Eco².02.ing

Eco²

.02

RECYCL

«Materials that still have physical or chemical pro-perties, useful after ser-ving their original inten-tion and which, therefore they can be reused or re-fabricated turning them in additional products.»ABLE

A new year is beginning and new res-ponsabilities are in our way. Every new day more designers are more interes-ted in subjects like ecodesign and sus-tainability, they know that they have to re-evaluate the role that they have in the world were we live.

Ecodesign proves that ecologically oriented products can be innovatives, attractives, and friendly with the con-sumer, for this way to create a product with style for today, considering its life periods and degradability to pro-tect the environment of tomorrow.

Thinking with an ecodesign diagram in mind shouldn’t involve a new whole way of designing, but it require new ways of thinking about design. The works choosen in this edition are such as diverse as the designers that have made them. The idea that joins them is its consideration for eco-frien-dly methods with a visionary style. All of them are experimenting, pushing to new directions, and reinventing old ideas. All are in the vanguard of a po-sitive design movement.

So I invite you to participate in this movemement. Experiment, innovate, create and live ecodesign, it would change your life and World’s life too.

Edition, Design and Diagramming:

Carolina Vargas A.

E D I T O R I A L

VALPARAÍSO-CHILE-JANUARY/FEBRUARY-2009

C O N T E N T S

Do The Green Thing

Marco Capellini: “Ecodesign is not a trend, it’s an industrial necessity”

The Greening of Illustration: When Words Fail

Artecnica products:Design With Conscience®

I N T E RV I E W

A R T I C L E

G A L E R Y

P R O J E C T

I N T E R V I E WRome based designer Marco Ca-pellini has become a well-known name in the Latin ecodesign mo-vement.

Creator of the organization Rema-de, which promotes design with recycled materials in seven coun-tries; and Matrec, an online re-source for recycled materials.

He spoke about the evolution of green design. In response to those who still refer to the green move-ment as a trend, Capellini says, “the consideration of the envi-ronment in the design process is not a fashion, it has become an industrial problem and will not go away.”

An Italian industrial designer from Rome, Capellini began getting invol-ved in ecodesign from his studio Cape-llini Design & Consulting.

As the subject grew in his country, he moved on to create Remade, an organization to promote design with recycled materials that expanded to Spain, Portugal, Argentina, Brasil, Chi-le and France.

Later on, Capellini realized there was much interest in designing with re-cycled materials, but little resources to get recycled materials from, so he founded Matrec: an online resource for connecting creators with compa-nies that offer those products. He also took part in shaping Ecotool, an online utility to analyze the environmental impact of a product.

Besides coordinating the Remade pro-ject and his other initiatives, the de-signer now works as a consultant to the Italian government. He is currently preparing the book Italian design for sustainability, a compilation of green projects that will be published this year.

I N T E R V I E WYou say that ecodesign is not a trend but an industrial problem and neces-sity, why?

Historically, environmental conside-rations have not been integrated in the product life-cycle. But these days doing so is not a matter of conscien-ce, it’s a matter of economics and of legislation.

First of all, some materials prices (such as petrol by products) are rising, and in order not to transfer those higher costs to consumers, companies have to reduce the amount or replace tho-se materials. Take some bottled water companies: they are saying they have reduced the packaging of their beve-rage for the environment, but surely they have done so because the price of plastic went up.Then you have the various legislations that are regulating production, espe-cially in Europe. Countries are setting carbon limits and they are talking about extended responsibility, which means companies are responsible not only for producing, but for thinking how goods will be disposed at the end of their life.

In the 1960s, environmental problems were associated to governments and nature, but now they are more and more related to industrial processes.

What do you think has been the main change in the field of ecode-sign in the last years?

The raise on the price of raw mate-rials, which is encouraging compa-nies and designers to look for alter-native materials with lower costs. There’s also the introduction of the ‘strategies’ concept. Now ecode-sign has different ‘goals’ according to designers and companies inter-ests: it can be to reduce energy, recycle, reuse, among others.

What’s the challenge for the near fu-ture?

MC: Ecodesign is an old word; in the future all design will have environmen-tal, social and quality considerations. On the other hand, companies have a great task in communicating their efforts in the right way. The consumer is more informed and wants to know the whole story of the product, from the materials that were used to who assembled it and in which conditions, and people don’t stand greenwashing.

You are familiar with Latin American green design, what do you think is its main difference with eco products from Europe?

