Energy Saving Colors

EcoIron, the folks behind the idea of black google, have now created EMERGY-C a low wattage palette for the web (shown left). Of course if you don't want your site to look like tartan plaid, you may not want to use them all on the same page.

Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.

Michael Pollan's latest article in the New York Times "Unhappy Meals" answers the question of what people should eat to be healthy. The short version... "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." The much longer (and quite worth reading) version can be found here.

The Mouth Revolution has begun...

Free Range Studios has created another entertaining bit of Pro-Organic propaganda in the form of The Mouth Revolution. These chin-faced rebels are against Trans-Fats, Artificial Ingredients, Chemical Pesticides, and GMO's. Watch their propaganda film and find out how to get involved here.

set your clocks ahead

Shortly after Japan felt the the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists created a little something called the Doomsday Clock. It ebbs and wanes as our world events pivot and tilt our world towards the Apocalypse, and it just ebbed 2 minutes closer to midnight.

With monster.com overburdened with former Soviet nuclear scientist resumes and every second country now having the bomb, we are led into what has been called the "Second Nuclear Age". What is really telling in the 2007 recalculations is that the group has concluded that the threat posed by climate change is most certainly lethal, and takes a second seat only to the aforementioned nuclear woes.

State of the Union crib notes

In case you're too embarassed to admit you can't remember the opening sentiment of Martin van Buren's 1837 State of the Union address, fidget no longer. This handy site lists the State of the Union speech of every American president dating back to January 8th, 1790, complete from George to George.

Bombs Away

Like most long term war zones, Iraq is virtually littered with bombs. After two decades of war and fighting, there are more than a million tons of live munitions lying under foot. One out of five Iraqi's live within a mile of unexploded ordinances. That's closer than most American's are to a convenience store. When it comes time to clean up the country, Jonathan Olley's photographic essay details the efforts of the men who are called to carry away these deadly souvenirs.

Protest From Afar

If you can't make it to DC this weekend to protest the escalation of troops in Iraq AVAAZ.org can help you be there in spirit. They're collecting signatures from people around the world to display on banners carried by marchers that will be there in person. Add your name here.

Black Google = Green?

Would changing Google's background color to black really help save the environment? According to EcoIron Yes and maybe.

Thanks Marc!

Light Graffiti

The Anti-Advertising Agency along with the Graffiti Research Lab have a new campaign targeting the video advertising on NYC subway entrances. The ads are covered over with stencils that say "NYC's true graffiti problem" and "advertising = graffiti". Watch a little how-to video below:



via Social Design Notes

Call for Entries: Green Art

The Showroom in Spartanburg, SC is seeking artists to display environmentally created or themed work for an upcoming exhibition called "the Green Show" which runs from April 21-May 18, 2007.
Deadline is March 3:

This exhibit will contain work with an environmental theme or art utilizing environmentally-friendly methods or materials. The purpose of the exhibit is to inform, engage and entertain. All work will be considered, from painting to pottery, furniture to film we are looking to create a diverse and well-rounded exhibit.

All work should make a statement about reuse and recycling, conservation and preservation or be constructed using recycled/reused materials or environmentally conscience methods or materials.

The show will also include a printed booklet providing information about environmental issues. This booklet will give artists the opportunity to promote themselves, their materials or methods and the organizations or businesses that they may be involved with.

If you are interested in being a part of this show, please send your package postmarked no later than March 3, 2007 to:

The Showroom
GREEN SHOW
149 S. Daniel Morgan Ave.
Suite 2
Spartanburg, SC 29306

Submissions should include:

* Up to 10 images of your work (min. size 8x10 at 300 dpi, jpg, tiff or pdf format) on a CD. Clearly label each image with the title, dimension, and medium of the work. These works should be pieces that you would be able to include in the exhibit.
* A biographical paragraph and information on the relevance of your work regarding the Green Show. Additionally, any website information about your art, your studio, organization or business that may be included in the show's catalog.
* A list of any special technical requirements your exhibit requires.
* A self-addressed stamped envelope if you wish for your materials to be returned to you.

More information on The Showroom.

Thanks Marius!

Call me Nostradamus...sort of.

It turns out my prediction that the next logical step of car magnets was going to be ones shaped like silicone awareness bracelets was TRUE! Sadly I can't sue for royalties, since it seems to have happened a while ago, but I only just spotted one recently!

photo via Flickr

Comment, please!

OK just a mea culpa here, apologies to anyone who's ever commented on this blog, for some reason the default here is set to moderate and NOT tell me when someone needs approval! So I've got a year backlog. As of this moment all has been rectified, so seriously please comment again one day, I really do appreciate it. Oy.

