Hasta La Ideas

desigNYC, a group founded to connect NYC nonprofits serving the public good with probono designers, announced their 2011 list of collaborators today. 2010’s inaugural year projects were a huge success and included a match between New York City’s Housing Authority and the Rooster Design Group. The NYCHA x Rooster Design project created a communication tool for NYCHA’s 650,000+ residents to learn how to reduce their environmental impact and outline City resources for greening resident’s lives. Rooster Design transformed a 50-page single-spaced document detailing activities to live a low-carbon lifestyle into a concise guide called, “The Power Is In Your Hands.” The guide (optioned in English and Spanish) used colorful iconography and clear, direct language to help residents understand their options to reduce their environmental impact and energy consumption. Learn more about 2010’s projects at the desigNYC website here!

The new 2011 project collaborations include:

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Imagine a world where power consumption and energy efficiency were less of a personal burden and more of a community effort. The “Switch!” design research group at the Swedish Interactive Institute have been doing just that with “Symbiots”; a series of photographic scenarios that give a glimpse into a world where people are lured away from private and habitual energy comsumption and encouraged to engage with their local surroundings and neighbours.

The “Street Cinema”, pictured above, could well be a vision for a non-too distant future where watching TV from the comfort of your own home becomes an eco faux-pas or simply too expensive—the occupied streets also perhaps discouraging any unneccessary car use. The “Public Spotlight”, in contrast, imagines a local environment that rewards low individual energy use with enviable privileges—street lamps, in this case, lighting the balconies of the local eco-warrior.

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A delegation set up to improve Finland’s international reputation today published its findings with suggestions that the country profile itself as a problem-solver focused on functionality, nature and education.

Finland, the report states, offers the world “functionality and sustainable solutions in the form of both products and services as well as a functioning society, […] its ability to negotiate so that the world can be a better place to live, […] clean water and food and related expertise, [… and] better education and teachers.”

Roope Mokka of Demos Finland, the think tank that compiled the ideas of the delegation, and prepared and wrote the report, said:

“Our approach, as far as I know, has been unique. We all know that even as countries evoke emotions and bring into mind things just like brands, they are not brands. Instead of a pure marketing operation this became a way of developing and safeguarding the country’s most valuable strengths – education, nature and functionality. Instead of a slogan we came up with a mission: Finland Solves Wicked Problems.

We decided to refrain from seeing this as a branding exercise, with campaigns, videos, posters, Finland-events and brand-guides. Instead we asked three questions what in is both strong in Finland and will sustain to be valuable in the future globally? What do we need to do in Finland to support those strengths? What do we need to do internationally to realize this value?

It became a very Finnish brand. We came up with dozens of concrete and sustainable projects that can be deployed to make our strengths visible and increase the value Finland internationally.”

The 365 page report also lays out 34 tasks for different players: ministries, companies, local governments and organizations, as well as private individuals.

Although it is sometimes quite an amusing read for non-Finns with sentences such as “Finland is already the best country in the world” (according to Newsweek apparently), “If Finland did not exist, it would have to be invented,” and “Finns are a dynamic people with their own particular kind of madness,” it is also an exceptionally serious piece of work that builds on Finland’s many unique design strengths.

Downloads:
> Full report
> Report Summary
> Objectives of the branding work
> 1. Finland – it works
> 2. Drink Finland
> 3. Finland gives you a lesson
> 4. Current state of Finland’s brand

Early media reports: Helsinki Times | ISRIA | The Swedish Wire | YLE

(Report also available in Finnish and Swedish)

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In 2008 Yves Behar, of the Fuse Project, worked with New York City’s Health Department to promote safe sex in the Big Apple. which resulted in his creation of the NYC Condom dispenser (above) along with the condom packaging (below).

To keep the condom distribution campaign fresh, the city decided to redesign the overall look of the packaging by introducing a ‘call for entries’ competition. The five finalists have been announced and voting has begun. Peruse the following and vote for your favorite.

Related Posts:
Wrap It Up
Sex Is Natural, Sex is Good
The Troublemakers
Pope Benedict XVI (Anti) Condoms

The Design Revolution Road Show is a traveling exhibition and lecture series bringing “product design that empowers” to 25 high schools and university design programs across the nation in the Spring of 2010 brought to you by Project H. To learn more on this traveling exhibition see this.