Latin America is less developed in the subject but designers are applying the things they learn a lot faster than we did.Regarding products, in Europe we are working a lot with recycled materi-als, whereas in Latin America there’s more attention to reuse. But I’m very happy to be here in Buenos Aires and to be connected with South American designers because the creativity here is awesome; you can create beauti-ful things with very simple but clever ideas.

Interview published in TreeHugger

h t t p : / / w w w. t r e e h u g g e r. c o m /files/2008/11/marco-capellini-remade-matrec-italy-interview.php

Televisual Magazine coverCelyn BrazierDebut Art

ARTICLE

A R T I C L E

We have already warmed the climate by 0.8° over the past century, and we are told that anything above 2° will be catastrophic. Despite the danger, the-re exists a serious disconnect between scientific opinion and public aware-ness. False pundits in the media have succeeded in confusing us. A MORI poll found that one third of the population knows little or nothing about global warming. An IPM poll found half of people unwilling to change their lifes-tyle (ref: Lois Rogers, Climate Change: Why We Don’t Believe It, New States-man, 23 April 2007.) But would this be the case if the facts were better understood? The media, advertising and communication design have a vi-tal role to play. The greatest danger comes from our own desire not to face facts.

Scientists have given us their verdict: the situation is ur-gent. Climate change is ha-ppening. The C02 and other greenhouse gases we release into the atmosphere pose a deadly threat. Experts tell us that we have one decade to make a major shift in our con-sumptions patterns.

Illustration can, and already is, fulfilling an important role in spreading awareness of global warming issues. Thanks to its ability to make ideas visible, illustration can play a part in making change happen. Fur-thermore illustration provides a means of communicating the complex emotional reactions that are naturally part of dea-ling with such loaded informa-tion as climate change. Illustra-tion can work to communicate an immediate and a holistic representation. We need this ability of visual languages to help spread an awareness of not only the science behind global warming, but the mea-sures that need to be taken to cut our energy consumption.

Studies in collective psychology indi-cate that the greater the threat, the more people are inclined to ignore it. Obviously the subject of climate chan-ge is emotionally loaded. Extinction is not a nice subject. We prefer to avoid it, and if we thought about it at all it would make us angry - so denial is perhaps natural. Lois Rogers quotes John Elkington, of the communica-tions firm SustainAbility, who descri-bes a common psychological defense mechanism: ‘people enjoy being con-fused about big issues as it gives them a chance to do nothing.’ In an essay entitled Seeing is Believing: Informa-tion Visualization and the Debate Over Global Warming, the design writer Da-vid Womack observes, “For an issue such as global warming, which requi-res millions of people to take action based not on observable phenomenon, but on scientific projections, this lack of certainty might be disastrous. Af-ter all, you don’t have to believe the scientists that dispute global warming in order to do nothing - you just have to be confused enough to be compla-cent”.

Oliver Burston 2006Client: BBC Focus MagazineDebut Art

Jody Barton, 2007From book Atla

Even when people start to acknowled-ge the problem, the systems in place are insufficient to make the changes necessary. We are all heavily em-bedded in a system that is unsustai-nable, and it is perpetrated by enor-mous advertising budgets. Within advertising, illustration can be used as an effective greenwashing tool by companies more eager to appear to be working towards a green agenda rather than actually doing anything about it. When advertising works to make unsustainable consumer choices aspirational, illustrators and designers become implicated in perpetuating systemic problems.

But advertising and the media can also be harnessed to work against the ac-tivities that are destroying our envi-ronment. Lois Rogers notes the views of Solitaire Townsend of Futerra, a sustainability communications firm: Townsend believes that the obvious way to affect public opinion is through the cultural media: ”It is quite easy to ‘de-status’ things by presenting them as un-aspirational,” she states.

In design, the topic of ethics has become a hot issue. Lucienne Ro-berts book’s Good: An Introduction to Ethics in Graphic Design looks at design as a social activity. Ro-berts claims that ‘visual art has long been the agent of moral and ethical thought. It can persuade, educate or control’. Today we need to understand the differen-ce between serving commerce and serving the public - because some-times what is best for business is bad for the people who rely on the environment. Sustainability is the key to long-term economic securi-ty - but short-term profit motives have made dominant market for-ces unsustainable.

