“We are part of  the problem and we want to be part of the solution.” Believe it or not, that statement comes from a fast food restaurant. Swedish fast food chain Max is trying to pioneer its’ industry by labeling all meals with the amount of carbon dioxide they cause in making. cont.

How often have you seen a friend do something impressive and told them “Dude! You have got to teach me that!” (or something to that effect)? The best way to learn is through friends, teachers or mentors, and we all probably know how to do something really well.

Skillsharing is a new movement of freestanding weekend events featuring workshops and classes, taught by regular people who happen to be really good at, or possess deep knowledge about, something. cont.

With resources on land becoming scarcer by the day, and sea levels rising, the idea that we may one day have to adapt to life on the sea may not be so far fetched. The Waterpod™ is a project envisioned by artist Mary Mattingly as a kind of aquatic equivalent to Biosphere 2, a science complex built in the Arizona desert in the 1980s. cont.

“You don’t have to be a Rockefeller to collect art.” Herbert Vogel, a postal worker, and Dorothy Vogel, a librarian, managed to build one of the most important contemporary art collections in history with very modest means. They lived off of Dorothy’s salary and used Herb’s to collect art. They only had two requirements when purchasing art: the piece had to be affordable, and it had to be small enough to fit in their one-bedroom Manhattan apartment. cont.

A good idea always seems so simple. It makes you feel like an idiot for never thinking of it yourself, because it just makes so much sense. In this country, we consume 3 billion pizzas each year, and 70% of those are delivered in a box — a box often made from virgin fiber, too big to fit into refrigerators, recycling or garbage bins (how the contents always manage to fit into your belly is another mystery). cont.

Something I have been truly excited about in the urban landscape lately is the emergence of vertical gardens. Architects and urban planners are realizing the importance of green space, both for aesthetic reasons but also to provide the city with some extra lungs, helping its dwellers breathe easier. cont.

Every December, the well-known authority on color, PANTONE picks a color it thinks will dominate the year to come. According to them, 2009 will be the year of Mimosa, or PANTONE® 14-0848. cont.

It’s a jungle out there, we all know it. Have you ever been stuck out there in the urban wilderness thinking to yourself “Damn, I wish I had a 550 Paracord right now!”? Maybe not, but that doesn’t mean you never will, and we like to be prepared, right? cont.