, she developed a passion for the issue that motivated her initial geochoreography in 2014: opposing the construction of a hydroelectric dam on the Yuma (Magdalena) River in a region of Colombia where Caycedo spent considerable time during her youth.

Since then, her artistic focus has been directed toward highlighting vulnerable communities and delicate ecosystems impacted by extensive energy infrastructure. Besides her cooperative fieldwork, Caycedo has showcased her studio art at prominent institutions such as New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and the Whitney Biennial.

Nonetheless, she has no intentions of displaying the drone image created at El Respiro / Respire. “My goal is not to print this image and display it in a museum,” Caycedo clarifies. “The aim is to circulate it as widely as possible, ensuring that the message of equitable transition also spreads as broadly as possible.”