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“F*** sustainability. I just want a bed.”

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Dear Readers,

The Mili-Tent is a bust.

On May 1, 2008, I moved into a tent in the woods within Pittsburgh, PA. It was in my mind an easy solution to a complicated problem: that of how to dwell sustainably.

Without the time nor interest in building a more permanent shelter, I figured a reused item (like a good old tent) would do the trick. A tent fulfills several principles of sustainable living:

• Reduce the size you take up. A 6′ x 7′ tent is the perfect example of how humans can downsize, leaving more space for other living creatures and ecosystems.
• Get outside more. Living in such a small space, that can truly only accommodate sleeping, requires that I step outside more, and consider the outside world and my community interactions more like “home” than my own four walls.
• Use sustainable materials. Naturally, a synthetic, petroleum based tent is NOT sustainably produced… but working with what you have on hand, and bringing no new materials into the world is a good option.

In retrospect, my ideal dwelling would be a small den, similar in size to a tent, constructed out of cob or another type of sustainable building material. This would have prevented the issues that proved fatal to the tent as a home alternative… but it would have meant a greater time and financial commitment.

In my early drafts of scripts for Sust Enable episodes, I was all set to trumpet the virtues and benefits of living in a tent. It’s not so hard!, my scripts said. I’m living an optimal, comfortable life! …The words ended up being far too ironic to even be funny. I suppose that’s what happens when you translate vision into reality sometimes. My lesson, however unflattering to me, is an important one to share.

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350.org is spreading the word far and wide about the importance of the number 350 and you can help! Together with Craftster, Etsy, Craft Magazine, Burda Style and Thrifty Fun — 350.org has launched the Creativity 350 partnership and contest to draw creative energy and attention to 350.org’s goal of reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide to 350 parts per million to stave off dangerous climate change.

The contest is in two parts; a 350-themed craft contest and a 350-themed T-shirt design contest. For the craft contest, you are invited to craft any project that creatively expresses the importance of the number 350, using any crafting technique. For the T-shirt contest, you may create an original T-shirt design that creatively expresses the importance of the number 350.

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Here is my deeper perception on additional “call for entries” situations:

What I have found is that when a corporate product manufacturing company has a call for entries, they are seeking new ideas. Sometimes ideas perpetuate in a work situation, and it becomes difficult to think as far out of the box as some younger creatives do. Electrolux is an international home appliances and equipment company. Each year their Design lab runs a competition for industrial design students working towards their undergraduate or graduate degrees (so this one isn’t for everyone but its still interesting). While “innovative ideas for household appliances of the future” is the mainstay, sustainability is this year’s theme. Students are asked to create eco-friendly, sustainable household appliances and solutions for 2020. If you are a student, check it out. The deadline is July 31. For the rest of you, finalists will be announced October 1.

When a foundation posts a call-for-entries, it is often based on a desire to generate the inspiration of the organization’s namesake in a new generation, and to allow the his/her spirit to live on. Each year, the distinguished jury of the Buckminster Fuller Challenge awards a large sum to “support the development and implementation of a solution that has significant potential to solve humanity’s most pressing problems in the shortest possible time while enhancing the Earth’s ecological integrity.” This year’s competition honors Fuller’s a"nticipatory design science method": the idea of doing more with less. The Challenge seeks “design science solutions within a broad range of human endeavor that exemplify the trim tab principle. Trim tabs demonstrate how small amounts of energy and resources precisely applied at the right time and place can produce maximum advantageous change.” The entry period is September 4 – October 30, so you have a little time to think about this one. On the other hand, a sustainable solution cannot be left until the last moment to be completed. So get to work.

My third example is similar to one of last week, but this one is still open for entries. RE:VISION is a complete competition network that seeks to highlight great ideas about to explode, but that don’t yet have a venue to do so. Stacey Frost, founder of RE:VISION, wanted to create a place where these “ideas are put into action, supported and encouraged by a diverse group of people dedicated to making WHAT IF, WHAT IS.” Stacey believes that with each individual’s unique perspective combined with ideas, energy, and resources we can really generate change.

The current competition RE:ROUTE is a call for new urban transportation systems thinking. “We need to enhance and revitalize our areas, changing them from a bunch of buildings into a community. How can we move people cars, services, or goods through a neighborhood.” The competition seeks to generate new and creative ideas for urban transportation that start 4 steps back from the base and stop for a breath of fresh air 100 steps ahead of where we are in 2007. The competitions closes August 15 but the requirements are minimal. If you have an idea, get on the “wagon” and redesign it.

For more information these are the sites I consult for new competition posts:
Core77

American Society of Interior Designers