A Greener Apple

I’m completely bias when it comes to Apple products/brand because I’m already too loyal for my own good, but I was still really happy to read this post by Steve about Apple becomming greener. Just one more reason why I’d give my right arm to continue working for this company. Awhile back I happened on this website by Greenpeace called Green My Apple. It called for Apple fans to put pressure on Apple, Inc. to green their practices. I wouldn’t say the website alone pushed for the change in practices, but whatever it was that spurred the change makes me happy. Now go by some more iPods and rest easy.

Banner from Greenpeace’s Greenmyapple.org

Design for the Other 90%

Read about this exhibit on Coolhunting.com and I think it’s really inspiring. It’s easy for those of us who love design to get caught up in–and get used to — buying items for ridiculous amounts of money. But there is a whole population of people out there that struggle to eat, or to find access to clean water. Vitals of life that many of us in first world countries take for granted. Design for the Other 90% is an exhibit featuring designers that have focused on making products for those under the poverty line or who are recovering from natural disasters. The exhibit is broken up into sections including water, shelter, health & sanitation, education, energy & transportation. It will be on view from May 4-September 23 of this year at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum. 2 East 91st Street, New York, NY 10128. If you’re in the area check it out! You can read more about what you’ll find at the exhibit here.

Organic Cotton hits H&M

This isn’t breaking news. In fact I read an article about the H&M Organic Cotton line on Inhabitat in the beginning of March. I’m blogging about it now, because while I was in San Francisco last week I stopped in to H&M to inquire about the new organic line and was pleasantly surprised to find it had just been placed on the sales floor that day (a virtual goldmine in the quick turn-over world of H&M styles/sizes)! Living in Seattle, which is sans H&M until 2008, I jump at every opportunity to shop at one of my most beloved stores whenever I’m in cities that are home to one. I was very pleased with the line of organic and sustainable duds, and purchased a purple dress (pictured above), cute tunic-y gray cardigan, and a nice green colored tank. They are super soft and comfortable. I was also delighted to know that the line had been displayed two full days early, giving me first dibs at all the sizes! I love when stuff like this falls into place. It was an all-around fantastic trip, so I shouldn’t be too surprised. I also purchased a flashy sequined shirt that was apparently featured on the Today show- I’m just THAT good. haha.

I should also mention, that two days later the Madonna line “M” dropped at H&M, and I was utterly unimpressed. The only piece I liked from the Material girl, was a gold/white/gray sequin & beaded dress, that pretty much hung like a potato sack. However, I’ve heard it caused riots in other cities. Go figure! I was hoping to at LEAST make some purchases to flip on ebay, but nothing caught my eye.

Not Your Typical Dorm

Having worked in Residential Life for three years now, I can say without a doubt that the design of a residence hall (although not the first thing you may think of) is completely crucial to promoting a healthy lifestyle/living experience. I found a post about Tietgen Residence Hall in Copenhagen, Denmark on A Daily Dose of Architecture, and was loving it! I’ve definitely never seen a dorm of it’s equal, and probably would’ve loved living/working in the dorms even more had my building looked like this! Even though the models for Residential Life are very different in the U.S. than in the rest of the world, I think it might not be a bad idea to take a cue from our international collegues and start thinking about the effects of breaking the architectural mold. We all know that space and architecture influence behavior and experience, so I’m happy to see that Lundgaard & Tranberg really “get it” and have found a way to design a space that integrates both private and public spaces, while continuing to strengthen them both.

“Will Dance For Electricity”

Saw this short video over at Inhabitat.com and thought it was the most excellent idea/concept/reality. Why hasn’t anyone thought of this before?! I’d dance to keep the music playing, or walk to keep the streetlights on, or run to power the TV- the opportunities are endless. Read more here.

Ignore the shameless plug for Toyota.

Architecture 2030

I’ve been a fan of Green Architecture for awhile now- I mean who wouldn’t be? If you don’t know what I mean by “Green,” click here. And feast your eyes on one example below;

For those of you who think that Al Gore & his Academy Award Winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth are a farse, you should probably just stop reading. Or maybe, you should keep reading, because as countless studies have shown- including this Scientific Expert Group Report on Climate Change and Sustainable Development presented to the United Nations, our world is between a rock and a hard spot when it comes to rapidly accelerating climate change. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t things we can do. And this group, Architecture 2030, is stepping up and leading the way.

“Rapidly accelerating climate change (global warming), which is caused by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, is now fueling dangerous regional and global environmental events. Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration illustrates that buildings are responsible for almost half (48%) of all GHG emissions annually. Seventy-six percent of all electricity generated by U.S. power plants goes to supply the ‘Building Sector’. Therefore, immediate action in the Building Sector is essential if we are to avoid hazardous climate change” (Archiecture2030.com).

I suggest you visit their website and check out all the interactive resources they have to offer, including webcasts on The 2030 Challenge, and The 2010 Imperative. Watch the Webcasts here.

The coolest part, by far, of the website is the Case Studies Page. If you’re more into Architecture than Environmentalism, and you only have time to follow one link, choose this one.