For image-makers, the balancing act between the client’s desire for profits, and our desire for visual sophistication and our responsi-bility to serve the public lies at the crux of what we do. Design writer Rick Poynor has long advo-cated the role of the designer as a visual journalist - someone who becomes a specialist in a field to make visuals with consequence. In an article entitled The Desig-ner as Reporter, published in his book Obey The Giant, Poynor no-tes that he first became aware of the term “visual journalist” in a lecture given by the Dutch de-signer, educator and activist Jan van Toorn. “Wherever possible,” Poynor writes, “van Toorn uses his

design commissions to develop his own graphic commentary on Dutch institu-tions, companies and political issues. Especially in the 1970s, many of his projects became a form of personal research, an impassioned, sceptical and sometimes combative response to the cultural moment and conditions in which he found himself working. His approach had much in common with that of a campaigning or investigative journalist, except that his medium of expression was design and image ra-ther than the written word.”

This is a noble goal for illustrators, and allows illustration to become a more influential tool. Yet many still prefer to play with fashions, styles and no-velty, when these should be tools for working with the content at hand. Will survival focus our will?

A: CommunicationCampaigns / Visuali-zing Change

Jody Barton, 2003Save or Delete Forest Campaign for Greenpeace

NGOs (Non Governmental Organiza-tions) have led the agenda in terms of visible and effective climate change communication campaigns. Awareness raising, campaigning for policy chan-ge, membership drives, future scena-rio planning, and event design are all areas that need artistic direction and often illustration. Illustration can be especially helpful at mapping out stra-tegies for behavior change because it makes change visible before it ha-ppens. Both Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth use illustration to depict the technology and the personal actions necessary to lower carbon emissions.

All NGOs need to attract attention by deploying campaigns that are visua-lly exciting and expressive of current cultural styles. When work needs to appeal to a wide variety of audien-

ces - illustration can work wonders. The recent illustration-led Friends of the Earth’s The Big Ask campaign (although perhaps a little bland for some) was an enormous success. The result was the Climate Change Bill announced in the Queen’s Speech on November 15th 2006 - a year ahead of FOE’s plan. FOE policy recommenda-tions are now being incorporated into the government’s new Climate Change Bill (except, unfortunately the cru-cial yearly emission targets). The Big Ask was effective because it had the specific goal of changing UK policy - unlike some other awareness raising advertising which merely reminds us that global warming is happening wi-thout helping us create the change we need to deal with it. The illustra-tion made this message accessible and appealing to a broad group of people.

Wave Power / FL@33 Ltd, 2006The Big Ask For FOE

We have historical reasons to be suspi-cious of those with an economic inter-est in spreading a particular message, especially in the motoring and energy industries. Corporate sponsorship and funding of climate change deniers has stalled progress - thanks as well to the fact that we would all like to believe the deniers to be correct. The grea-test danger now is not ignorance but half measures - and as image-makers we can become implicated in the de-ceit. When we refuse to take respon-sibility for our actions, we become part of the problem. We must learn now to guard against having our skills hi-jacked and used as camouflage.

Meanwhile, the private sector is scrambling to demonstrate its green credentials. Corporate cam-paigns use design and illustration to present a green facade that can often be misleading. What becomes dangerous is when com-panies change their image rather than change destructive systems. A green makeover is necessarily easier than implementing green policies and making integral sus-tainable change. Illustration, with its ability to deliver subtle messa-ges and visual coding is a good tool for a convenient greenwashing.

B: Scientific Visuali-zations / Information Graphics

For many, it was the graphs in Al Gore’s film The Inconvenient Truth that fina-lly drove home the fact that we are in serious trouble. The movie uses visua-lizations in Gore’s PowerPoint presen-tation to make the science of climate change understandable to a wide au-dience. It is the information graphics that give the scientific data life - and by far the most powerful of these is the now famous “hockey stick graph”.

The “hockey stick graph”, as it has been nicknamed because of its sha-pe, may be the most important infor-mation visualization in the history of science - and likely one of the most contested. The researchers respon-sible for the original data have been brought before Congress to defend their findings with one member of the Congress demanding to inspect their fi-nancial records for evidence of bribery. As David Womack notes: ”Not only has the data been under the microscope, but the way that the data is repre-sented has been minutely dissected”.

The designers of the graphic, Duarte Design, describe the importance of the visualizations: “Your brain is hardwired to process visually first and then ver-bally. The goal is to communicate ins-tantly. You’re looking for impact.” Da-vid Womack again: “Images and graphs

can communicate immediately and, given the choice between words and images, we look to the images first”.

