Currently, the energy that we all depend on comes almost entirely from taking ancient carbon bonds (in the form of coal, oil, and natural gas), mixing them with oxygen, and lighting them on fire.  The products of this chemical reaction are energy (heat) and green house gases emissions.  By now, we all know this is not sustainable.

The folks at the Rocky Mountain Institute — a self-described “Think-and-Do Tank” whose mission is to “drive the efficient and restorative use of resources” – believe we can find a way to avoid literally burning up our collective future.  They lay out a vision for how our market economy can drive transformative change from dirty carbon to renewables and energy efficiency:  They call it ”Reinventing Fire.”

I know, I know, “Vision…blah, blah…Policy…blah, blah, blah…” — it gets boring fast.  But it’s critically important stuff, so give this video a chance – it communicates complex issues in simple terms, has cool images to illustrate key concepts, uses great video clips of old-school carbon, and even includes some quick hits of info-graphic porn for the process nerds among us.

In my continuing fascination with small space living, I’ve lusted after the design efficiency of the 72 square foot Micro Compact Home, dreamed about on what remote patch of land I would plant an itHouse, and lingered over the pages of Tiny, a picture book of homes under 1,000 square feet. But in all those clever uses of space, I’ve never seen one that takes advantage of rotation like the Roll-It house, a project by students at the Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design [ITKE] at the University of Karlsruhe.

While I might not want to live there full time, the spinning bed-to-desk component is pretty damn cool, and something that could easily be incorporated into other small spaces. Check out more pictures, and details, at Arkinet.

(via notcot.org)

If you haven’t checked out Drea Cooper & Zackary Canepari’s project California is a Place, you should. Combining beautiful cinematography with impressive first person storytelling, it’s my new favorite profile series since the New York Times wrapped One In Eight Million last year.

For starters, check out their profile of Baybe Champ and the Original Scraperbikes, who are using bikes to create positive change in an entirely new and unexpected way on the tough streets of Oakland:

“In order to become a member of the Original Scraper Bike Team, you must: Be a resident of Oakland, CA. Be at least 7y/o or older. Retain a 3.0 Grade Point Average (GPA), Create your own Scraper Bike…(It Has To Be Amazing, Or Else You Can’t Ride.) A single-file line when riding. After 10 rides The Scraper Bike King and his Captains will decide if your bike is up to standards and if you can follow simple guidelines. After your evaluation we will consider you a member and honor you with an Original Scraper Bike Team Shirt. Only worn when Mobbin’ Stay posted to our website for all upcoming Scraper Bike Rides…” — The Scraper Bike King

Equal parts experimental architecture, sustainable sculpture, jungle gym, and live performance, Big Bambu—Mike and Doug Starns’ massive installation on the roof of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York—takes a decidedly outdoor approach to creating art.

Produced in collaboration with a group of climbers from New Paltz, NY (home of The Gunks, the Northeast’s trad-climbing shangri-la), Big Bambu is a work in progress, rising pole by pole as the climbers lash them together with nylon rope. It’s watching this progress that offers a good part of the work’s appeal: on a recent visit, when the structure stood over 30 feet tall, they sat perched in the latticework, with Central Park and the New York City skyline spread out behind them, like workers building a mid-century skyscraper.

The finished piece, as the Starn’s envision it, will take the form of a cresting wave; in progress, it looks like the bones of a kind of bamboo Bilbao Guggenheim. And while it’s no longer green in color—a month and a half of sun has bleached the shoots to a weathered tan—it’s renewable nature stands as a refreshing monument to the flexibility of sustainable materials.

For a closer look, a series of ramps and walkways allow (ticketed) visitors to climb up into the structure, which when completed is expected to measure 100 feet long, 50 feet wide and fifty feet high. Of the scale of the project, Doug says, “The reason we had to make it so big is to make all of us feel small—or at least to awaken us to the fact that individually we are not so big. Once we’re aware of our true stature we can feel a part of something much more vast than we could ever have dreamed of before.”

Following up on last week’s post on the graphic representation of data, it’s interesting to note that while we often overestimate the quantity of natural resources at our disposal, we tend to underestimate the damage that we can do to those resources.

From IfItWasMyHome.com: A scale graphic overlay of the BP oil spill over Nau's hometown of Portland, OR.

Case in point: The BP oil spill. We’ve all seen the live video streams from the well, and the photos of oil-covered pelicans. But to truly grasp the scope of this disaster, visit IfItWasMyHome.com. A simple google map mashup, it allows you to overlay a map of the oil spill over your hometown. Here in Portland, the spill would extend from Mt. Bachelor outside of Bend to beyond Mt. Rainier, and well out into the Pacific. Sobering stuff, but sometimes that’s what design is for: to give us needed perspective as we consider how to we can, and must, change.

(hat tip to Otis)

Apropos of Nau’s recently launched Travel categories (and an early shipment of bags and accessories that have favorites like the Billfold and Fluent Stash back in stock), Coolhunting pointed us to this cool design project, the Masters Thesis project of Stockholm design student Magda Lipka Falck. I’d love to get my hands on a printed copy, but from the images it seems to be a good reminder that travel doesn’t have to take us far from home: an unexpected exchange might just be waiting around the block if you know where to look. Or have the right card:

(via Coolhunting)

I didn’t make it to the desert this spring—J-Tree has long been an unchecked box on my list of climbing destinations—and now that it’s summer I’ll likely have to wait until the cooler months of fall to make my pilgrimage. In lieu of a trip, however, I’ve been keeping up with the state of the wildflowers, the blooming of cacti and the culinary delights of Joshua Tree through the musings, photos and recipes of Lily Stockman’s blog, Big Bang Studio. A painter, gleaner and trespassing wanderer, her postings veer from the raptures of avocados to re-fiberglassing a vintage camper. Worth a read.