Films have a powerful effect on the human psyche. Some of them make you laugh, cry, question and comprehend and some educate you about worlds unknown. Short film Validation is one of those films that will make you smile. It tells the story of a parking attendant who gives his customers validation by dispensing both free parking and free compliments. Above all, it profiles the importance of acknowledging and ‘validating’ people. It’s a great reminder of how we can all create a better world, by sharing a smile and a few kind words. Validation has been played at 34 film festivals worldwide and has won 17 awards, which shows that people are searching for films with a more spiritual and enlightening angle. For 16 minutes of inspiring film, take a moment to watch Validation. (Thanks to Morgs at Urban Grind for passing it on)
Monthly Archive for October, 2009
When Don and Laurie Schoendorfer were vacationing in Morocco, they witnessed the plight of a disabled woman struggling to drag herself across a dirt road. Unnoticed by the crowds and barely missing traffic, the woman’s suffering was a scene that they remembered upon returning to their home in California. So affected by this, Don, an engineer, walked away from his career and developed an inexpensive and durable wheelchair – the heart and soul behind Free Wheelchair Mission (FWM). Launched in 2001, FWM has distributed 350,000 wheelchairs in 70 countries. Don has a goal to eventually reach 20 million wheelchairs, which is certainly possible. At FWM, the logistics are systematic and designed to achieve the greatest outcomes. The chairs are manufactured in China, for cost effectiveness, and then shipped to the country of destination. A distribution partner then locates the beneficiaries for the wheelchairs. The first thing you can do to help FWM, is to spread the word.
design revolution: 100 products that empower people
There is a new generation of designers concerned with changing the world through humanitarian design. Emily Pilloton is one of them. Less than two years ago, at the beginning of 2008, with a few-hundred dollars, a laptop and huge ambition, Emily launched Project H Design, a radical non-profit company that supports, inspires and delivers life-improving humanitarian products. The company is most noted for its water-carrying device the Hippo Roller and the Lifestraws. Emily is a great example of what a young designer can achieve, but she’s not only proud of her own work, she wants to share with you what other designers have accomplished. Her book Design Revolution: 100 Products That Empower People profiles the best contemporary designs changing the world we live in, such as safer baby bottles, a waterless washing machine, sugarcane charcoal, universal composting systems and DIY soccer balls. Emily understands that design will be the driving forced behind the world’s major problems like poverty, access to clean water and environmental disasters. Her book is positively inspiring and shows designers the ingenuity of their profession, and everybody else that there is proof of hope for a better world.
Why did crime drop so dramatically in New York City during the 1990s? How does a novel written by an unknown author end up as a national bestseller? Why do teens smoke in greater numbers when every single person in the country knows that cigarettes kill? Why is word-of-mouth advertising so powerful? Writer Malcolm Gladwell covers all of these questions in his book Tipping Point – an intriguing quest of his over-intuitive mind, which applies the theories of epidemiology and the idea of a ‘tipping point’ to business, social policy and advertising. As well as an author, Malcolm is a detector of fads and subcultures, and a challenger of consumer intelligence. He dreams of finding the obscurities in mundane objects like cookies, sneakers and pasta sauce and telling his findings to the world. His ability to write books and articles that contest conventional thinking, has seen him attract a wide and devoted readership since he first started writing for The New Yorker in 1996.
Surely this has been coming for a while, but news today that an artificial intelligence program to be used by doctors can identify domestic abuse. It works by collating the results from many studies on domestic violence into one program that will alert doctors to the likelihood of domestic abuse based on the health patterns of the patient. Injuries such as bruising to the core of the body or the middle of the forearm can be indicators as is depression and the onset of alcoholism. It is believed that many health practitioners are sometimes so focused on treating a condition, that the context is often missed. This software will act as a red-flag, and is said to save victims up to six years of unrecognised abuse. For more information click here.