Times Square Advertising

Ironic Sans has deconstructed Times Square into it's individual advertising components and the result is quite overwhelming in a rather more depressingly realistic way than being there, where the scale and flashing lights make it seem fun to be immersed in advertising.

Shown left about 1/5 of the ads! See them all here.

The "Piece" continues to grow.

Swords Into Plowshares (AKA Plant The Piece) the collaborative art piece that I created with Christopher Humes, which features guns made from dirt and plant seeds, has been getting a bunch of blog attention lately. Thanks to the following folks for mentioning our work:

NotCot
Heavy Petal
Shelterrific

Thanks to Kelly for spotting the NotCot entry!

Smart clients take note...

Squidoo,Net Squared, and Get Active have compiled a list of the 59 Smartest Orgs Online, based on their use of current technology and how they interact with their digital audience.
#1 is the unassumingly named Modest Needs.

See the entire list here.

Thanks Phil!

Logos...in Space!

Yep the frontiers of advertising have been pushed just a little bit further with the announcement that you can put Your Name Into Space thanks to a fundraising initiative of MIT and Georgia Tech. Apparently inspired by Nascar, a student designed satellite will be sent into orbit in 2010 covered in logos and names. Luckily poor people can get their name on a DVD inside for free.

Thanks Teddy!

Copyrighted Alphabet

This lovely poster of artist Heidi Cody's American Alphabet is on sale via Stay Free!

Teachers, get one for the class room and use it as an eye chart to test for corporate brand saturation.

Cody also has work in a show that's going up at Front Room in Brooklyn this week.

Infinite Ribbon

Political cartoon by Pulitzer Prize winning and always adroit Clay Bennett for Tuesday's Christian Science Monitor.

Real Superheroes

Wow, love these photos by Mexican artist Dulce Pinzón, which depict immigrants, who work to send money home to their families, as superheroes. From the exhibition introduction:

The principal objective of this series is to pay homage to these brave and determined men and women that somehow manage, without the help of any supernatural power, to withstand extreme conditions of labor in order to help their families and communities survive and prosper.

via We Make Money Not Art

Tag I'm it.

Marc, whose Houtlust blog is the premiere socially conscious advertising reference, has tagged me as part of a blog game and apparently I now have to talk about myself (something I generally try to avoid here). So here goes:

5 Things You Don’t Know About Me

1. I’m a music junky.
I don’t smoke, drink or do drugs, but damn I’m hooked on music. I buy CDs on a near weekly basis (I gave up on buying vinyl a few years ago, which makes me kind of sad, but I still listen to it). I shop at an awesome local music store in Richmond called Plan 9 and when I’m in NYC I always have to go to Other Music.

2. I’m a Space Pirate in a comic book band from the future.
It’s complicated, but you can get a hint of what League of Space Pirates is all about here and here. We’ll be posting some actual music tracks soon.

3. I spent a good chunk of the early 80’s as a competition Roller Skater.
…and I have the trophies to prove it. Mostly figure skating if you’re wondering.

4. I played a Native American in a movie.
It was shown to visitors of historic Jamestown for many years. To my knowledge I was the only non-Native American in the film.

5. I don’t want to be famous, I just want to be ubiquitous.
Here's my IMDB entry, now if only someone would write a Wikipedia entry for me!

OK so I guess it’s my turn to tag some folks…

John Emerson of Social Design Notes, a friend and the granddaddy of socially conscious design bloggers(though he himself is not old or an actual grandfather).

Carrie McClaren of Stay Free Daily!, a friend who’s always up to something cool.

Nedra Kline Weinreich of Spare Change, a new blog friend.

Eliza Skinner of Hello Hilarious, a good friend and very funny person.

Mica Scalin of Public Address, my super-awesome sister (and sometimes contributor to this blog)

The Creative Defiance of Chaz Maviyane-Davies

Artist/designer Chaz Maviyane-Davies, a Zimbabwe national and professor of design at the Massachusetts College of Art, creates work that comments on human rights as well as social, political, environmental and health related issues. He also co-curated the excellent Graphic Imperative exhibition.

You can see a wide range of work on his site here.

Christo vs. The Man

Environmental artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude (whose Gates, left, invaded Central Park last year) are coming to speak in Richmond, VA in a few weeks and I was delighted to read this statement in their press release:

Christo and Jeanne-Claude do not accept grants, commissions, sponsorships, or collaborations, as they place a high value on artistic freedom. They refuse all commercial involvement, instead funding their monumental projects with proceeds from the sale of Christo’s original works of art.

Photo by Roinks via Flickr.

Beat breast cancer...with a hammer.

Of all the myriad pink products that are being sold to support breast cancer research my favorite has to be this lovely (and quite sturdy) pink hammer from Tomboy Tools. The company, which is a sort of the Tupperware of hardware, is donating 70% of the net profits of sales from now through August 30th (guaranteed $100,000 minimum) to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

Free CD from ACLU

The American Civil Liberties Union is giving away CDs of a live performance by slam poets Steve Connell and Sekou (tha misfit) which took place at their 2006 membership conference. Details and order form are here. Watch a sample below...

