Day 2: Hyena life

So what started with free tickets to the Art Fair, ended with a lovely night walk with Aritake and his dad through Cologne. Not only was it nice to see Aritake as a proud father, it was surprising serendipity to meet with his dad on the subject of a values proposition.

The project Hyena Life aims to investigate and support "life strategies that create autonomy rather than dependency from large trans-national entities". One of the key groups featured is the Brooklyn based park slope food coop. A simple yet profound idea that removes the barrier between shopkeeper and shopper. (Like the realization in Juergen Durner's shop window, that the refection is you). The 14000+ coop members need to commit a certain number of hours to working in the store. This reduces their food bill by 20 to 40%. The supreme form of consumer activism as every coop member has a say in where the food is sourced from, how it is treated and sold. Isn't this the best way to protect your business from the risk of reading trends wrong,, and ending up with unwanted stock?

J Durner, Unity

How would it affect other businesses if they applied the same model, removing the separation between "us" (the company) and them (the consumer)? Design firms often start their process by trying to build empathy as a path to innovation. An artificial injection of "walking in each other's shoes". Surely it is far more sustainable to build this protection in from the ground up. How could a pharma company include patients and physicians in both the design of and execution of trials?


This mindset establishes the foundation for a far reaching community engagement, where interests are balanced and values can be shared. Besides that the company creates an instant, loyal consumer base. That's what I would call integral design.

Another example if integral design is The Keep a Breast Foundation. Earlier this year they started a new campaign focusing on the toxins and chemicals linked to breast cancer in our food, households and cosmetics. They simplify the huge amount of data and provide tools to make smarter choices when shopping for everyday things. Reminds me of Malcolm from the eco-store's mantra of "make it simple and easy to make a change".

Shaney has led her team over the years to produce interesting art and cultural events to not only raise awareness but get younger women to reflect on this topic. Most famously the breast casts that are then used as a canvas for artists often causes the celebrities featured to reflect just how much they take breast health for granted, and how much of their identity is related to it.
Shaney often takes cues from her team to identify new ways to connect with not only women but also sponsors and donors. When one of the team started doing tango, they quickly created a fund raiser event with dance as the theme. This not only gave her staff the opportunity to meet some amazing tango dancers in a more substantial way, it gave performers and enthusiasts another way to reflect on their health and bodies. This is a great example that builds on the "firm footing before extend" idea discussed yesterday.

Now off to the picasso exhibit at the Ludwig Museum, with thoughts of how a life in art shows itself through informal snapshots.