Stephanie Alexander is well known and respected for many things within the Australian food industry, however it is her latest endeavour that truly highlights her inspiring passion and commitment. In 2001 Stephanie implemented a gardening and cooking program for an inner-city Melbourne primary school. In the program, children from years 3 to 6 spent time in a vegetable garden that they themselves, had helped to design, build and maintain within school grounds according to organic gardening principles. Then in a kitchen classroom, they spent a minimum of an hour and a half each week planning, preparing and sharing meals cooked using their own produce. Her belief that the earlier children learn about good food though example and positive experiences, the better their food choices will be throughout life, ensured its success. In 2004 the not-for-profit Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation was established to raise funds to help facilitate the roll out of the program into other Melbourne schools.
Continue reading ‘Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation’
350
The 24th of October is an international day of climate action, with more than 4,220 events being held in 170 countries around the globe. The 350 day, calls for a fair and effective climate treaty to stabilise atmospheric CO2 at less than 350ppm (parts per million) and for everyone to play their part in reaching a safe climate and a just world. There are a number of Brisbane events happening. Continue reading ‘350′
the fun theory
Via Volkswagen - “We believe that the easiest way to change people’s behaviour for the better is by making it fun to do. We call it the fun theory. Be it for yourself, for the environment, or something entirely different, the only thing that matters is that it’s change for the better”.
On Wednesday September 30, a huge 8.3 magnitude earthquake triggered a tsunami that hit the southern coasts of Samoa resulting in incredible destruction and deaths. For those outside of Samoa, comprehending the extent of the damage is difficult and understanding the road to recovery is even harder. To give the people of Samoa a chance of getting back on the road to recover a lot faster, there’s one thing we can do – donate. Oxfam is working with its Samoan partners to assist with the urgent needs of people affected by the disaster. There are a number of ways you can help out such as providing financial relief and then telling others about your experience. There are also other local community fundraising events such as the Fia Fia Rugby Festival being held at Ballymore this Saturday. After seeing such devastation on the news and in the papers, the least we can do is lend a hand to those who are desperately in need.
The water we use in the shower can definitely be used elsewhere. Having a bucket in the shower to catch the excess is just as suitable for your plants as water from your garden hose is. Four French designers Alban Le Henry, Olivier Pigasse, Vincent Vandenbrouck and Jun Yasumoto have taken the idea of using the off-run in a shower by making the bathroom a mini eco-system. Using a natural filtering principle called phyto-purification, the designers use wastewater from the shower and bathroom sink, filter it through an organic system so it can then be reused. During the filtering process the water goes through different stages. First, the rushes are planted in sand, which filters larger particles. Next, the reeds eliminate larger particles of heavy metals from the water; the floating water hyacinths draw some of the water through their roots. Then finally, the lemnas bind to the remaining aquatic micro-organisms to complete the filtering process. This project not only combines the pleasure of taking a shower and recycling water, but it makes people think about the way that they use water through the this efficient bathroom design.
Tea is such a personal drink – even more so than coffee. Tea drinkers have particular rituals when making their preferred drink. The way the bag is jiggled, the number of seconds it’s left in the cup and the amount of milk are critical to the standard cup of English Breakfast tea. And then there are the tea fanatics, whose cups of tea are brewed with the finest and most exquisite ingredients from across the globe. Catering to the fastidious and finicky, the Dione Tea Set brews the perfect cup of tea for one. It’s made of two parts – a bottom and a top half. The tea is brewed in the bottom half and when it’s ready, the tea set is flipped and the tea is strained through to the top half. This part can be detached, leaving you a beautiful aromatic cup of tea.
It’s not very often that spare land in populated cities is given the chance to resemble its former existence. The Singapore National Parks Board Gardens By The Bay Project is the largest garden project ever undertaken in Singapore and in the world. Its intention is to raise Singapore’s significance as a major global hub and business centre. This shelter is in developmental stage and is expected to resemble the flowing form of an orchid, and its infrastructure is cleverly designed so that plants that usually wouldn’t grow in Singapore can. The varying types of conservatories showcase Mediterranean, tropical montane and temperate annual plants and flowering species. They also provide a flexible, flower-themed venue for events and exhibitions. The completion of this structure will see plants and people mixing together harmoniously in the midst of one of Asia’s busiest port cities. The project is also a good example of how other cities can make use of spare land.
