Pentagram partner Naresh Ramchandani attacks the Oscars with brilliant relaunch of Do The Green Thing charity.
If only they drove Teslas in Jurassic World, everything would have been fine
Pentagram partner Naresh Ramchandani has relaunched the website of environmental charity Do The Green Thing in a new talkative and argumentative form.
The charity – which uses creativity to tackle climate change – will challenge the unsustainable status quo through a series of long-form essays spiked with creative provocations, from animated GIFs to idents.
In the run up to this year's Oscars, issue one takes on the film industry with a compelling essay entitled: 'How screenwriters are ruining the planet'.
Mischievous script and screen hacks run alongside the text, adding green touches to old and new film favourites.
Heading down Fury Road? Why not go by bike instead?
Talking to us after speaking at Cape Town-based design conference Design Indaba, Ramchandani – who co-founded Do The Green Thing – explains that issue one joins the voices critiquing the film industry.
It calls on screenwriters to take responsibility for the future of our planet, he says, by putting incidental green action into their films.
Each essay will be brought alive with green pieces of creativity. "For example, our screen hacks and script hacks for issue one, and the fabulous How To Watch a Movie [above] – a short film that we'd like cinemas to show before screening a movie," he adds.
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Want to get involved?
Going to the big fight? Go by bus!
If you're interested in contributing your creative skills to Do The Green Thing, get in touch with the charity through its social media channels (details below). "Do The Green Thing has always run on creative volunteer power from the great and the good," says Ramchandani. "The more hands we have, the more work we can do."
"And if anyone knows Leo DiCaprio, it would be great if he could comment on our piece – maybe in his Oscar acceptance speech on Sunday!"
Three tips for designers who want to create change
Bring joy to the world by unplugging all those electricals
Designers and creative people are in a powerful position, says Ramchandani. "We put ideas into the public realm, and to a greater or lesser extent, those ideas can be art of any change we want to see."
"We can encourage overconsumption - much of our work does - but we can just as easily use our influence positively by putting inspiration out there that makes people stop, think, and hopefully choose to be a little more thoughtful, open and considerate towards their world."
So how can you create change through your own design work? Here are Ramchandani's top tips…
01. Every project is an opportunity
"It doesn't matter who your client is, every project is an opportunity to put something positive into the worldm" he says. "Be that through the words you choose, the values you promote or the people you chose tow rom alongside."
02. You don't have to live like a monk to create change
"If you believe in a cause, get in touch with oner people who believe in it and offer help when you can. Working for change doesn't bring huge monetary incentives, but if you have time – and that could be an hour, a day or a week – you can use it to further that cause.
03. Try to live by the values you set yourself
"I help to run an environmental charity, so I won't work with airlines or car manufacturers, and I look to buy less an use public transport wherever I can. You are what you do, not what you say."
For more information about Do The Green Thing and how you can involved, head over to the website, and follow the movement on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
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Julia is editor-in-chief, retail at Future Ltd, where she works in e-commerce across a number of consumer lifestyle brands. A former editor of design website Creative Bloq, she’s also worked on a variety of print titles, and was part of the team that launched consumer tech website TechRadar. She's been writing about art, design and technology for over 15 years.
