Part 4 of TED Radio Hour episode What we'll eat on a warmer planet
Peaches, apricots, nectarines and cherries—one hybrid tree bears all these fruits. Artist Sam Van Aken cultivated the "Tree of 40 Fruits" to symbolize the biodiversity needed to feed our planet.
About Sam Van Aken
Sam Van Aken is a contemporary artist whose work concentrates on themes like communication, botany, agriculture, climatology and the impact of technology.
Van Aken received his MFA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He has received numerous honors including a Joan Mitchell Foundation Award, Association of International Curator's of Art Award and a Creative Capital Grant. Most recently, his work has been presented as part of Nature-Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial with the Cube Design Museum in the Netherlands.
Van Aken lives and works in Syracuse, New York, where he is currently an associate professor in the School of Art at Syracuse University.
This segment of TED Radio Hour was produced by Chloee Weiner and edited by Sanaz Meshkinpour. You can follow us on Facebook @TEDRadioHour and email us at TEDRadioHour@npr.org.
Web Resources
Related TED Video: The secret language of trees
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