William Kamkwamba is 22 years old and grew up on his family farm in Masitala Village, two and a half hours from Malawi’s capital city. Due to severe famine in his country, and his family’s inability to pay his school fees, William was forced to quit school when he was about to commence high school. His inherent ability and urge to learn did not stop when he left school. William would go to the local library to research and was taken by a book called Using Energy, which depicted wind turbines on the cover. William took this knowledge and built a windmill in his village, which eventually powered light bulbs and charged mobile-phone batteries. William’s windmill project attracted mass attention from the world. He has since released a book, The Boy Who Harnessed Wind, which profiles his story, innovative thinking, challenges and where it has taken him.
The tragic disappearance and death of Britt Lapthorne struck a chord with every backpacker or traveller who has left the safety of their home for foreign adventure; and now Britt’s legacy has evolved into an iPhone application that should be an essential travel companion. Melbourne man Tim Hine felt compelled after hearing of Britt’s story, to develop an application that would notify loved ones around the world if the owner was in trouble. Once activated, the ‘I am Safe’ application sends off recorded voice, email and SMS messages to five pre-determined loved ones anywhere in the world, it also determines the location of the owner via GPS and has an audio file that records everything that is happening around the phone. Initially only supported by iPhones, the ‘I am Safe’ app will eventually be available for use on other platforms.
Woah! Via: Epic Proportions. This massive burger costs $499, weighs about 85 kg and requires about 15 hours of baking. I am shocked.
Two courses and a glass of wine for $30 at some of Brisbane’s great restaurants. Sounds too good to be true right? Well it is too good and entirely true so jump to it and book your table from today until Friday 23rd October. Not only will you be supporting our local restaurants and your wallet, but also the fantastic Queensland produce that they’re promoting. I’m trying to choose between Restaurant II’s ‘Caboolture Berry Salad with Popcorn Gelato and Whipped Lemon Cream’, Timmy’s ‘Lowood Pork Belly with Seared Yeppoon Scallops and Green Bowen Mango Salad’ and 2 Small Room’s ”Mooloolaba Sand Crab Omelet with Namprik Dressing’. Maybe I’ll just have to go to all of them. Check out the Lunch on Q website for a full list of restaurants and their menus.
“it’s eargasmic!”
Here is an orchestra that specifically states “no snobs allowed”. Deep Blue Orchestra last night unleashed upon ears and eyes their latest show “The Dream”. If you go in expecting a traditional classical performance, you’re in for a sizzling surprise. You won’t need to turn your phone off during the performance; in fact, they want you to keep mobiles on, and sms them your thoughts and dreams during the show! One such sms from their opening night was: “it’s eargasmic!”. Watch ABC’s Stateline at 7:30pm today for a story on these revolutionary musicians. “The Dream” will be showing at La Boite Roundhouse Theatre, Kelvin Grove until 17 October 2009.
fearless fashion
Alexander McQueen Shoe
There’s only so much fashion designers can do for one head, two arms and two legs. We’re used to seeing ‘new’ trends emerge and remembering the last era they came from. So, it’s not often you come across a piece where your eyes sparkle with the sensation of seeing something fresh. This shoe may look more like the foot of a predator, than that of a fashion-forward female. Check out Alexander McQueen’s latest collection for some creative design inspiration.
A film directed by Spike Jonze, co-written by Dave Eggers, scored by Karen O and based on a classic children’s book? You’d be forgiven for getting excited. Where the Wild Things are tells the story of a little boy who, after having a fight with his mother, runs away from home and finds adventure and mischief with strange and enormous creatures called the Wild Things. Where the Wild Things are is due for an Australian release on 3 December 2009. In the meantime, you can keep up with what inspires and influences the people behind the film at the official blog We Love You So.
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