3of3 ‘visual storytelling’ to communicate sustainability
DESCRIPTION
Part 3 of 3: workshopTRANSCRIPT
CommunicatingSustainability
Visual Storytelling:
Arlene Birt | www.backgroundstories.comvisual storyteller & information designer
Part 3 of 3
Inspire ownership among consumers on the impact of their everyday decisions.
Aim:
HOW?CONNECT the ‘every-day’ to the ‘big-picture’
This project began as a Fulbright grant to the Netherlands, to research ‘Making Product Life-Cycles Visible.’
Title TextPre-head can go here:
This project is made possible in part by a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, through an appropriation by the Minnesota State Legislature and a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Collaboration with architect Adam Jonas.
Part of a Art(ist)s on the Verge Fellowship through:
Part of a Art(ist)s on the Verge Fellowship through:
Part of a Art(ist)s on the Verge Fellowship through:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GadWxWH8YYg
Part of a Art(ist)s on the Verge Fellowship through:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCzvWbXS_IY
MEDEA Artist Residency, Malmö, Sweden, 2010
Västra HamnenBehind-the-Scenes of Sustainability
http://youtu.be/1HtT_rBrlSw
Tips for Telling Visual Stories:• Layer information• Present positively• Make it personal (bring it close to home)• Let consumers make their own decisions• Enable interaction • Provide access to supporting data (online)
Balance: how much to show“Sometimes the detail makes it interesting: sometimes detail clouds the essence”
-Amanda Cox graphics editor, New York Times
Process:1. Identify audience and set purpose 2. Research information and data options3. Ideate: Sketch out the storyline4. Input data, statistics, people’s stories etc. 5. Develop, test and refine and test and
refine...
Identify Audience& Set Purpose
Research & Interviews
Ideation
Input data, statistics, people’s stories, etc.
Test & Refine...Eventually Implement
Your own product:Exercise: A Product’s Life Story
• Focus on one audience for your product
• Write (or draw) a narrative through the life of this product
• What other sustainability-related data/statistics/information exists for this product?
• How can this fit into the storyline?
• Are their other ways to visualize that would better communicate this information?
When Social & Environmental Back-Stories are Made Visible...
Other Examples:
Consumers can SEE their own impacts.
Other Examples of Back-Stories:
Smart Meters
Consumers can EXPERIENCE their own impacts.
www.thetoasterproject.org
Other Examples of Back-Stories:
image: The New York Times
Consumers can CONNECT to their own impacts.
Other Examples of Back-Stories:
Consumers can UNDERSTAND their own impacts.
Other Examples of Back-Stories:
New Leaf Paper Eco Audit
Consumers can ACT UPON their own impacts.
Other Examples of Back-Stories:
Prius Hybrid Display Panel
SEE • EXPERIENCE • CONNECT • UNDERSTAND • ACT UPON
their own impacts.
Consumers can:
When Social & Environmental Back-Stories are Made Visible...
INFO DESIGN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
‘Guru’ of information design: Edward Tufte (author of multiple books)
Learning to draw stories: The Back of the Napkin (Expanded Edition): Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures by Dan Roam
Guidelines for best-practice info-design: The Wall Street Journal Guide to Information Graphics: The Dos and Don’ts of Presenting Data, Facts, and Figures by Dona M. Wong
Inspiration for Data Vis: www.infosthetics.com
SUSTAINABILITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Product supply Chains & Carbon Footprints: www.Sourcemap.com
Basic LCA (Life Cycle Analysis) Tool: www.sustainableminds.com
Guide for behavior-changing sustainability campaigns: Fostering Sustainable Behavior: An Introduction to Community-Based Social Marketing by Doug McKenzie-Mohr
Systems-Thinking: Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things by Michael Braungart
RESOURCES:Visual Storytelling for Sustainability
Additional Resources:
