You’ve probably read about Nest by now, but if you haven’t, check them out. It’s not everyday something so ordinary and taken for granted gets an intuitive, well-designed and urgently needed overhaul (even though nobody really realized the need for it). Nest tells us that our thermostats control up to 50% of our energy bill, so why have we waited so long? Check out more about why they made it.

The Nest is a “learning thermostat,” designed to be easy to use and save money by programming itself, letting you manage it from the cloud,  and giving you tons of info and feedback to help you learn how to save even more. It’s good for the planet, and it’s good for your wallet. And it’s great design. Win-win-win.

We bought one for the office, and are excited to see how/if it transforms our energy usage. Watch for updates!

What’s an everyday product you think is in dire need of a redesign? Let us know in the comments.

It’s hard to believe it’s been over four years since our very first Green 2.9 post. Since then, we’ve implemented various (successful and not-so-successful at times) strategies in our effort to be as responsible as we know how when it comes to environment, social, and financial sustainability. We believe that these three arenas work together to form a complete view of what it means to be a sustainable company that contributes to the continued good of our world – both now and in the future. And we know that we’ve just begun to scratch the surface.

A small forest, a few swimming pools, and energy to spare…

2011 was a good green year for us. As you can see in the graph above, we met or exceeded nearly all the goals we set (with the exception of  aluminum cans recycled, but that’s because we drank even less soda this year, so we’ll toast to good health on that failed goal). We recycled more than we ever have this year. Our paper usage for printed projects was way up due to some large projects at the end of the year that used 100% post consumer recycled content paper. We made a few calculations based on the savings from those projects. When compared to using 100% virgin fiber paper, we saved …

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What is it about graphic design that moves us and drives us?  The image above says it all: design ignites change.

But how has design itself changed over the past decade? “Graphic design has broadened its reach dramatically over the past decade,” which has become the basis of an international exhibition on display at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, MN until January 2012: Graphic Design: Now In Production.

The exhibit examined the growing cultural role in mainstream design and the designer’s expanding role in content creation as well as in bridging the gap across once exclusive fields and roles, such as typeface design, product design, animation, and more. Read the rest of the entry >

We all have times in our careers when we are driven by excitement and passion, and we all have times when work becomes a little more mundane. What is it that makes the difference?

All of us can admit to feeling the ebb and flow of this spectrum. When we took our first steps out of college campuses and into our first gigs, our new careers were (somewhat frightening) combinations of lack of experience and fearless desire to change the world. A few years into it though, and maybe the world isn’t much better yet for all the experience we’ve put in. Or maybe the day-in and day-out is getting under our skin a bit. Certain projects bring back the twinge of excitement we felt at first. Others may not. This is fine so long as they balance each other out.

However, if the “other” types of projects are winning the battle and leaving you feeling a little burnt out, I have a question for you. This question has helped me during these times.

Do you believe in what you do?

This isn’t the type of question you ask yourself when you have 30 seconds or so to think about it. It’s a gloves-off type of question between you and your heart. Between you and your college self who dreamed the dreams that resulted in where you are today.

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