Public Transit// Research

Out of all the projects and programs we researched, Baltimore Collegetown probably comes closest to what we want to achieve in terms of objectives.  On the other hand, if it was "working" there wouldn't be a need for our public transit project, and we feel that there is.

The Guardian// 12/8/11

They say lightening doesn't strike the same place twice, but unfortunately it seems there's been another shooting at Virginia Tech.  Hard to believe the school that faced the largest massacre in modern US history just a few years ago is dealing with another shooting today.

Vlad's at it again- this time Putin is accusing Hillary Clinton of essentially causing the protests against the widespread electoral fraud in Russia.  Yeah, because her expressing concern over violation of human rights is what caused the protests, not, you know, the fraud...

The Guardian// 11/29/11

Yesterday Iranian protestors stormed the British embassy in Iran.  It took a while for the article to get to the reason the protestors were so angry, but it turns out it's because these protestors want to flout the UN regulations and create nuclear weapons.  The British, of course, oppose this.  I've always been a little fuzzy on how the UN is able to essentially say to countries, "We don't think you're responsible enough to have nuclear weapons so we're just not going to let you have them even though other countries do."  I mean I get WHY and obviously I don't want Iran to have nuclear weapons, but how does the UN really defend these decisions without deeply offending these countries?

The seventeen-year-old blogger above took on a Houston clinic that was using unproven techniques to "treat" cancer and charging thousands of dollars for it.  Perhaps even more tellingly, the Guardian than ran a story on it.  It really speaks to the power of the internet that a blogger still in high school can make international news.

Occupy Towson Forum

I whipped up this flyer for this week's upcoming Occupy Towson forum! I wish I could be there, but I have class and really can't afford to miss it.  Check out the facebook event here for more details.

New York Times// 11/19/11

I found the NY Times article on Elizabeth Warren to be very on point.  I'm definitely one of the fan girls mentioned by the author.  This woman is great- she's all about consumer protection and is extremely coherent to boot.  Right now she's running for the Senate, but I'd love to see her as a presidential candidate in years to come.

It's hard to believe this is even a debate.  There is a currently a push to broaden the exemption for contraceptive coverage in healthcare.  This would mean that many religious institutions, even ones that are only nominally Catholic, like hospitals, could refuse to cover birth control for their employees.  This kind of thing makes me so angry.  IT'S BIRTH CONTROL, I mean seriously, EVERYONE uses birth control.  I know a handful of extremely Catholic women who don't, but they are a tiny minority.  The vast majority of people, and even the vast majority of Catholics, use birth control.  Do we seriously want everyone having ten kids? It's all well and good if that's truly what you want and you can both emotionally and financially provide for these children, but most Americans can't.  Not to mention how many children are languishing in foster care systems and orphanages across the world.  I firmly believe that even if you do want a lot of children, adoption is the way to go.  Anyway, side rant, but the fact that this is even a discussion is ridiculous.  What is this, the 1950's?

Occupy Black Friday

I LOVE this.  Some people might argue that we need to support corporations through shopping because they provide so many jobs.  But small businesses and independent shops provide jobs too, plus the money goes back into your own local economy.  Small businesses also have more invested in the community, and are more likely to stick around even during hard times, as long as the community has their backs.  We don't need to baby corporations... we have the control... vote with your wallet and avoid corrupt corporations this Black Friday!

The Maples

As part of Rebekah and I's Intergenerational Relations Project, we organized an arts and crafts activity at The Maples, a senior living center in Towson.  Due to the weather and everyone's busy schedules, we weren't able to get a ton of people to attend.  However, our friend and fellow IOD major Steph joined us, as well as three community service doers from Calvert Hall Highschool, and of course the lovely residents of The Maples.

At the advice of the Activities Director, we chose a simple project that wouldn't require too much coordination but would allow for some creativity.  At first many of the participants were nervous to get started, but with some encouragement and chatting they all made some really cute and quirky pumpkins.

I was actually really impressed with how well the highschool boys interacted with the older adults.  While I heard them talking about which party got busted over the weekend while washing their hands in the other room, they were very polite, considerate, and encouraging when working with the residents.

