So one day I discover this Conference called TED. The best minds in the one room. Awesome, how cool would it be to be there one day. Then TED start releasing videos of the talks, and to this day one of my favourites is still the acceptance speech by Cameron Sinclair. You see every year TED gives away 3 prizes in the form of wishes. Like the genie in the bottle TED tries to grant the wishes of 3 of these great minds, by asking the other great minds in the room to help. It is an amazing format. Truly inspiring.
Cameron’s Wish:
I wish to create a community that actively embraces open source design to generate innovative and sustainable living standards for all.
Simple plan. One big online database of the architectural ideas that they have been implementing over the years. Emergency accommodation, many innovations, but here is the genius. He wants all the designs to be released under what is called the Creative Commons Developing Nations Licence. Which is in simple terms this: The design is free to use to what ever capacity, money making or not in a developing nation as it is deamed by the creative Commons. But to use the design in a developed nation you would have to approach the designer under normal copyright laws. It protects the designer but allows for progress at the same time.
Cameron’s wish is coming true. The Open Architecture Network is now in beta stage. Never ever believe anyone when they say that one man cannot change the world. This guy is changing the world faster than you can say world changing. And if you are not so sure that he did it one his own, check out the story in the front of their book, Design like you give a Damn. It has a little story about just how small Cameron’s little operation was.
I urge you to watch Cameron’s speech. His inspiring story is on a level that is challenging.
Well I guess this was only just around the corner. Starting on SBS at 7:30pm the 11th of April. Eco House Challenge.
I have talked about the worldchanging.com website before. It is well worth reading especially if you are feed up with all the negative media that gets about.
They now have a coffee table book of all the very cool things they have written about over the years. If you are interested you can get/order a copy through Cherry Blossom Bookstore. If you want to get a feel for what worldchanging.com is all about see the awesome interview that was in the Feb 07 issue of map magazine. Read it here.
If you like those Nutrient Water drinks we have them in at the moment to see how they go. My favourite is the Cranberry and Grapefruit. I think it is grapefruit. We also have the Passionfruit one. So, get into ‘em!
Just a quick note to let those that may not know, but would like to know such things, that everyday we get the Sydney Morning Herald. In addition to the Financial Review, The Australian, and The Courier Mail. Yes they are listed in order of preference/quality.
Just having a thought, are there any environmental painters, you know claiming to use more environmentally friendly paints? This Pollock guy had good idea for environmentally friendly art. But seriously, Crystal sent this one in, it’s fun. Thanks.
…introducing the Urban Grind Dashboard widget. If you are an Apple user you may have just said, “Cool, how did he do that?” but if you are not an Apple user readying on still has a thank you from me to the Urban Grind girls. So, when you are sick you can only sleep for so long and watch only so many movies before you have to make an RSS Widget.
First, I want to thank the girls for keeping the shop going while I was so sick. Especially Crystal, who kept the doors open and the coffee flowing when we otherwise would have been closed due to my sickness. She has really put in a huge effort and showed her commitment to Urban Grind and it’s community. Thank You Crystal!
Ok, back to geek stuff. Download the widget here. If you have not discovered Dashboard yet, in a few clicks you will have. You could even make your own widgets using dashcode, but note, watching this video first, is a massive help. Have fun!
On the 31st of this month an even is happening that aims to see if we can’t light up a few of those stars in the sky, and save a bit of energy while we do it. Brisbane has not officially signed on, but if we all get together to be apart of the event then we don’t need the city council to do it for us. Incidentally, we could meet the Kyoto protocols in this way if thought like this.
I signed on, and Urban Grind’s lights will be off. Be nice to see the stars.
Get all the details here: Natural Innovation Blog
Thanks to mecu we now have some green takeaway coffee cups. The cups are made from recycled paper and are 100% biodegradable. They are great to use, and the lids fit perfectly, no spills yet. At the moment it is just a temporary thing we are doing with mecu, but I am looking into getting our own cups made up asap. I have been looking for cups like this since I first opened Urban Grind. And before you get upset about advertising on your cup, mecu is a different bank. They give you better interest rates on home and car loans if you choose greener versions of such. So if you were thinking of buying a toyota prius, you might want to think about contacting mecu. Thanks also to the map village street editors for tipping us off on the cups, and to Zenstick Photography for the most excellent picture.
