Homeless Nation

HomelessNation.org is a Canadian based nonprofit that works to amplify the voices of homeless people through the web. Particularly engaging are the video blogs entries they help people create.

via

Opt Out Forever

Worried about identity theft, or just sick of the junk mail? You can actually opt out of pre-approved credit card offers forever (if you mail your form, be sure to print it out after you submit your form digitally) or for just 5 years (if you're not the commitment type) at OptOutPrescreen.com.

Post Katrina Billboards

Probably the least missed things, that were destroyed by hurricaine Katrina, were the local billboards, but a Republican senator wanted to make sure even the illegal ones (oversized, poorly located) got a second chance. From the Christian Science Monitor article:

Sen. Bob Bennett (R) of Utah attached an amendment to a federal appropriations bill that would have allowed the reconstruction of nonconforming billboards in 13 states affected by recent hurricanes.

He said the idea was to help more than just affected citizens, but struggling businesses as well. The amendment, which was stripped out of the final bill, would have allowed those 13 states to determine how to handle nonconforming billboards - instead of having federal law determine their outcome, says Ken Klein, executive vice president of the Outdoor Advertising Association of America in Washington.

On the bright side there are nearly 1,500 communities which have banned construction of new billboards and 4 states that prohibit them alltogether (Alaska, Maine, Hawaii, Vermont).

Read the entire article here.

GM pets

The folks at GenPets provide a disturbing vision of the future with their genetically modified, packaged pets. According to the site, they're:

• Allergen Free
• Child Safe
• Low Maintenance
• Life Perfected

via

No @%#!!

I was in Virginia Beach over the weekend, and ran into these "No Bad Behavior" signs. The city is attempting to be more family friendly and part of that is fining people for cursing in public and wearing thongs among other things.

Of course I ended up cussing like a sailor the entire time, luckily I was out of earshot of the Friendship Patrol.

image via Flickr

War Dance

Check out the trailer for War Dance, a new documentary about a school of former child soldiers in Uganda who, for the first time, get to compete in the national Kampala Music Festival, it looks amazing.

Thanks Amy!

Doomsday Seed Vault protected by Polar Bears!

Construction began this week on the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway. This "doomsday" vault is being carved out of a frozen mountain on a remote arctic island and will be partially proteced by the wild polar bears which roam the area...

Its purpose is to ensure the survival of crop diversity in the event of plant epidemics, nuclear war, natural disasters or climate change, and to offer the world a chance to restart growth of food crops that may have been wiped out.
...
While the facility will be fenced in and guarded, Svalbard's free-roaming polar bears, known for their ferocity, could also act as natural guardians, according to the Global Diversity Trust.

Read the entire AP article here.

Entertainment Nation

The current issue of the Nation has an excellent section on the state of the media including a Ten-Point Plan for Media Democracy; articles by Marc Crispin Miller, Amy Goodman, and a bunch of other smart folks; as well as a lovely pull out map showing who owns whom in the media consolidation game (get a downloadable PDF of the map here).

Drink for your health.

According to the folks at Italy magazine drinking white wine (or white grape juice) could help fight off the dreaded bird flu...

...a recent study found that white wine and white grape juice contain the active ingredients in Tamiflu, considered by many experts to be one of the most promising medicines against bird flu.

The study was published by the British Medical Journal and found that white wine grapes contain shikimic acid and quercitin, the primary ingredients in the Chinese star anise plant used to make Tamiflu.

Read the entire article here.

Social Marketing University

Fellow socially conscious blogger Nedra Kline Weinreich is offering a class in social marketing this fall in Los Angeles:

At Social Marketing University, you will move beyond the usual educational approach to changing health and social behaviors. Using social marketing, you will learn how to persuade individuals to take action for change by addressing the values, needs and desires that motivate them. It's about understanding and connecting with your audience by applying the same effective marketing tools that companies like Nike and Apple use.

Get the details here.

Flying Colors

Color Oracle is a free utility for Mac OS10.39+ that allows users to see what projects will look like to people with various types of color blindness. A must for desiners interested in broad accessibility.