We had a great time and the residents all told us that they did too! They want us to come back again and we certainly plan on doing so.  Check out more photos from the event here.

The Guardian// 10/30/2011

The debacle over veteran Scott Olsen's treatment (he was in critical condition on Thursday) by the police during the raid on Occupy Oakland rages on.  The mayor, Jean Quan, has now publicly apologized and has said that she hopes the movement and the city can work together.  Not to be overly cynical, but tear gas and rubber bullets aren't usually a good catalyst for "working together."  The photos from the raid are pretty brutal, which were circulated on the internet almost immediately.  As usual, The Guardian is providing much better coverage of the event than most US news sources.  Read the article here.

More people die every year due to the transmission of diseases through reused syringes than malaria.  From a design standpoint, this should be an easy enough problem to solve.  Marc Koska is leading the way with his auto-disable syringe.  The Guardian article includes a video about how the syringe works.  Essentially, from what I can tell, if someone were to try to reset the syringe by pulling back the "trigger," it simply breaks off.

The World is Flat: Ch. 1: While I Was Sleeping

Chapter One of Thomas Friedman's massive The World is Flat details the world of outsourcing as he himself discovers it.  This included plenty of things I didn't know and had never thought about.  Friedman focused mainly on Bangalore, India.  He claims that the majority of those performing the outsourced jobs are highly motivated and educated.  While the pay they receive would seem insubstantial in the United States, in India it provides them with a better living than many other jobs could provide.  Most people know from personal experience that many customer service lines are staffed by  Indians, but Friedman brings up several other jobs that are now outsourced.  One surprising example was fast food order-takers.  It's now possible for someone in an entirely different location to take your order, and incredibly, this seems to be more efficient than the traditional approach.  Also in Chapter One, Friedman introduces his theory of Globalizations 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0, respectively.  Globalization 1.0 was the globalization of nations, 2.0 that of corporations, and 3.0, our current era, that of individuals.  This latest stage is largely due to the personal computer.  At this point, the author remains fairly neutral.  He does not establish whether he believes Globalization 3.0 to be "good" or "bad," but rather maintains that is is "inevitable and unavoidable."

In terms of the writing, The World is Flat is readable without pretending to be something it's not.  It is very clearly about delivering information, not entertainment, but it does so in an engaging manner.

Der Spiegel// 10/19/11

Gilad Shalit's return to Israel after being held by Hamas for five and a half years is huge news for Israelis and Jews across the world.  As a member of the Jewish community, I always found the fixation on Shalit a bit odd.  He was prayed for often, almost dutifully, as regularly as "peace in the world" and "souls in purgatory" are prayed for at my family's Catholic dinner table.  I suppose it sounds cold to suggest that one Israeli soldier might not be a fair trade for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners.  Some of these prisoners undoubtedly deserve to be freed, but others have committed serious crimes, including murder and terrorist attacks.  Read Der Spiegel's account here.

DP2// Research

Temple University has an intergenerational center with programs and resources aimed at "connecting generations to strengthen communities." Here's the site.

I found an article here about an art program for both seniors and a kids' club.

A poster for an intergenerational learning project at DCU.  A group blog written by the participants of the program can be found here.

Turns out we just missed Intergenerational Day/Week but the site still has some helpful information.

Generations United 's mission is "to improve the lives of children youth and older people through intergenerational collaboration, public policies, and programs for the enduring benefit for all." 

Last week at Occupy DC I encountered an awesome group called the Raging Grannies.  Upon doing more research, I've discovered that the Raging Grannies are a well-organized group with chapters across the world.  They even have a tumblr! Here's a video of a South Florida group singing a song they wrote about CBS:

I don't know how this relates to our project exactly, but I know that these ladies are awesome and inspiring!

greed is a bottomless pit

I posted this photo from Do Good Design on my tumblr and it promptly got 117 notes.  I think the message is particularly culturally relevant right now given the Occupy protests.  And of course, it did come from Conor Oberst's mouth...

