This past week we printed some tees for our good friend Josh and his Asterisk crew in preparation for their creative get-away this weekend at Geneva. A couple of us here were able to attend and it was a beautiful mix of best practices, creative exercises and relaxation. I’m tired and energized…which is the best way to return from a retreat. A late night of sharing stories and dreams with new friends was just what the doctor ordered.
The most transforming book to come across my desk the past months has been EF Shumacher’s Small is Beautiful. Whether you’ve heard of it or not you should drop $2.99 and get your hands on a used copy. Originally published in 1973 (during the emergency crisis and the early emergence of globalization) this series of essays helped spread Schumacher’s critique of western economic thought and practice. While reading it I couldn’t help but kick myself as he’s pretty much predicted the current zeitgeist. Some excerpts:
The most striking about modern industry is that it requires so much and accomplishes so little. Modern industry seems to be inefficient to a degree that surpasses one’s ordinary powers of imagination. Its inefficiency therefore remains unnoticed.
A Buddhist economist would consider this approach excessively irrational: since consumption is merely a means to human well-being, the aim should be to obtain the maximum of well-being with the minimum of consumption…. The less toil there is, the more time and strength is left for artistic creativity. Modern economics, on the other hand, considers consumption to be the sole end and purpose of all economic activity.
Wisdom demands a new orientation of science and technology towards the organic, the gentle, the non-violent, the elegant and beautiful.
Prior to Saturday’s Global-Local Waterfest we met with Scott Rumpsa (pictured above looking dapper) and his wife regarding Aqua Clara; a clean water organization set out to development impoverished regions in a non-crippling-kinda-way. With a focus on sustainability, appropriate technology, and local ownership I’ve gotta believe EF Shumacher would be grinning in his grave. They use indigenous tools, materials, labor and (most importantly) desire to build simple containers that filter (via layers of rock and sand) up to 40 liters of safe drinking water daily. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the whole unit costs around $8 US to construct on site. Brilliant and super accessible. We were honored to design and print some tees for them, and we’re also super excited about some things in the works. Until then, head over to their website and get your learn on.
Note: the top-right design above is a shout out to Experimental Jetset. Check out their site for some context.
Poetice (poetic + justice) is the pursuit of Micah Kephart and Jason DeWaard to right the sexual injustices that have wrought havoc in Zambia and beyond. Over the last several years they’ve engaged in global conversations to bring awareness to social issues as it relates to sexuality. Currently, nearly 7,000 young people worldwide become infected with the virus every day and, according to a 2006 UNAIDS report, over half of all new HIV infections are in the 15-24-year-old age group.
Sexual oppression manifests itself differently in different contexts. In Indonesia, a major problem is sex-trafficking. In Africa, AIDS has reached pandemic proportions. In America, we feel its effects in prostitution, pornography, infidelity, rape, and causal sex.
Poetice is responding to the call to communicate a healthy view of sexuality as it relates to justice in our world. Now, more than ever, the choice to pursue wholeness is a choice to “do justice.”
Last Thursday we printed the first official Collective Tee and we couldn’t be happier with the result! Over the past couple of weeks we’ve been discussing stress and how to deal with it. One thing is for sure; not all outlets are created equal. The best solution: vent to people who love you and then make a tee. So we did.
Pressure Makes Diamonds is our response to stress; an acknowledgment that stress comes with the territory of breathing and our responses (either positive or negative) shape the quality of our character. Want one? Don’t stress…we’ve printed a few to go around, and you can snag one of your own at the store. They’re hand printed on a super soft AA V-neck 100% cotton tee.
Calling All Colors is a diversity awareness program for middle and high school students who attend conferences, learn tools for increasing appreciation of diversity in their schools and creatively collaborate to implement action plans throughout the year. A couple of students at Ambrose were able to participate in this year’s conference and/ or design some shirts for their chapters (Jovi at WO and Cam at Wavecrest). Nice work you two! For more info and a video featuring the ever-present Comic Sans in a variety of colors check this out.
NEIL HUBERT
ADAM WEILER
LISA WALCOTT
CHUCK ANDERSON
OurThreeThirty is an open exploration of the monotony and magic that happens mid-afternoon. Take a photo everyday at 3:30pm and post it here.