This ability of information graphics and illustration to educate audiences makes it an important tool for ecologi-cal literacy campaigns about the sci-ence of climate change. Lloyd Ander-son, the Head of Science at the British Council is one scientist who champi-ons the use of visuals. He claims: “De-scribing data trends in words is very difficult without it sounding monoto-nous or confusing. A graph, as a picto-rial representation, really is worth a thousand words”.

Anderson elaborates; “Cultures are shaped by climate. The culture in, say, Yemen, is very different to that in Iceland, and reflects the way soci-ety is moulded by the immediate en-vironment. We haven’t begun to think what changes in climate will mean for our cultures, past the pub discussion about better weather for holidays in Brighton or Blackpool. Visualisation is the best way to begin that thinking”.

Peter Grundy2006 Creative Review

Rod Hunt for Forum for the FutureCalor Village of the Year 2016

Last year, Vanity Fair published visua-lizations of Washington and New York underwater. These emotive images attracted huge amounts of attention. Generally, scientists prefer climate models, where data is fed into com-puters that generate possible clima-te scenarios. But these graphics can be dry for non-specialists, and then scientists are left wondering why the public is not responding to their alarm bells. Could it be that scientific scrupulousness is getting in the way of making graphics that laypersons find compelling? Here lies a challen-ge for communication specialists. Can we rise to the challenge of helping people understand the science of cli-mate change as well as the solutions?

John BlackfordWhat Manhattan might look like..Vanity Fair 2006

Illustration is able to communicate the intricacies of global warming in a way no other discipline can. Used to visually describe none tangible ideas such as energy, and carbon emissions - illustration works where words fail. Illustration becomes an indispensa-ble tool when used to examine the science behind carbon offsetting for example. Here one image can graphi-cally demonstrate the flawed thinking in the industry; a recent illustration in the New Scientist shows how car-bon offsetting is not a long-term so-lution but a quick fix - and one that is questionable commercially and ecologically. Climate change de-mands holistic solutions - and illus-tration is particularly good at showing how things fit into the big picture.

C: Self - Directed Work / Mapping Emotional Terrain

An effective vehicle for a critique of issues surrounding climate change is the work that designers and illustrators make on their own. Self-directed work allows the freedom to deal with some of the darker mechanisms at work in our reaction to climate change. It is here where our emotional responses are encountered and reflected back at us. Self-directed work often deals with psychological reactions to cli-mate change and can sometime com-municate more succinctly than prose. This is not the place for solutions; it is here that the many strategies that people find to avoid the issues are ridi-culed. Some images offer a much-nee-ded dose of comic relief. Image-based satirists provide a helpful critique of our cultural mores and values.

Kate EvansFunny Weather 2006

Jody Barton Solar Dirigible

Using narrative and storytelling tech-niques illustrators can create transfor-mative material that focuses on the fo-lly of common attitudes and behaviors. At it’s very best, some work can pro-voke small epiphanies. Artworks with text and narrative combined are most capable of challenging deeply held ideological assumptions. Kate Evans, Dr. Parsons, Steven Knowles and Darren Hopes use text, narrative and illustra-tion to lead us through a story to an end that says something about ourselves.

Pervasive now are images demonstra-ting a state of affairs that has clearly gone wrong. Some depict a world whe-re nature is losing the battle. While descriptive of an era, we are better served avoiding morbid doom mon-gering. All-important here is keep an eye on the bigger picture. We must avoid at all costs the disturbing trend to glorify the ‘end of the world’.

An apocalyptic vision might seems like is a valid artistic response to the current state of affairs - but artists should be aware of the inspirational power of their work. If we fall for the apocalyptic hype we will surely help only to bring it on. There is nothing glamorous about extinction. During my research, I encountered some fairly ex-citing images on global warming - this

cynical imagery is just bad magic.

As creative communicators we are in a position to help to change at-titudes - working towards ultima-tely changing behavior patterns, policies and systems. If we can mobilize our resources now - as they have been mobilized befo-re (the popular analogy, made by Al Gore and now Prince Charles, is WWII), we can possibly start to make this transition to a low energy future. It need not be the apocalyptic nightmare that it will be if we do not wake up and get serious about climate change now.As image-makers we can make pos-sibilities visible. Forging an aware-ness of the inspiration power of our work will help. As members of human race we will react to news of climate change with the same mixture of anger, denial and fear that everyone faces. It is important to realize that there are solutions to this mess (see especially George Monbiot’s Heat: “a manifesto for action and a thought experiment how a modern economy can be de-carbonized”). Here is a challenge for illustrators: visualize/or illus-trate a better low energy future. We used to see visions of the future with jet packs and monorails. Illus-tration could mainstream a pictu-re of a more human sized, earth connected and energy realistic fu-ture. We need to draw our brains-torms to make this future visible.

