Design Thinking

Tim Brown is a British-born designer who is now CEO of the design group called Ideo, based in Silicon Valley California. He has a fascinating article, in the June Harvard Business Review, urging organisations to embrace what he calls Design Thinking.

Useful links:
www.ideo.com
http://mitworld.mit.edu/video/357
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_thinking

Skoll World Forum

(via BBC) Every year the Said Business School at Oxford University hosts the Skoll Forum for Social Entrepreneurs, a wonderful meeting place of famous and not so famous practitioners and beneficiaries. It happens in Oxford, England, because this ancient university is where the Foundation’s founder Jeff Skoll established a department that actually teaches social entrepreneurship to business school students. He made a fortune out of in at the founding of the Internet Auction site eBay. Now he is trying to encourage more social entrepreneurship, and to get more innovation out of it. The Skoll Forum is an exhilarating place, noisy with ideas.

Useful links:
www.skollworldforum.com
www.skollfoundation.org
www.sbs.ox.ac.uk
www.ashoka.org
www.camfed.org
www.mobileactive.org
www.gatesfoundation.org
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Skoll

Amanda Ripley

Amanda Ripley's book, The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes — and Why explains how the brain works in disasters — and how we can learn to do better.

Useful link:
www.amandaripley.com

A must-read.

Spencer Tunick

Spencer Tunick is an American photographer. He is best known for his installations that feature large numbers of nude people posed in artistic formations. His installations are often situated in urban locations throughout the world.

Recently more than 1,000 people took part in a Spencer Tunick installation, which took place at Blarney Castle in Cork in southern Ireland. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/7460005.stm

Useful link:
www.spencertunick.com

It must be an extraordinary experience.

New Graphic Designs From China

3030: New Graphic Design in China, edited by Hong Kong designer Javin Mo, is an interesting work (theoretical + experimental) that brings together the work of 30 designers from mainland China + their viewpoints.

Useful links:
www.3030press.com
www.milkxhake.org

Fancy Colored Diamonds Education

I found the website www.fancydiamonds.net on fancy colored diamonds educational and informative. A must-visit.

Bottlemania

Bottlemania: How Water Went on Sale and Why We Bought It by Elizabeth Royte is an informative book on an entire industry. A must-read.

I think the answer lies in marketing. Though environmentally destructive, old habits die hard.

The House of Viktor & Rolf

A new exhibition showcasing the work of Dutch fashion designers Viktor & Rolf opens on 18 June till 21 September 2008 @ the Barbican Art Gallery. A must-visit.

Useful links:
www.viktor-rolf.com
www.barbican.org.uk