Amber Archive
|2018–Ongoing|
The Amber Archive is an in-progress project—a "deep archive" of our planet's bio-genetic wealth.
Each created amber nodule contains a fragment of a species threatened by humankind’s transformation of Earth’s ecosystems, preserving a single species's DNA for millennia to come.
Fur, scale, leaf, feather, insect wing—each carries a genetic code which might be used by scientists at the appropriate time—in some far future when habitats and resources are available for de-extinction of potentially lost species.
The Archive is a biodiversity time capsule for a world generations hence, and a potent reminder to us today of what we stand to lose in the Sixth Extinction.
The San Diego Institute for Conservation Research's cryobank, known as the "Frozen Zoo," aims at a similar goal, though is far more high tech—reliant on deep freezers and large amounts of electricity. Were a climate event or major conflict to disrupt the electrical grid for a long period of time, these DNA samples would be irrevocably lost.
The Amber Ark seeks a more analog and more ancient method of preservation—one that could survive the potential collapse of Western Civilization.