Article published in Varoom Magazine, August 2007.

Stephen Knowles Nature will Win in the End

Green Thing is a public servi-ce that inspires people to lead a greener life. With the help of brilliant videos and inspiring sto-ries etc. from creative people and community members around the world, Green Thing focuses on se-ven things you can do - and enjoy doing. Join people from 190 coun-tries doing their green things and making a difference.

Green Thing’s mission is to get as many people in as many coun-tries as possible to do the Green Thing to prevent climate change and then use that people power to persuade government and busi-ness to do the Green Thing too.

Green Thing is a not-for-profit public service that inspires people to lead a greener life. With the help of brilliant videos and inspiring stories etc. from creative people and community mem-bers around the world, Green Thing focuses on seven things you can do - and enjoy doing.

1. You get from A to B without any C when you Walk The Walk.

2. Instead of jetting your way around the world, Stay Grounded.

3. The art of wasting nothing and using up everything: All-Consuming.

4. It’s delicious but it causes more CO2 than cars so go Easy On The Meat.

5. Turn down the central heating and turn up the Human Heat.

6. Don’t leave it on or even put it on, Plug Out.

7. Resist the urge to buy the latest and Stick With What You Got.

P R O J E C T

Get around with less machine power and more of your own steam power. If you Walk The Walk, or pedal the pedal, you’ll see the world around you and burn plenty of fat but no fossil fuel which means you’ll go from A to B without making any C.

Seven things you can do to lead a greener life

Why Walk The Walk?

Traffic jams, boy racers, parking tic-kets, having to watch the guy in the car opposite picking his nose like there’s no tomorrow.

Driving isn’t all that fun when you think about it, and it’s an absolute environmental car-crash to boot. The millions of vehicles that clog up our roads belch out tonnes and tonnes of CO2 and other nasties like carbon mo-noxide, benzene and sulphur dioxide which cause respiratory problems.

Using machine power to move us around in general uses lots of energy, and the crazy thing is most of the time we could easily use our own steam

power and walk.

A quarter of all car journeys are well within walking distance. And lifts are just like vertical taxis - you wouldn’t hail a cab to go 100 feet down the road so why summon one to take you a few floors up?

So whether you’re a stroller or a stri-der, a marcher or a meanderer, an ambler or a rambler, ditch the machi-nes and start Walking the Walk. The planet, and your waistline, will thank you.

A sure-fire way to ruin a good holiday is to top and tail it with a plane ride that dumps huge amounts of CO2 and other greenhouse gases straight into the atmosphere. So stop jetting around and travel in a slower way - but in a better state of mind.

Why Stay Grounded?

Blue ice is just the tip of the, errrr, blue iceberg when it comes to things airplanes dump into our skies.

You see, planes pump out a noxious cocktail of greenhouse gases which are more damaging than CO2 on its own. What’s worse, their global-warming effects are multiplied because they are released so high up in the atmos-phere. Every time just one person cho-oses to turn their back on airports and airplanes and Stays Grounded instead, they can save as much CO2 as a year’s worth of heating and electricity.

So next time you travel, explore parts of the planet by actually trave-ling through them rather than staring down at the clouds above them. It’ll tickle your sense of adventure and let you bore your friends senseless with a lifetime’s supply of holiday anecdo-tes.

And if you’re worried about missing out on the ‘in-flight entertainment’, just go on a low carbon travel adven-ture and take an over-sized toblerone and a portable DVD player with no-thing but rom-coms on it.

Why All-Consuming?

All-Consuming is the art of wasting no-thing and using up everything.You wouldn’t get off a train halfway through a journey and buy a ticket for another one. And you wouldn’t walk out of a movie before it’s finished and pay to see it again (especially not if it had Vin Diesel in it).But that’s sort of what you’re doing when you buy new stuff rather than using up the things you’ve already got. And doing that harms more than just your bank balance. Making and trans-porting new goods requires raw mate-rials and energy, and so creates lots of nasty CO2. And to top it off, most things we chuck out spend the rest of their days rotting in a landfill site, where they produce more CO2 as well as other noxious greenhouse gases.

Which is why we need to start All-Con-suming and stop throwing things away prematurely. Don’t dump those holey socks – get a-darning. Don’t throw out your leftovers – turn them into a nice broth instead. And don’t bin your well-loved Snoopy doll – there’s life in that old dog yet.