Repressed Art - Call for Entries

Gallery 5 in Richmond Virginia is looking for works on paper that are "intended to contribute socially or philosophically to cultural evolution" for an upcoming exhibition:

Repressed II: Works on paper March 2007

The intent of this year’s exhibition is to focus more, but not be limited to, philosophically progressive and/or socially provocative works.

We have far surpassed a cultural level of basic image making and find great importance in creating social programs helping to sustain a visual dialogue. As artists, we present new ideas or criticisms to the general public, helping perpetuate social evolution. With that in mind, this year's March show will be prompted with the intent to give back to our neighborhood.

We are searching for artists who seek a language that speaks to the people who experience an unfathomable amount of strife in their lives -- those who wish to provide their community with new dreams that have yet to show up on a t-shirt. We want people who strive to push the envelope and join the ranks of the socially aware avant-garde...

Submissions are due February 19 and there is no entry fee. Download entry packet PDF for more info.

Revolving Door Database

No, it's not a compendium of building entrances. OpenSecrets.org's latest project Revolving Door is a comprehensive database of the folks that used to work for the government and now have jobs influencing its policies:

Users can see, for example, which federal regulators are now working for the industries they once oversaw and which lobbyists might be capitalizing on their past employment with congressional committees that award government contracts, subsidies, earmarked appropriations and tax breaks.

About 70% of the individuals in the Revolving Door Database are registered lobbyists. The remainder currently work at law and public relations firms, industry trade associations or unions, where their jobs may entail lobbying, formally or informally. Although the movement between the public and private sectors is commonly described as a revolving door, the database demonstrates that the phenomenon could be more aptly described as a one-way exit.

You can start digging up the dirt here.

Via OCA

Right back at ya!

Thanks to idUnited (whose new site has just launched) for the very nice entry on our humble blog!

Bic Chandelier

Love this classy bit of recycling from En Pieza (though it looks like new pens rather than used). And hey if the $1000 price tag is a bit to steep for you, maybe you can make your own!

via Make>via Inhabitat

Music as torture.

There's a fascinating letter posted on WFMU's blog from a soldier that spent time in Iraq and used music (specifically the music of Happy Flowers) as part of interrogation:

We are not allowed to harm a prisoner and I have absolutely no problem with that, but you have to be creative to get information. That's Psychological Warfare comes in. It doesn't work on the hardened terrorist, but it does work on the guy who knows who the terrorist is, or is involved but not in a major way.

He goes on to describe a specific instance with a non-combatant:

After about an hour of Happy Flowers and being told that we don't want to take him, and that if he would tell us what he knows we will take him back home, he finally tells us who the triggerman is, where we can find him, where other bombs are hidden and ID's 3 corrupt policemen. All without having to threaten, imprison, or break any of our rules of conduct.

Read the entire letter and hear samples of Happy Flowers here.

Sour Milk

A new study from German scientists found that the health benefits of drinking tea are negated by adding milk. From Reuters:

Research has shown that tea improves blood flow and the ability of the arteries to relax but researchers at the Charite Hospital at the University of Berlin in Mitte found milk eliminates the protective effect against cardiovascular disease.

"The beneficial effects of drinking black tea are completely prevented by the addition of milk, said Dr Verena Stangl, a cardiologist at the hospital.

There was no word on whether soy milk is OK.
Read the entire article here.

via Consumerist

The price at the pump...

Simple and powerful design by Jordanian artist/creative director Hayan Maani.

via Houtlust

Reasons to be a girl.

Hello, Hilarious is a great blog about women performers, written by women, but they've made an exception this week and asked some dudes to contribute. My entry "Six reasons I want to be a girl" is up now.

Algae = Oil

Ode Magazine's issue 39 has a fascinating article on the potential of algae as a source of biofuel:

Using algae for rather than soybeans or other crops means that millions of acres of farmland will not be taken out of production for food and fibre. According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, enough algae-based biodiesel can be produced each year to power the current U.S. fleet of vehicles (140 billion gallons or 550 billion litres) using a mere 9.5 million acres [3.8 million hectares] of cultivation space. That may sound like a lot of real estate, but it’s a tiny fraction of the 3 billion acres of farmland needed to produce the same amount of oil from soybeans.

Read the entire article here.

See for yourself

Professor Pollkatz Pool of Polls has a great selection of poll data visualization charts relating to George W. The "approval" ratings from January '01 to today (left) is a great place to start, though it's worth delving further and checking out items like the approval ratings vs. gas prices and Nixon/Bush comparison chart.

