Google Earth + Google Maps

Google Earth is by no means a trend. The crazy things it affords are interesting and inspirational. 

Buying a tree and watching it grow at My Baby Tree.

Map Channels Hotel Directory searches for hotels for you, and shows you the location on google maps.

Using Google Earth to track Fair Trade Produce.

Using Google Maps to tell stories.

More as I come across them...

Mind Maps

[image via mind-mapping.co.uk]

There is an increasing amount of literature and how-to's going about on how to create effective mind maps. This thought was triggered by this article at Wisebread. I am reminded of a friend in business school who brought mind maps to my attention [though I can't remember who his inspiration was, will post it here once I find out, it might be Tony Buzan though].

Percy Schmeiser

On March 19, 2008, Monsanto settled with Saskatchewan Farmer, Percy Schmeiser [pictured above], for their contamination of his farm with their Round Up Ready Canola [found via Deconstructing Dinner].

What does this mean and why is it important? Monsanto is a large multinational corporation that is the leader in genetically engineered seeds. The US Environmental Agency has labeled Monsanto as a "potentially responsible party" for more than 56 Superfund Sites in the US. 

Monsanto has been very careful to control their seeds and how they are handled by farmers around the world. One argument against genetically modified crops is that there can be cross pollination between crops [ie some genetically modified crops might cross pollinate with the organic crops next door, negating the organic status of the crop]. This settlement with Percy by Monsanto is a step in linking liability of contamination to Monsanto.

From what I know so far, I believe companies like Monsanto threaten sustainability, by threatening small farmers, local community based farming, and contamination of organic farming. Their continued efforts towards genetic modification [with properties like terminator seeds] and seed patents are impediments to larger efforts towards a sounder ecologically responsible society.

Candy Fab

The Candy Fab Project is an off shoot of Evil Scientist Laboratories. In trying to find a low cost rapid prototyping method, they designed and built a 3D Printer, that uses sugar!!! They've had so much inquiry into it, that the Evil Scientist decided they needed to start a separate page for the printer. Best of all, they're inviting people to sign up and be part of their experiment. Which means they'll be offering the plans for you to make your own printer for free! I've already signed up. They say the candy isn't edible yet, the potential for sculptural food is there though. I wonder if you could layer ingredients to create odd recipes. As an industrial designer, I could print out model mock-ups and eat them for lunch when the presentation is over. This post ends here while I geek out.

Wii Hack: Virtual Display

Someone in my Illumination class turned me onto  Johnny Lee. He is a genius, with fantastic ideas that are demonstrated through effective working prototypes and clear scenario videos.

Buzz Words: Blank Thinking

Disruptive Thinking - is going against the grain, and challenging the flow of thought. So, how does this differ from "playing devil's advocate?" Devil's advocate is challenging a particular idea, while disruptive thinking is more about timing, than a particular topic.

Systems Thinking - is thinking about how the interactions between multiple components work together. It is part of a holistic approach to problem solving. 

Design Think - is the creative process that designers use to come up with their crazy ideas. Where a regular person might see bubble gum and think about chewing, a design thinker will see a way to hold his pants up when he forgot his belt at home or a patch for a run in the stockings. This is pretty much what Macguyver did on a daily basis.

Adaptive Thinking - is teaching clients how to be creative, and use the design process.

assistance credits go to audrey

So, what do we do with this?

Innovation Not So Innovative

This image clip is from BusinessWeek Online's Innovation and Design section. What's so innovative about the Saab, I'm not seeing it. Sleek? Nothing here that other car companies haven't done a thousand times before. Car companies continue to be slow moving in design exploration. Sure, they have myriads of concept cars at various auto shows... that never get made. I'd rather have a bright green city thank you very much.

Edible Tableware

They are made of flour, water and salt, a biscuit recipe traditionally used for emergency rations at sea. They'll last for months if kept dry [small ironic chuckle here]. They'll be put into production at Koratt Cafe, in Japan. I'd read up more myself, but most of the info is Japanese, and I'm out of practice. Everything I know was found at dezeen.

They're meant to be replacements for paper tableware. So far though, they have to be handmade. I wonder how this compares to a waffle cone bowl. It's always upsetting when the waffle cone bowl is served inside a styrofoam cup.

Eco Tourism

Become a responsible tourist. I just wonder how responsible one can be as a tourist? Throwing it out there with some links to some writing on at least two sides of the argument.

World Changing Article , No Impact Man Commentary on Travel, Ecotourism.org, UNEP on the effects of tourism.

I've been a tourist, and I know the effect it has upon me as an individual. It is an amazing opportunity to see how other people live, and how different life can be. I also don't know what effect I've had on them though. Should I have been more careful how I spent my money? On a more definitive measuring scale, there is the carbon footprint of flying half way across the world. So much to consider.

And why do most Ecotourism ads look towards traveling in jungles and safaris?

Corporate Recycling

Many companies are starting to take back their products to recycle them. There are varying degrees of recycling going on. Nike's Reuse A Shoe program doesn't make the kicks you drop off into new shoes, they turn them into rubber playing fields. The end goal is to try and perfect a system of take back for the day when they can up-cycle the shoe you bring back.

Patagonia has been taking back clothes for a while now, with a little drop box in stores. They have various documentation on their website about the various processes they go through to recycle clothes.

Fast Retailing, has a take back program going on in Japan with UNIQLO.

