BCM322 – The Specs

Get the Balance Right (a.k.a. An Intervention for an Intervention)

Why are us consumers the (seemingly) only ones responsible for changing all of our habits to save the Earth?

Assuming online magazines like TrendHunter are truly trend hunters, we are all in a craze for all things “design-conscious, cost-effective, and low impact alternative[s]” (Pijak 2018); from eco-packagings to eco-vehicle and eco-house, the slope sure is slippery. That is by no means to say we are a blind herd of trend-chasers, but it sure puts some wondering in one’s head—why are us consumers the (seemingly) only ones responsible for changing all of our habits to save the Earth?

Continue reading “Get the Balance Right (a.k.a. An Intervention for an Intervention)”

Playfully Serious—on One Girl & the ‘Do It In A Dress’ Initiative

On a little playful (literal) dress-up for a serious cause, which even guys are doing.

“Size tip: If you’re doing something active, we recommend going up one size from your usual dress size.”

This tip, by the Australian non-profit organisation One Girl, applies to both female and male volunteers in Do It In A Dress (henceforth DIIAD), an annual initiative started in 2011 to battle educational inequality in Africa, aiming to provide at least one million girls with the proper education to which they are entitled. Fundraisers—in teams or individually—partake in (usually active) activites: dancing, surfing, even skydiving, all while donning school dresses issued by the NPO, to attract donors. Continue reading “Playfully Serious—on One Girl & the ‘Do It In A Dress’ Initiative”

Delicately Blunt—on Laura Bates & the Everyday Sexism Project

On a project, a movement, a collection of blunt stories delicately handled.

entry_everdaysexism — A recent entry on the website

Of the 60,000 stories contributed by visitors worldwide on the Everyday Sexism website (Kellaway 2014), such raw, uneasy stories occupy a significant portion. Blunt as they sound, they are handled delicately by the team behind the project. Founded in 2012 by Laura Bates—a British feminist writer frustrated with blatant harassment—it aims to counter societal denial towards existing sexism (Everyday Sexism Project n.d.) through an ever-growing collection of stories, small and large. Visitors are greeted by a textbox asking them to recount any sexist incidents in their daily lives, and they can do so anonymously. Currently, the website comes in 25 country-versions and roughly 20 languages, including Russian, Chinese, Portuguese, and many more. Continue reading “Delicately Blunt—on Laura Bates & the Everyday Sexism Project”