Sun Run

Two ways to power your small electronic devices using just the sun:

The sexy Solio (which is actually a hybrid that can store electricity from an outlet as well if need be)
(thanks Sarah!)


and



The multi-functional Voltaic backpack.

And if you live in a sunless area or just need the exercise, you can always use a person-powered Sidewinder instead.

Opt In

Apple is now offering a free recycling program for people who buy new macs and monitors directly from them. However you must "opt in" when you buy your new computer, so be sure to ask (and ask why you have to ask) when you're making your purchase.

The FAQs are here.

$100 Laptop

The One Laptop Per Child project, which is working to get affordable laptops in the hands of needy children worldwide, recently unveiled their first working prototype.

This station is brought to you by...

A Boston Radio station has partnered with Snapple for a six-week solo sponsoship in which there are no ads on the air, but there will be constant reference to their sponsor by DJs. From the Christian Science Monitor Article:

WFNX-FM, an alternative rocker with sister stations simulcasting in Maine and New Hampshire, has partnered with Snapple. Through July 4, New England-area listeners who tune in will not hear any other product promoted on WFNX's airwaves. Instead, they will get up to 55 minutes of music every hour and Snapple-related DJ chat (but no real ads), about Snapple-sponsored concerts and events. Both partners also benefit from the media stir that this one-of-a-kind arrangement has created.

Coleman calls it "brandcasting."

Read the entire article here.

The Anti-UPC

The folks at Thing: Link have a free label/number system for crafters so they can get the benefits of a UPC bar code with out the cost.


via

Video Volunteers

Video Volunteers is an NGO that gives access to cameras and editing equipment to rural peoples who typically have minimal resources for expressing their views. From the group:

Our core activity approach is establishing sustainable Community Video Units (CVUs) in partnership with leading NGOs. Each Community Video Unit (CVU) comprises up to 10 community members, primarily women, who produce one “Video News Magazine” each month that is shown back to communities using wide-screen projectors or local cable networks.

You can see samples of the videos already produced here.

Free Stock Photography for Nonprofits

Photoshare offers nonprofit groups free access to 10,000+ images related to global health as long as they are used editorial/documentary purposes. Image subjects include Family Planning and Reproductive Health, HIV/AIDS, Maternal and Child Health, Environment, Humanitarian Assistance, Democracy and Governance, and Agricultural and Economic Development. The site is a service of Johns Hopkins' Bloomberg School of Public Health's INFO Project.

Also in the works is a similar project from the UN called World Healthy Image Bank (WIBO). The site is currently under construction.

FLOWmarket

The Danish FLOWmarket is a store/art installation in Copenhagen that sells a variety of concepts in package form as way to encorage discussion on social/environmental issues. Here are a few of the products in their current line:

commercial free-space $9
1/4 unconditional love $7
exploitation free produce 12$
consumption moderator $5
time for each other $5
collective consciousness $8
a feeling of safety $7
good vibes $8
tolerance $8
spamkiller $7
empathy $5
silence $9

via Boing Boing

3rd World Farmer...The Game!

Created by students at the IT-University in Copenhagen, 3rd World Farmer will probably not be more popular than Halo, but it could be a good classroom discussion starter on the roots of poverty in Africa.

via Houtlust

McDonald's Revolution?

Something fishy is going on at McDonald's Interactive. It seems the company has decided to split off from its parent because, "McDonald's corporate policies help lead the planet to ruin". At least that's what a "spokesman" for the corporation said at the Internation Serious Games Summit in the UK on Monday.

On their site you can find their PowerPoint presentation as well as ideas for their new mascot.

Those of you familiar with the work of pranksters The Yes Men might have a better idea of what's behind this interesting development.

via Boing Boing

Strict Parents = Fat Kids

A new study from the journal Pediatrics shows that children of authoritarian mothers are more likely to be fat. From the article:

RESULTS. A total of 872 children, 11.1% overweight and 82.8% white, were included in the analysis. Children of authoritarian mothers (n = 298) had an increased risk of being overweight, compared with children of authoritative mothers (n = 179). Children of permissive (n = 132) and neglectful (n = 263) mothers were twice as likely to be overweight, compared with children of authoritative mothers. Of the covariates, only income/needs ratio was significant and did not alter the relationship between parenting style and overweight risk.