Molecular Gastronomy

Molecular Gastronomy has been around for sometime now. The phrase itself was coined in 1988, and though it actually doesn't say new in itself [cooking has always dealt with molecules and food], it describes a new approach to food preparation that is becoming more and more popular. 

This more scientific-themed approach has been on the rise over the past few years. A restaurant I keep hearing about in relation to this is Moto. It has become my Mecca. Here is a fantastic video with the Pastry Chef, Ben Roche, at Taste 3.

found via food for design

Trend Predicting

An article at Core77 about designers view on designers not getting it right with trends.

I am basing my response to this upon the reading of two books, Black Swan by Nassim Taleb, and Stumbling Upon Happiness by Daniel Gilbert. I believe the combined knowledge of these books explains why trends are hard to predict. 

Firstly, the future is tough to predict, its just too complex. There are varying degrees of prediction, and the more and more specific one wants to get, the more exponential the possibility of being wrong. It is easy to agree with my prediction that the sun will rise tomorrow [there is the remote possibility that even that would be wrong]. Me saying that the sun will rise tomorrow at 6:47am, with a mean temperature of 76 degrees a cross wind of 4 mph and a butterfly passing my window with blue wings, is a tougher bet.

Secondly, we don't know what makes us happy. When we think about the future and what will make us happy, we tend to localize into small portions of that future. Having that big house with the picket fence and well manicured lawn is what makes us happy right? What about the water bill, mowing the lawn, painting the fence, and the mortgage? There are so many other factors around the future that we filter out when making envisioning the future. 

Mushrooms

Mushrooms are the material of the future. They have been used to assist in cleaning up oil spills, and a pair from Renssalaer Polytechnic Institute have figured out how to use them as fire retardant insulation for houses. What's not to love about the magical mushroom? First they produced Smurfs, now this, who knows what's next.

Replating

Replating is leaving your leftover food, in a doggie bag, on top of a trash can, so they don't go to waste. Check it out at replate.org, and try it out ... anywhere. I don't like wasting food, I do feel slightly unsure of this. A little research shows that this is at least going on in San Francisco, Philadelphia and Chicago. There is a discussion about it going on at chow.com, with some pointers for replating etiquette.

I originally heard about this through an episode of KCRW Good Food, the Raw Milk and Honey Episode.

Second Hand Swapping

Second hand swapping is growing more and more popular. I have a feeling this is a result of a combination of people wanting to reduce the number of items they purchase, buy items at lower prices and make a little profit off the things they have and no longer want. I don't have any hard science research behind those statements though, just thoughts to guide further investigation.

Until then, you can try out some second hand swapping at these various places:

Book Mooch, which allows you to swap books with others online.

Swap at Home, allows you to swap anything. It's a little confusing to me how this works.

Ikea furniture swap organized at their store in Amsterdam!

Eco Starter Kits

Want to go green and don't know how, try an Eco-Starter Kit. They're a start, and after someone realizes that everything in the box is available in local stores, what is the next step? It's easy enough for me to say its available at local stores though, as I live in Los Angeles. Which is behind relative to other cities.

Once Sustainability is the mainstream, what will happen to these start kits? What is the next evolution of this? Maybe you can have an empty box shipped to you because as a society people will evolve beyond being consumers. It's a dream I have.

Until then, get your kit at Greensender, Green-Kit, or Go Green Gift.

Sharing

This is another rising trend that I hope goes beyond being just a trend. It's happening on multiple levels in different fields. 

Sharing between individuals.

Sharing in Communities.

Sharing between Companies, particularly with green products and processes in mind. I can imagine the difficulty in creating such alliances, more of them are needed to though. Companies need to lay down their defenses, so that everyone can push forward with these alliances.

Sharing between Countries.

Crowd Funding

Want to own part of a basketball team, football team, or eco clothing line? When big companies are giving you what you want, get a group of people together and fund it yourselves. How is this this different than the stock market, I don't know. It's a question I'm prompted to ask, and probably won't go researching the answer for [there are so many other questions I have about everything else].

Be part of it at these places:

My Football Club

My Football Club

Nvohk

Found via Springwise.com

Small Mart Revolution

Going local is the beginning of something that I hope becomes more than a trend. There's more to it than just buying local though. People need to act together to affect government policy, support local banking and energy generation, and create more self-sufficient communities. Supporting local community business is something that should happen everywhere, so there can be exchanges between communities for various products. So much more than can be explained in a brief post. Learn more at SmallMart.org [and read the book above, its divided into sections that are great for reference, with summaries of what individuals can do at the end of every chapter] and see someone putting it into thought out action at Urban Rustic. 

Biochar

Biochar is "obtained from pyrolysing biomass." Being able to way the amount of biochar one has, makes it an accurate form of carbon sequestration. Additionally, it can restore soil nutrition, offering an alternative to slash and burn techniques. 

There are a lot of claims going on with this product, which for me has resulted in information overload and that sounds too good to be true. So, I'll start by breaking it all down. Firstly, pyrolysis is the subjugation of organic compounds to very high temperatures [thank you dictionary.com]. How Biochar amend soil nutrition, is not fully explained on the website. From my best understanding, it is stable in the soil, lasting for hundreds of years [sounds kind of like plastic]. I'm still out on a decision, though since I found out about it through Treehugger, I'm leaning towards Biochar being a good thing. Still have research more at Biochar Fund and Beyond Zero Emissions Podcast.

Found via Treehugger