The Professor's work was even used to create the approval ratings vs. terror alerts chart from JuliusBlog that our friend John recently posted on his blog Social Design Notes.

Greenwashing Grocery Graphics

The New York Times has a nice article on the greenwashing of natural food product package design:

The kind of greenwashing I’m talking about is not just a fake environmental ethos. Greenwashing, it seems to me, can also describe a pervasive genre of food packaging designed to make sure that manufacturers grab their slice of the $25 billion that American shoppers spend each year on natural or organic food.

As a design shorthand, it makes subtle use of specific colors, images, typefaces and the promise of what marketers call “an authentic narrative” to sell food. Especially in recent years, greenwashing has spilled out well past the organic section of the grocery store. Even the snack aisle at the gas station isn’t immune.

Read the entire article here.

Via Treehugger

iDump

The iDump Pod Disposal System (left) is part of Stay Free Magazine's iDud, a campaign to draw attention to the unnecessarily short lifespan of iPods. The iDump bags will be distributed at the upcoming Macworld in SF January 8-12 .

"Ad Nauseum"

The current (Jan/Feb) issue of Mother Jones has a great little overview of the current (sad) state of product placement. Here are a few lowlights...

Worldwide product placement in all media was worth $3.5 billion in 2004, a 200% increase from 1994.

In 2005, there were 108,000 instances of product placement in television programming—up 30% from 2004.

When Dateline NBC recently asked children to choose between a banana and a rock with a Scooby-Doo sticker on it for breakfast, nearly all chose the rock.

Nike logos and General Motors cars were drawn into recent DC and Marvel comics. DC says its superheroes will start pushing "a lot more health and beauty care" products.

In Instant Def, an online movie made by Snickers, members of the Black Eyed Peas work in a Snickers factory and battle an evil rapper who is a "fabrication justification of some corporation's imagination."

US Airways makes $10 million a year selling ad space on tray tables and napkins, and is negotiating selling ads on its airsickness bags.

Read the entire article here.

Socially Responsible Business Plan Competition

The William James Foundation is once again looking for socially responsible business plans for it's annual competition. Winners receive a range of consulting services, strategic assistance, software, cash, and more. From the Executive Director Ian Fisk:

We are looking to help startup for-profit businesses that have social and/or environmental goals and methods, in addition to the traditional financial bottom line.

For example, past entries have focused on green building consulting, providing organic products, and economic development tied to the needs of an under-served community. Or it could be a regular business that makes the effort to involve social or environmental processes in its work.

The competition is totally free -- each qualified plan will receive feedback from experts, and plans that make it to the final round stand to receive significant prizes.

The deadline for executive summaries (3-5 pages) is Friday, January 26th.

For more info go here.

Thanks Katy!

Kuper in Oaxaca

Activist illustrator Peter Kuper (World War 3 Illustrated, Spy vs. Spy(!)) moved his family to Oaxaca, Mexico just in time for the teacher's strike/riot this year. His online journal features his unique take on the events via his comments, photos, and illustrations. His most recent entry includes a post-riot/Christmas poem along with photos of the annual Night of the Radishes (shown left).

Kill Your Passport

As of this week all new US passports will feature the controversial RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) chips embedded in them. Luckily for the paranoid (and those just concerned about privacy rights) Wired has a simple guide to disabling them legally (see image left for a hint).

via Boing Boing

Consumer Art

Dutch artist Helmut Smits creates art that is both made from and comments on consumer products.
His sculptural work includes large installations like The Real Thing (a machine which filters Coke into Water) and Photo Tip (a backdrop which lets the viewer become part of a CNN broadcast) as well as smaller works like Trophy Cabinet (with trophies made from product packaging [detail left]) and Flag (an all white flag made with working florescent tubes). Even his design work has a wry take on consumerism. Check it all out here.

via Houtlust

On A Postive Note

Thanks to Nev for introducing us to his/her/their(?) blog: idUnited

Started last September, its subtitle "conscience capitalism", gives you a hint of what's within, but entries on subjects like Miniature Earth and the Darfur Wall go beyond the standard shop for a change model.

We'll be adding it to our daily reading list this year (you should too!).

McClone Burger

The FDA has concluded that food from cloned animals is safe to eat, according to a draft report released last week. But there is still time to let them know your feelings on the subject. From the Christian Science Monitor:

The decision is not likely to create a flood of cloned livestock in the short term, several analysts say. The assessment, from the US Food and Drug Administration's Center for Veterinary Medicine, must still endure 60 days of public comment. And the FDA still must weigh issues, such as whether to label meat products from the offspring of cloned animals or track the clones themselves if they move into the food system after their usefulness as breeding stock ends. It may take a year or two after the comment period ends for breeders to start using clones.

Read the entire article here.