Olof Kolte. TED

Here I have posted a TED video by the Swedish designer Olof Kolte. The beginning of the presentation draws light on some of the statistics we are constantly hearing from the media, private and business sectors alike, however they are communicated in a digestible way, and I note the beautiful and concise info-graphics used. The facts are horrifying, and no matter how they are delivered, we are left feeling a little sheepish at our naivety towards our over consumption of resources, namely fossil fuels. (And that is an entirely other topic altogether. Kolte gradually moves towards the best part of the presentation. He talks, and illustrates again with some beautiful info-graphics, some of the ways that we can reduce our carbon footprint, and how it will be beneficial in more than just the most obvious way (imminent death and destruction of the world from climate change, duh!). He uses examples of infrastructure already in place in major cities, the kind that was integrated into the planning of a city before motor cars existed. He uses examples of closed loop packaging platforms already in place. He shows us examples of the beauty that we could surround ourselves with in the future. Imagine a CBD where the noise of a motorcar was out of place! It's things like this that get me so excited for the future. The challenges that lie ahead of us are some of the greatest we have ever had to face as the collective of humanity. However, the fruits of our labour will be the most rewarding.
Kolte is one of a number of identities who are doing the important job of educating us about where we stand, and what we can do to make the future a magnificent place. The video goes for 20 minutes but it is very enlightening and I urge you to watch it. Enjoy :)