Urban Outfitters and Cultural Appropriation

I keep meaning to make a Top Ten Reasons To Take Your Business Elsewhere about Urban Outfitters, but unfortunately my full class load/three jobs/desire to sleep occasionally has kept me from doing so.  In the meantime, here's a letter to UO's CEO about cultural appropriation:

Dear Glen T. Senk, CEO Urban Outfitters Inc.:

This past weekend, I had the unfortunate experience of visiting a local Urban Outfitters store in Minneapolis. It appeared as though the recording “artist” Ke$ha had violently exploded in the store, leaving behind a cheap, vulgar and culturally offensive retail collection. Plastic dreamcatchers wrapped in pleather hung next to an indistinguishable mass of artificial feather jewelry and hyper sexualized clothing featuring an abundance of suede, fringe and inauthentic tribal patterns.

In all seriousness, as a Native American woman, I am deeply distressed by your company’s mass marketed collection of distasteful and racially demeaning apparel and décor. I take personal offense to the blatant racism and perverted cultural appropriation your store features this season as “fashion.”

All too often industries, sports teams and ignorant individuals legitimize racism under the guise of cultural “appreciation”. There is nothing honorable or historically appreciative in selling items such as the Navajo Print Fabric Wrapped Flask, Peace Treaty Feather Necklace, Staring at Stars Skull Native Headdress T-shirt or the Navajo Hipster Panty. These and the dozens of other tacky products you are currently selling referencing Native America make a mockery of our identity and unique cultures.

Your corporate website claims to “offer a lifestyle-specific shopping experience for the educated, urban-minded individual”. If this is the case, then clearly you have missed the mark on your target demographic. There is simply nothing educated about your collection, which on the contrary professes extreme ignorance and bigotry.

My primary concern with your company is the level on which you are engaging in cultural and religious appropriation. None of your products are actually made by Indigenous nations, nor were any Native peoples involved in the production or design process. On the contrary, you have created cheap knock-off trinkets made in factories overseas. Selling imported plastic and nylon dreamcatchers disrespects our history and undermines our sovereignty as Tribal Nations.

Did I mention that marketing inauthentic products using Native American tribal names is also illegal? The company’s actions violate the Federal Indian Arts and Crafts act of 1990 and the Federal Trade Commission Act. According to the Department of the Interior:

“The Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-644) is a truth-in-advertising law that prohibits misrepresentation in marketing of Indian arts and crafts products within the United States. It is illegal to offer or display for sale, or sell any art or craft product in a manner that falsely suggests it is Indian produced, an Indian product, or the product of a particular Indian or Indian Tribe or Indian arts and crafts organization, resident within the United States. If a business violates the Act, it can face civil penalties or can be prosecuted and fined up to $1,000,000”.

I doubt that you consulted the Navajo Nation about using their tribal name on sophisticated items such as the “Navajo Hipster Panty”. In fact, I recently became aware that the Navajo Nation Attorney General sent your company a cease and desist letter regarding this very issue. I stand in solidarity with the Navajo Nation and ask that you not only cease and desist selling products falsely using the Navajo name, but that you also stop selling faux Indian apparel that cheapens our culture and heritage.

Urban Outfitters Inc. has taken Indigenous life ways and artistic expressions and trivialized and sexualized them for the sake of corporate profit. Your company also perpetuates the worst stereotype of Indians. This is theft of our very cultural identity, no less so than the theft of our traditional homelands that began with Columbus’ “discovery” of the Americas. On this day that America still celebrates as Columbus Day, I ask that do what is morally right and apologize to Indigenous peoples of North America and withdraw this offensive line from retail stores.

Sincerely.

Sasha Houston Brown, Dakota
Santee Sioux Nation

source

Well, I think she pretty much covered it! I'd like to add that a quick search for the word 'navajo' on the UO website reveals 22 items.  

The Guardian// 10/8/2011

This article explores how Amanda Knox's facial expressions and general demeanor influenced the public's perception her.  More important than this individual case are the ways we generalize people different from ourselves.  As the article says, "An inclination to oversimplify the minds and motivations of others lies at the root of sexism and racism, and all forms of inter-group conflict, violent and benign."

Interestingly, it's the Tea Party that's embarrassed to be compared to the Occupy Wall Street protests, when really it should be the other way around.  Since when is being like the Tea Party a claim to legitimacy?  OWS protesters should be insulted by the comparison.  Read The Guardian's article on the subject here.  