Read the more here.

Via the Organic Consumers' Association

Muslim Video Games

The makers of the video game Al-Quraysh hope its gameplay, set in the early part of Islamic history, will combat the negative portrayals of Muslims in other games and give young Muslims a positive self-image. From the Christian Science Monitor article:

"Al-Quraysh is going to help people in the West better understand the people who are living in the East," says Radwan Kasmiya, an avid gamer and the executive manager of Afkar Media. "We want to show that this civilization was a sort of practical and almost heavenly civilization."

The game also holds lessons for Muslims, says Mr. Kasmiya.

"I get very embarrassed by the way we are showing our civilization," says Kasmiya. "There were rational laws that were governing Muslims at that time. This allowed this civilization to last for a long time and to accept the other civilizations that they came in touch with. It was not a conservative or sectarian civilization. But people have stopped taking the ideas behind the laws, and are taking the laws themselves. They do not understand the essence of the laws."

The first game released by the same company, however, centers around fighting modern Israeli forces.

Read the entire article here.

Spotted in NYC part II: Framed Graffiti

An empty ad frame reveals a bit of wall that missed getting whitewashed near 7th Avenue.

Spotted in NYC part I: Cat Door

Saw this ad for the Urban Cat League on the door of Moo Shoes (a terrific vegan shoe store on the Lower East Side). It says "The street is no place for a kitten".

It immediately reminded me of a campaign that Houtlust had posted about a few months back.

Ask your doctor for a reason to take it.

The folks at Goodie Bag have created a lovely commercial for Panexa a product of Merd (and our friends at Stay Free!).

Watch it here.

But kids love burlesque!

Sorry, there'll be no burlesque dolls for your kids to play with this toy season. It seems Hasbro has cancelled the scheduled release of its Pussycat Dolls dolls (based on the well known burlesque/music group).

The groups Dad's & Daughters and Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood used a letterwriting campaign to lobby the toy company to rethink its plans.

Read more here.

Call for Artists

Friends in Norway are looking for artists to create works inspired by the U.N.'s Millennium Development Goals:

INTERNATIONAL CALL FOR ARTISTS
"Who Cares?"

Agder Regional Center for Arts in Southern Norway invites you to participate in a multi-cultural Art Exhibition in Kristiansand, Norway. September 18 - October 1, 2006. We intend to travel with parts of or the whole exhibition to countries around the world.

In conjunction with the United Nations International Week we would like artists from wealthy and non-wealthy countries to respond to the UN´s Millennium Development Goals:

1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
2. Achieve universal primary education
3. Promote gender equality and empower women
4. Reduce child mortality
5. Improve maternal health
6. Combat HIV/AIDS. malaria and other diseases
7. Ensure environmental sustainability
8. Develop a global partnership for development

You may address one, two or more of the goals and participate in any medium.
Deadline for proposals: JULY 15, 2006
Deadline for submissions: SEPTEMBER 1, 2006
In some cases Agder Regional Art Center will assist in the transportation of artwork to Kristiansand, Norway.

Please send all proposals to:
adm@agderkunst.no

Make sure you specify:
- Medium/material
- Dimensions (including total running time for time based art)
- Technical specifications


For more info please contact Linda Voreland:
linda@agderkunst.no
Ph: 47 94 80 90 61
Fax: 47 38020249

Build a Green Bakery!

An olde bakery in my neighborhood has be re-made by the folks at City Bakery.
It's a revolutionary concept, they just make a heap of scones and muffins, pile them on the counter and are open as long as they last. I am told the goods are delicious thus they are never open too late.
If that weren't enough of a neo-local-capitalism-that-is-good-for-you experiment - the place has been built entirely GREEN.
They even have a fancy, Flash-y website giving you all the info to build your own green bakery! link