Everything we buy has an environ-mental impact, and chucking it out before using it up makes the impact bigger than it needs to be. So stop wasting and start All-Consuming. Use that pencil to the very end and turn those unwanted bread ends into a delicious bread and butter pudding.

Meat may be downright delicious but the way cows, pigs, sheep and chickens are reared uses lots of fossil fuels and creates lots of CO2 – more than the car industry. So go Easy On The Meat. Even chopping out several portions a week would make a decent difference.

Why Easy On The Meat?

You may not think it to look at them, but those cute farm animals you see gambolling around the field are re-morseless polluters. Those sweet lit-tle lambs, those playful piglets, those laughing cows and cheeky chickens - filthy polluters all.A recent UN report found that meat production was among the top 3 cre-ators of greenhouse gases (includ-ing methane which is 23 times more harmful than CO2). It’s responsible for 18% of global emissions, more than the entire world transportation indus-try, and livestock agriculture is also a major cause of deforestation and soil erosion, as well as being a huge drain on our water supplies.

To produce just 1kg of beef, enough for a spag bol for you and 5 friends, creates a whopping 34.6kg of CO2, and consumes an eye-watering 15,000 litres of water, much more than a kilo of cereals.

It’s enough to make you choke on your chops.

As if all that wasn’t enough, farm ani-mals, particularly cows, are a windy bunch. They’re responsible for 37% of global methane emissions, which is even more than Michael Winner.

One way we can stop our planet from overheating is by underheat-ing our homes. Heating uses more energy and creates more CO2 than anything else we do indoors so if you’re cold, leave the radiators off and wrap up in a jumper - or bet-ter still, with another person.

Why Human Heat?

Most of the CO2 produced by our ho-mes comes from the energy we use. And heating accounts for around 60% of that energy.

What’s more, most homes in the UK are overheated. A nice, comfy setting for your thermostat is between 18C and 21C - but half of the nation’s ther-mostats are set higher than this.

Instead, warm your cockles by putting on a snug jumper or snuggling up to someone swell and lower your heating a touch or leave it off for a bit longer.

If everyone in the UK used more of their natural human heat - each body is equivalent to a 100 Watt heater - and turned their heating down by just one degree, we’d save 6.7 million ton-nes of CO2 each year.

That’s like shutting down fourteen coal-fired power stations for a month, not to mention chopping £716 million off our energy bills.

And being a bit cooler means you’ll burn more calories to generate body warmth, giving you a nicer figure to show off come summertime.

Those chargers and speakers that you’ve left on needlessly, that light on in the other room, those machines on standby. While they look harmless enough, they’re sucking your household power su-pply like needy greedy babies and are costing untold tonnes of C02. Tune into the waste and Plug Out.

Why Plug Out?

Watching DVD box sets until the small hours; playing Wii bowling so hard you get blisters; sleeping with a Blackberry under your pillow - keeping plugged in can be knackering.

Machines suck energy – and not just ours.

Whether we’re giving them our full at-tention, have left them on in the bac-kground, or are just making them kick their heels on standby, they devour power like it’s going out of fashion.

And creating all this energy generates tonnes and tonnes of harmful CO2.

So give the planet and yourself a well-deserved break by Plugging Out and going analogue more often.

Switch off Guitar Hero and pick up an acoustic guitar; go for a kickaround ra-ther than watching Match of the Day; and put down your iPod and try whist-ling a tune instead - just avoid Bohe-mian Rhapsody if you’re asthmatic.

The latest phone in pink titanium. The latest laptop that’s 2mm thinner. Peer pressure and ad pressure means you’re incomplete unless you buy them. Trouble is, surplus consumption leads to surplus production and CO2 so far better if you can Stick With What You Got - and be happy.

Why Stick With What You Got?

It’s a fact - we buy too much stuff. We think we need it but we don’t. It’s a compulsion, a fix. A little down? Hit the high street for some retail therapy. A little insecure? Spank your savings and buy the latest thing to show the world you’re as cool and happening as it is.It’s a buy-quick throw-quick habit that’s got so bad that we only use 1% of the stuff we buy six months after we’ve bought it.

And making and transporting all that stuff, 99% of which we chuck out any-way, takes vast amounts of fossil fuel energy and produces huge amounts of CO2 and waste.

It also eats up raw materials. Rainfor-ests are being logged, wildlife habi-tats destroyed, and indigenous com-munities displaced so we can carry on mining to produce the laptops, mp3 players and sweat-shirts that make us cooler (we think) but no happier.

