Today is Earth Day 2013, and we are so happy that our whole team has made it through the most recent round of events, with heavy rains causing flooding in Chicagoland! We pray that everyone is safe and sound and back to normal.

This year the theme of Earth Day is climate change, and after this past week’s rainfall, we all now know firsthand that Mother Nature is a beast and we need to take extra good care of her! Not that we could ever stop the flooding or whatever natural disaster she sends our way, but there are things we’re doing that certainly are not helping.

This past year the earth marked many milestones regarding climate change. 2012 was marked as the hottest, most extreme year in United States’ history and then marked the hottest year the entire planet had ever experienced! Extreme weather events are now the “norm.” Here in the United States, we went from historic flooding in 2011 to devastating drought in 2012. Those droughts helped fuel wildfires that consumed tens and thousands of acres across the West.

Most of us had never heard of the word “Derecho” until 2012. It’s derived from a Spanish word meaning “straight ahead,” and that storm system covered more than 700 miles—knocking out power to more than 4 million customers in the United States. The winds were clocked at more than 90 mph, killing at least twenty-four people in seven states, and leaving many without power for days in the midst of the hottest stretch of the summer.

Storms rocked the Caribbean, the Philippines and the northeastern US with Hurricane Sandy being ranked the most deadliest and most destructive tropical cyclone of the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season. The most troubling climate malfunction was the melting at the tops of the world, with the Summer Sea ice in the Arctic shrinking to 18 percent below the previous record low. The Arctic Sea covered an all-time record low, with a high-water mark in a long-term decline. Solar flares hit earth—which hadn’t happened in six years. Suddenly there was talk about space weather, something that most of us have never even heard of or thought about. In Greenland 97 percent of the surface ice sheet experienced melting. Read the rest of the entry >

It’s important to stay on top of all the latest green news,and it’s really interesting, too. For instance, the Mafia’s involvement in renewable energy in Italy (we are always interested in Mafia stories, especially after The Sopranos went off the air), or Fracking, or sadly, the glaciers that are melting at such a speed in the tropical Andes that they threatening all the freshwater supplies in Peru and Bolivia.Or how about the artist in New York (who also just happens to be a biologist) that cultivated bacteria from the industrial and human waste that has been stewing for decades in some of that city’s most famous waterways: Gowanus Canal, Newton Creek, the Hudson and East rivers, and the Dead Horse Bay. She extracted mud and water samples and pureed them into steel and glass fixtures—which thus began her series of paintings.

Read the rest of the entry >

One of my passions outside of graphic design is origami and the art of paper folding. It’s a nice way to pass the time, challenge my brain, and the resulting product (if you’ve followed the folding instructions correctly) can turn into a nice little decoration for your home, or even just a small gift for someone else as a friendly gesture. Just this year, I have finally been struck with the idea to integrate graphic design and origami together. The discovery of bringing these two passions of mine together was prompted by a package design class I took this year and has turned into a rewarding way to channel my efforts to do good in the world. It’s my way of becoming an eco-friendly graphic designer.

Applying my paper folding interest to creating well structured, sustainable packaging for school projects wasn’t exactly an easy or a smooth translation from one to the other. I had found myself going from merely following origami instruction booklets, to inventing my own “instructions,” dielines, and fold-lines for packaging projects. With lots of persistence, dozens of packaging prototypes, several Exacto knife wounds, and paper cuts later, I started to get the hang of the process. Although creating some super well thought out, never-been-seen-before dieline wasn’t exactly required for passing the class, I made it required for myself to learn, or at least try. It was not only important to me that I did well, what was more important was how much I could apply myself so that I could hopefully influence others to try as hard as I had. As I learned the ropes of creating my own dielines I also began to understand the importance of sustainable packaging in being eco-friendly and how I could make a difference.

Something that was and is very helpful to me is a book called Folding Techniques For Designers From Sheet To Form by Paul Jackson. From ornate and geometric to extremely simple and even organic, the book covers over 70 techniques designers can put in their toolboxes. These techniques present endless possibilities when applied to packaging design. Here are a few images (after the jump), that were taken by Meidad Suchowolski: Read the rest of the entry >

We all know that there are good things and bad things about our increasing intertwinement with technology. But what effect does it have on us as designers and our creativity?

While we’re not sure on how technology directly affects creativity, one thing is being proven over and over again: unplugging and exploring nature will increase your creativity. Three articles released just this week outlining the benefits (1, 2, 3). One study showed that creativity peaked after about three days of being unplugged and experiencing the natural world. Being in nature has other benefits, as well: reducing stress, increasing concentration, and invigorating energy.

The definition of creativity involves newness, originality, progressiveness, and imagination. Maybe the constant growth in nature, and its ability to continually re-create itself is what subconsciously infuses humans with a boost of our own creativity. Whatever it is, take advantage of it!

You might not have a nature preserve just outside of your office, so until you are able to take a three day weekend in the woods, here are a few ideas to bring nature into your everyday life for a creative boost:

• open the windows
• sketch in a nearby park – to find a park near you, try this app
• start a desk garden – try this or this if you’re new to gardening!
• take a walk at lunch
• don’t let rain get in your way – check out these umbrellas

When all else fails, if you’re stuck on your next big project, just go outside.

How have you noticed nature boost your creativity?

It’s been awhile since we have posted a green post. It’s really not from a lack of ideas, but more of which ones to post. Then we watched this video this week and thought how much better can it get? It’s a Ted Talk that’s informative, 5 minutes long, and includes some rules to live by. Enjoy – and don’t forget to shake and fold!