SEASON'S GREETINGS (and REFLECTIONS) |
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Redding, CT (December 24, 2022) -- For most of us, the end of one year and the beginning of a new is a time for reflection, and hopefully, some celebration. For Leo Baekeland, his focus on work was so great that, even after the year in which he had successfully created Bakelite, his diary entry on New Year’s Day 1908 suggests he barely took a breath. |
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But, unlike our relentless inventor of yore, we at the L.H. Baekeland Project must stop a moment to reflect on this eventful past year. We do so with mixed emotions.
In August, we lost our beloved friend and leader, Hugh Karraker. We at the Project are still trying to process the shock of this personal and professional loss and what it means to all of us going forward.
In 2013, Hugh founded the L.H. Baekeland Project to celebrate the life of his great grandfather, to promote the history, the science, and the art of Bakelite, and to advocate for the responsible manufacture and use of plastic. With the global release and success of the film Hugh produced with director John Maher, All Things Bakelite: The Age of Plastic, these goals were building momentum, especially in 2022.
The film completed a successful two-year run on PBS with over 500 telecasts on 183 channels in 87 markets. It is now available on Amazon Prime Video, iTunes, AppleTV+, Google Play, YouTube, and VUDU Domestic. With English closed-captioning and subtitles in Chinese, French, German, and Spanish, it can be streamed in over 100 countries and territories.
C-SPAN permanently added the Mark Twain House roundtable Beyond Bakelite: History of Bakelite and the Legacy of Plastic, which aired in late 2021, to its informative series, American History TV. Hugh participated in that discussion and it is available on C-SPAN's website.
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Institutional screenings, events and connections occurred throughout the year with such diverse organizations as the Science History Institute, Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project, Plastics Heritage Congress (Naples, Italy), American Chemical Society, and Society of Plastics Engineers.
The Project continued to reach out on the grassroots level with screenings and exhibits in schools, STEM programs, local museums, libraries, historical societies and connected with groups such as BeyondBenign.org, which promotes green chemistry education. Notably, the most recent event held in November at the Yonkers Grinton I. Will Public Library honored both Leo Baekeland and Hugh Karraker with a presentation of the film, a panel discussion, and a Bakelite exhibition. The event, produced with the Yonkers Historical Society in Baekeland’s hometown, was a timely and moving tribute to these two men whose influence spans generations.
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We look back at 2022 and must take a deep breath. A lot was accomplished; more was being planned. Hugh was seeing to that.
Even as we pause to cherish the blessing of Hugh’s friendship, passion, and inspiration, we are compelled to move forward to honor his commitment to education, debate and advocacy. We will continue to reach out to worldwide audiences of students, professionals and the general public with initiatives Hugh believed would encourage a new generation of socially responsible innovators. Please stay tuned for some exciting announcements about upcoming events.
With this end-of-year reflection and New Year’s resolution, we send you all, our colleagues and friends of the L.H. Baekeland Project, our best wishes for a joyous and meaningful holiday season.
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For more updates on the activities and interests of The L.H. Baekeland Project, including the film All Things Bakelite: The Age of Plastic, please connect with us:
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