Green Thing is a community that’s here to help as many people as pos-sible in as many countries as possible to do the Green Thing. A community of Green Things across the world will not only make a sizeable CO2 saving, it will encourage governments and bu-sinesses to do the Green Thing too.

To help achieve all of that, Green Thing is a number of things.

Green Thing is a simple thing. Be-cause lots of small things can add up to more than a few big things, Green Thing suggests seven things you can do to lead a greener life and focuses on one thing a month to tempt as many people as possible to do it. Green Thing is also free which makes it ea-sier to be part of.

Green Thing is a creative thing. Be-cause entertainment is very inspiring and lectures a bit less so, the seven Green Things are suggested with bri-lliant content from brilliant writers, musicians, designers, directors and artists.

Green Thing is a not-for-profit thing. Because people are cynical about com-mercial or political agendas, Green Thing is an independent, not-for-profit thing powered by grants from founda-tions and individual contributions.

Green Thing is a credible thing. Be-cause people want to know that their action is making a difference, Green Thing is endorsed by some of the planet’s leading environmental thinkers and reports back every month on the collective difference the whole community is making.

Green Thing is a principled thing. There are certain things Green Thing will and won’t do:

* It will react and respond to the com-munity. Green Thing is everybody’s thing.

* It won’t hide anything, ever. The science behind the suggestions , where the money comes from , mis-takes that will inevitably be made.

* Will reuse existing thinking and technology wherever possible. It’s quicker, more sustainable and che-aper too.

* It won’t take money from busines-ses producing the most C02 (oil com-panies, for instance, or airlines). Gi-ven what Green Thing is trying to do, it would be a bit ridiculous.

If Green Thing is about one thing, it’s inspiring green action. If we all contribute to Green Thing, it will be-come as creative, as credible and as inspiring as it can be. If we all do the Green Thing, it will make the biggest impact it can make.

http://www.dothegreenthing.com/

G A L E R YArtecnica’s award-winning Design with Conscience® product line reintroduces traditional craft into the high design landscape. Each piece in the collection is a co-llaborative effort art directed by Artecnica, conceptualized by re-nowned international designers, and handcrafted by artisan com-munities across the globe.

design with conscience®Design with Conscience® prod-ucts spotlight the design process from concept to creation, calling recognition to the value of arti-san labor and craft techniques. In creating these products, Artec-nica uses eco-friendly materials and production methods, promot-ing manufacturing processes that are environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable.

http://www.artecnicainc.com

tranSglass® Mirrors are large oval mi-rrors topped with a three-dimensional, mirrored glass mosaic. The multi-fa-ceted, hand-cut mosaics are available in star and dog mask motifs. Inspi-red by Guatemalan tribal masks, the tranSglass Mirrors are a Design with Conscience® project, reuniting Artec-nica with the design and manufactu-ring team who created their critically acclaimed tranSglass line of recycled glass vessels.

tranSglass® mirrorsGlass mirrorsMDF core, oval flat mirror with MDF backing

Design by Emma Woffenden & Tord Boontje

Witches’ Kitchen

Design by Tord Boontje

An Artecnica Design with Conscience™ project, Witches’ Kitchen™ is a hand-crafted kitchenware collection inspi-red by the witches and wizards of wes-tern lore. The extensive collection is a collaborative exercise in sustainable design. Designed by Studio Tord Boon-tje and handcrafted by artisan groups from three different South American countries, Witches’ Kitchen features black ceramic cookware hand-molded by Colombian artisans, wooden kit-chen utensils handcarved by Guate-malan craftsmen, and kitchen coutu-re hand-sewn by Brazil’s Coopa-Roca women’s cooperative.

beads & pieces

Design by Hella Jongerius

Beads & Pieces, a Design With Conscience project, is a four-pie-ce ceramic collection designed by Hella Jongerius. Artisans located in the primary coca leaf-growing region of Peru handcraft the co-llection. With the help of Aid to Artisans, a non-profit organization that provides practical assistance to artisans worldwide, Artecni-ca offers an alternative econo-mic reality to the people of this dangerous and oppressed area. With its black ceramic embellis-hed with delicate pink beading,

Beads & Pieces is classic Jon-gerius. Ceramic floral bouquets and wooden beads add to the ar-tful juxtaposition of elements. Beads & Pieces’ handcrafted and socially responsible origins are ap-parent in its design. The ceramists’ workmanship is seen in the grace-ful curves of the black ceramic, a traditional Peruvian pottery technique. Some motifs from the indigenous Shipibo tribe are also incorporated into the beading.

tranSglass®Recycled Glass

Design by Emma Woffenden& Tord Boontje

tranSglass® is included in the perma-nent collection of MoMA New York.