DP2// The Beginning

I have a couple ideas for my second design project, but the idea I'm currently most excited about is making my Stitch 'n Bitch group an intergenerational club.  I've been planning on trying to have at least one knitting meeting at an assisted living or nursing home for a while now, so I went ahead and e-mailed The Maples, an assisted living community in Towson.

Hello!

My name's Sarah Forst and I'm a student at Towson University.  I am part of a knitting and crochet club made up largely of Towson students that meets on a weekly basis.  We would love to host a meeting at The Maples of Towson sometime.  We would love to meet some knitters of a different generation, and we think that we could learn a lot from them, and hopefully vice versa! If this is a possibility and something you think the residents would enjoy, please let me know how I might go about setting up such a meeting.  If I don't hear back in a few days I will give The Maples a call.  Thanks for your time!

Sincerely,

Sarah Forst
sarahbforst@gmail.com

Hopefully I'll hear back soon and I can get the ball rolling!

The Guardian// 10/4/2011

This article in the The Guardian examines the anti-intellectualism championed by Michele Bachmann and other Republican candidates, and the roots from whence it came.  I think some people may brush off Bachmann and the like based purely on individual issues, or else dismiss her as "crazy" and be done with it.  I won't argue with calling the woman crazy, but a closer look proves there's a sort of method to the madness, one which many Americans undoubtedly identify with.

Reading about Obama's incompetence and impotence over the last four years leaves me feeling extremely frustrated.  It's not that I'm that attached to the guy, but with the top Republican candidates being so extremist, I don't really have a choice of who to vote for.  I mean, I voted for Ralph Nader last election, and given my state's tendency to go Democrat every year regardless of my own vote, I'll probably be writing in Nader if he doesn't make it on the ballot.  Still, I'd like to be able to fully support a candidate that actually has a chance of making it to the White House.

Good Job Bag// Guerilla Tactics Project

Part One: Raising Awareness

To raise awareness about reusable bags before I distributed the bags themselves, I used wheat paste to put up mini-posters all around the shopping center I would be distributing the bags in.  I enlisted the help of my friend Greg so I could document the work, as well as make a quick getaway if necessary.

Part Two: Providing the Means

Making the Bags: I made several prototypes of a reusable shopping bag before coming up with the final design.  I drew from my experiences with other reusable bags, and I also dissected several types of plastic bags.  I also asked my friends/followers on social media to let me know what would make them more likely to use a reusable bag, so I could incorporate those features.

Distributing the Bags: I distributed the bags in the parking lot of the shopping center where I had put up the mini-posters.  It was actually way more nerve-wracking than I anticipated.  I cruised the parking lot for cars parked in such a way that I could pull up right next to the car and be facing the other car's driver's side door.  I gently tied each bag to a different car's door handle, hoping I wouldn't set off an alarm!

Part Three: Interacting and Encouraging

In order to engage the community and encourage the use of reusable bags (both the ones I distributed and otherwise), I created a blog and a twitter account to disseminate information about plastic and reusable bags.  I also asked the recipients of the bags to tweet pictures of themselves to @goodjobbag.

additional project material:
creative caffeine
issue editorial
regular reading/social issues
prezi presentation

Occupy Wall Street

photo source

Occupy Wall Street, the protest seemingly initiated by Adbusters, is blowing up the blogosphere, though not the mainstream news.  The following video, of several female protestors being maced, is one of the most widely circulated:

You can also watch a livestream of the protests here.

Der Spiegel// 9/23/11

France's burqa ban went into effect months ago, but the first fines are just now being levied for violation of the law.  I find the ban deeply disturbing, and ethically on about the same level of actually requiring women to wear burqas.  While I certainly understand the reasoning behind the law, which is supposedly to keep women from being forced by men to wear such "backward" dress, it is also blatantly discriminatory.  Read more about it here.

In a slight change of pace from my normal worldly reportings: some good news! This article details how Munich's Oktoberfest became a magnet for the gay community.  The fact that gays from around the world are able to gather in a traditionally conservative region without backlash (at least to my knowledge) is great.  I initially clicked on this article because last year I went to Oktoberfest... in Peru.  It was a very strange experience, including guinea pigs (a Peruvian national dish called cuy) dressed up in lederhosen.  Anyway, gay rights aside, I find it interesting that such a specifically German event can be converted to so many different themes.

