Currently in its 13th edition, Paris Photo 2009 will showcase photographic work from several different middle eastern countries -Iran, Lebanon, UAE and Iran – offering an unprecedented exploration of the artistic medium in these regions.

Jer Thorp of the blprnt blog has created a simple but compelling data visualization of Twitter posts across the planet which say “good morning” in some way.

In an effort to build on the micro-finance model of giving popularized by Kiva, new non-profit organization Jolkona – a Bengali word meaning “drop of water” – has incorporated elements of social media – community, connectivity and sharing – into their design, a move it hopes will appeal to a younger generation of philanthropists. On the surface, the system is far from new – pick a project and give money (as little as $5) – but where most donations end, with you feeling a temporary wave of good will, Jolkona wants to continue the story and make the process more [...]

As part of its ongoing series “Remade in America” which explores American life from the perspective of new immigrants, the NY Times has created a number of great interactive graphics that show how our increasingly diverse population is reshaping staid institutions from education to healthcare. The above map depicts immigration’s role in changing the face of the American workforce, charting its impact across various industries ranging from administrative and technical fields to manufacturing and service sectors. As we continue to look for ways to innovate in the midst of a stalled economy, it’s exciting to see that the US has the [...]

Amidst the debate over the multi-billion dollar bottled water industry (is it really a debate anymore?), rises another complication in our consumer relationship to water: sure, you’re bringing your own Kleen Kanteen, but how much water was used to make that? Or the jeans you’re wearing, never mind the burger you had for lunch? The Wall-Street Journal recently reported “it takes roughly 20 gallons of water to make a pint of beer, as much as 132 gallons of water to make a 2-liter bottle of soda, and about 500 gallons, including water used to grow, dye and process the cotton, [...]

 
From Mumbai to Manila, cities in emerging economies are looking to urban farming to bolster job growth, improve food security and make more productive use of organic waste. The surprising role model for off-farm farming is Havana, Cuba where 90% of fresh produce supply is grown in the city. Nationwide, urban farming has created 350,000 jobs for Cubans and has boosted the average caloric intake from 2,323 per Cuban per day in 1993 to 3,547 today. Apparently, one main cause of this shift in food sourcing is the inefficiency of state-owned farms.
China is also exhibiting how to industrialize the trend [...]