Since its launch, tranSglass® has be-come one of Artecnica’s best-selling items. With its recycled origins and sleek, fluid design, tranSglass® con-veys a positive attitude towards the environment, affirmed as an Artecnica Design With Conscience project.

With the help of Aid to Artisans, a non-profit organization providing assistan-ce to artisans worldwide, Artecnica collaborated with Guatemalan crafts-men to bring Emma Woffenden and Tord Boontje’s designs to the market. Combining old-world craftsmanship and sophisticated design, each tranS-glass® vessel is a unique, one-of-a-kind piece.

Introducing the new tranSglass® co-llection.Recycled radiance takes on exciting new shapes and forms. Building on the tranSglass® signature aesthetic, the new collection features vases, candle holders, carafes and tumblers crafted from recycled bottles.

Come Rain Come ShineMetal, Crochet, Chiffon & Organ-za

Design by Tord Boontje

Come Rain Come Shine is Tord Boontje’s lyrical reinterpretation of the chandelier, bringing playful sophistication to any surrounding. Constructed from a round me-tal structure, the chandelier fro-ths and preens in a handcrafted concoction of crocheted cotton, organza, silk and fabric flowers, casting a dramatic and mysterious glow when lit.

Come Rain Come Shine adds a touch of playful sophistication to any surrounding. Once lit, it casts a dramatic and mysterious glow.

Come Rain Come Shine is pro-duced through Coopa-Roca, a women’s cooperative based in Rio de Janeiro’s largest shantytown, employing humanitarian values and artisan production methods consistent with Artecnica’s Design With Conscience campaign. By using their homes as workshops, cooperative members earn a living while tending to their children and other domestic responsibilities. In addition to extending livelihood opportunities, Coopa-Roca’s com-mitment to world-class craftwork has enhanced the self-esteem of women in this impoverished neigh-borhood.

TatuGalvanized Steel, powder coated

Design by Stephen Burks

A Design With Conscience project. Steel wire is deliciously airy, visually pliant and weather resilient in bri-lliant modular furniture by celebrated designer Stephen Burks. Hand-woven in South Africa by artisans working closely with the designer, TaTu meshes traditional with urbane. Coffee Table breaks down into a large tray, bowl and basket; Side Table becomes a me-dium tray, bowl and trash can. One piece stackable stool complements the collection providing the required seating.

TransNeomaticRepurposed scooter tire, natural wicker

Design by Estudio Campana

transNeomatic is a conceptually innovative container bowl cra-fted from a repurposed scooter tire and natural wicker. Each tire is thoroughly steam-cleaned and finished in an eco-friendly sea-lant. transNeomatic comes with an optional handwoven hemp co-ver that slips over its rubber base. Each piece is packaged in a reusa-ble drawstring tote.

transNeomatic is designed by Estudio Campana and handcraft-ed by skilled artisans from rural Vietnam. Through Vietnamese non-profit organization Craft Link, Artecnica collaborated with Hai Tai rattan weavers and Hmong women weavers to create each piece. Disadvantaged Vietnamese youths were also enlisted to as-semble the totes, providing them with artisan training and a frame-work by which they could estab-lish sustainable livelihoods. A true DESIGN WITH CONSCIENCE collab-oration, transNeomatic is an en-vironmentally aware and socially conscious piece from concept to execution, transforming an aes-thetic vision into an economically viable solution for Vietnam’s arti-san communities.

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The Eco-design Handbook: A Complete Source-book for the Home and OfficeBy Alastair Fuad-Luke

Selects and presents over 400 of the most innova-tive ‘green’ products available for anybody who wants to buy ecologically sound furniture, equip-ment or objects for their home or workplace.

Design Like You Give a Damn: Architectural Responses to Humanitarian Crisesby Architecture for Humanity

Design Like You Give a Damn is a compendium of innovative projects from around the world that de-monstrate the power of design to improve lives.

Worldchanging: A User’s Guide for the 21st Century By Alex Steffen

This 600-page companion to the eco-friendly web-site of the same name (www.worldchanging.com) is chock-a-block with information about what is going on right now to create an environmentally and eco-nomically sustainable future-and what stands in opposition.

www.eco2mag.cl

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