The Guardian// 9/20/11

A large-ish part of me is looking forward to the day when we just run out of oil and all the gas companies are forced out of business.  The more rational part of me is aware that running out of oil could spark world war and everything could just get real awful real fast; it's just difficult not to desire some sort of punishment for all the gas companies that get away with so much.  This article describes a still open case over Chevron's pollution of the Amazon rainforest- in the 1970s and 80s!  The most recent development is bad news for Chevron, but I'm appalled that pollution that was done over thirty years ago has still gone unpunished and uncorrected.

It seems as if Troy Davis will be executed tomorrow, despite much evidence pointing to Davis's innocence, or at least showing that the case is deeply flawed.  I am firmly against the death penalty (as previously discussed!), and to me, this case represents a lot of what is wrong with the capital punishment system.  What is his death going to achieve?  If it is possible to keep a criminal safely away from the rest of the population, I see no reason for capital punishment, especially when there is a question of the individual's guilt.

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What's the Issue?// Plastic Bags

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Plastic bags- they're convenient, they're everywhere, and everyone knows why they're bad.  Over one million bags are used every MINUTE.  Every minute! (source)  Over 100,000 marine animals die every year due to these suckers.  12,000,000 barrels of oil are used to produce the plastic bags each year for the U.S. alone.  Then, they take between 400 and 1,000 years to decompose.  (source)  They are the worst, and everyone knows it.  It seems like every store you walk into is selling a reusable bag, from Trader Joe's to Michael's.  Still, the problem persists.  Even people who are cognizant of the problem still find that they end up with one of these dolphin-killers fairly frequently.  So what's the solution? Ultimately, I think it will take charging people for plastic bags or eliminating them from stores altogether to drastically reduce their use.  In the meantime though, using your own reusable bag is a great way to eliminate your own role in the plastic bag disaster, and it can also remind others to do the same.  Through my guerilla project, I hope to provide a reusable bag that's convenient, sturdy, and rewarding to use.

New York Times// 9/14/11

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The latest report on last year's BP oil disaster was released last week, and found that BP took many "shortcuts", which ultimately led to the spill and the ensuing environmental disaster.  I'm just filled with so much sadness about the spill and all the lives that were affected.  Even with the best clean-up, the results will still be devastating for years to come.  Full report can be found here.

A rape case against the single richest man in the Arab world was recently reopened.  The case was originally closed back in July 2010 due to supposed lack of evidence.  However, tests confirmed that the victim had traces of both semen and a sleep-inducing chemical in her system.  As the semen has not been tested as to whether it is Price Alwaleed's or not, I can't see how there is a "lack of evidence" The article goes on to say that Alwaleed in general is outspoken about opportunities for women.  I almost feel like stating this undermines the idea that he could be guilty.  Why not just let the DNA test decide?

Reusable Bag Prototype

Just finished whipping up a reusable bag prototype.  It's made out of upcycled cotton and has reinforced seams and handles.  The bag can be folded up inside the inner pocket when not in use, and then seals with velcro.

Creative Caffeine// Guerilla Project

For my "creative caffeine" for the guerilla project, I asked on a number of social media sites what would make my friends/followers more likely to use a reusable bag.

I found everyone's responses to be really helpful.  I had previously thought of just making a very simple, plain bag that could be produced quickly and easily.  Since folding-up in some way seems to be a major concern, I'm now thinking of incorporating a snap or perhaps a way for it to be packed up into a smaller bag.  Jimmy's statement about the bags getting dirty made me want to stick with using cotton for the material, as it can be easily washed (and is also ultimately biodegradable, I think).  My sister Colleen's comment about the cookie made me laugh- that's a very "Colleen" thing to say.  It gave me the idea of maybe stenciling the phrase "GOOD JOB" on some of the bags though- just a nice reminder to the user that they're doing something good.  "Likebear"'s comment about the ugly designs of many reusable bags made me want to make something cute, but simple.

Everyone's responses have definitely encouraged me to get designing and sewing!