The greenest product, so the saying goes, is one that you don’t buy. But for things you really need, the next best option may be the product you share. No longer limited to movie rentals, you can rent/share just about any durable good (or even not-so-durable goods) these days.
What do you do with stuff when its reached the end of its useful life? Usually we trash it, but there’s probably still some kind of use left in it. From take-out containers to phone booths, here are some product ideas that make use of that “garbage.”
The Liyuan Library: I’m a sucker for unusual library spaces, and this new construction in Huairou, China hits all the sweet spots. Tucked away in a small mountain village, the long, narrow structure blends into its surroundings with a reed-like outer layer that still allows for sunlight to trickle inside.
We’re not sure which is the most pervasive stereotype about librarians – that she wears her hair in a bun, wears glasses and likes to shush people, or that she’s secretly a sex fiend who likes to shake out her bun and whip off her glasses. Either way, male librarians are decidedly absent. And not just male librarians, but young male librarians. Young, male librarians who are not opposed to showing a little skin. This oversight bothered Megan Perez – a young, male former librarian who is not opposed to showing a little skin (see below).
Okay, so the stereotype – the first one at least – does have some truth to it: Currently, the American library workforce is approximately 80% White and 72% female. And tens of thousands of librarians are expected to reach age 65 over the next five years. But all the more reason to expand people’s notions of what a librarian is…
In 1971, Marguerite Hart, the first children’s librarian at the local library in Troy, Michigan, began a letter writing campaign to many famous people asking them to respond with an open letter to the town’s children about the importance of libraries and reading.