I never expected such an amazing outpouring of responses so quickly. Within 24 hours, the entire wall was completely filled out. And the responses range from humorous to overwhelmingly thoughtful — from ‘be a YouTube sensation’ to ‘go 200 mph’ to ‘be completely myself.’ I hear that people are gathering at the house and it’s stopping traffic. I’m blown away.” ~ Candy Chang

The notion of turning neglected space into an active invitation to engage with your community and get to know your neighbors is a wonderful embodiment of enlightened urbanism. What’s more, it’s a reminder that not all meaningful social platforms are accessed through a screen — an inspired antidote to the Foursquarification of urban social quasi-interaction.

For live coverage of TED 2011 this week, follow our Twitter feed and check Brain Pickings nightly for exclusive photos and speaker quotes. And don’t miss our primer of 5 must-read books by TED 2011 speakers.

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In an ideal world, an invisible hand would be balancing the supply-demand ratio of help for humanity’s problems. The world, however, is far from ideal and we’re faced with more challenges than help is readily available for. And when help does present itself, it’s mostly in the form of donations — which often lack the immediacy of more hands-on approaches that give the help-giver a sense of ownership over the problem, in turn infecting the helpee with this we-can-solve-it resolve and unleashing a chain reaction of empowerment.

That’s exactly the kind of thinking that inspired Pencils of Promise — a powerful grassroots movement that seeks to solve the global education crisis from the bottom up and inside out. The nonprofit is 100% volunteer and its primary goal is to build schools and related facilites across the developing world, but it also embodies something we celebrate here at Brain Pickings — the cross-pollination of skills and perspectives — by empowering people to contribute whatever they are best at and cover different facets of the problem, rather than merely making impersonal and distanced donations.

The project began in 2008, when founder Adam Braun, fresh out of college himself, set out to build a single school in Laos. He put $25 into a bank account and asked friends to contribute however much they could. Little did he anticipate that in a little over a year, they would’ve raised $200,000 through the donations of thousands of individuals and over 150 volunteers would’ve joined the movement.

Our biggest commitment is to sustainability, which means PoP schools aren’t gifted but instead created by the community itself. The entire village helps builds their own school, leading to true ownership and a lasting commitment to their children’s educational future. ~ Adam Braun, Founder, Executive Director

Granted, as much as we’d want to, not all of us can drop our responsibilities and head East to build schools. But here’s how you can help:

Last December, Pencils of Promise won $25,000 through the Chase Community Giving Campaign on Facebook, which made them eligible for the million-dollar grand grant. And because the competition is user-driven, your vote can help tip the scale in the winning direction.

To sweeten the deal, Pencils of Promise is also using a voting system to decide which country to build schools in next — a little something they call “democratic social giving.” And in light of last week’s Haiti colossal earthquake disaster, PoP have just vouched to donate at least $100,000 towards youth-oriented initiatives in Haiti if they win the $1MM grant — a massive gesture of karmic kindness.

So go ahead and cast your vote for PoP in the Chase competition before Friday, when the voting closes — it’s a small effort on your part that can have momentous impact on entire communities. Which certainly beats another mindless round of FarmVille.

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Today’s short-and-sweet is a reminder that personal projects done for passion, not profit, often take on a life of their own and end up resulting it creative and professional growth you could’ve never foreseen — take it from Ji Lee, Creative Director of Google Creative Labs, who masterminded the brilliant Bubble Project.

His talk at Behance’s 99% (one of our top 10 creative cross-disciplinary conferences) is a lovely testament to the transformative power of creative endeavors.

Instead of creating a project for myself, and just showing off, creating a project for other people to participate and collaborate instantly gains a sense of scale, and a sense of depth, and a sense of reach.

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More often than not, you can tell the age of a social institution by its name. The NAACP’s etymology clearly has its origin in the early-20^th century. Friends of the Earth? Obviously a late 1960s lovechild. So you might guess that Ctrl.Alt.Shift, an organization whose name refers to computer keyboard commands, almost certainly harks from recent years—and you’d be correct.

A UK-based social initiative, Ctrl.Alt.Shift is a formally incorporated social movement for global justice. In an interesting departure from traditional anti-establishment associations, Ctrl.Alt.Shift locates its arena of action as much within prevailing systems as outside them. This approach has come to define millennial movements, in fact; these days the phrase “by any means necessary” could refer equally to change initiated within the boardroom or protests led by bullhorn from the street below.

Whether you’re into music, fashion, politics or direct action, photography, design, dance, art or journalism, there’s a place for you within our movement to fight social and global injustice.

(Okay, maybe business is missing from that career list—but you get the point.)

The movement’s most recent incarnation took the form of a comic book called Ctrl.Alt.Shift Unmasks Corruption. Launched this month, the limited-edition anthology collected original political work from artists and satirists including Dave McKean and Peter Kuper. The cleverly subversive comics, currently on view in the Lazarides Gallery in London, take on subjects such as imperialism (in “Reagan’s Raiders,” featuring the former President’s face superimposed on Captain America) and race (in “I Am Curious, Black!” with Lois Lane transforming into a Blaxploitation-style character).

Ctrl.Alt.Shift’s efforts so far have focused on governments’ HIV travel bans (with a campaign cleverly entitled “Nothing to Declare”), Latin American conflict, and broader issues of social justice such as gender inequality. Taking notes from the provocation playbook of TEDsters (and Brain Pickings favorite) The Yes Men, Ctrl.Alt.Shift has staged media-savvy public interventions like demonstrations outside foreign embassies, and a planned march through London to raise awareness of female infanticide in India. And like another urbane media brand, VICE (with whom it has co-sponsored exhibitions), Ctrl.Alt.Shift publishes an eponymous magazine, which it makes available in clubs and shops throughout the UK.

Other strategies seek to engage participation through competition, like a short-film contest held earlier this year (the winning entry was HIV: The Musical) as well as other targeted actions and social networking features on its website. And with a roster of hip collaborators like musician Estelle, photographer Nan Goldin, and the environmental group Plane Stupid, Ctrl.Alt.Shift seems well situated to bring its high-profile brand of activism to greater global attention. We say if a slick sell will get people talking about rape as a weapon of war, or greater buy-in around climate talks, then sell, sell away.

Have a look at Ctrl.Alt.Shift’s videos and blog to see if you’d literally like to buy into their program.

Kirstin Butler is writing an adaptation of Gogol for the Google era called Dead SULs, but when not working spends far, far too much time on Twitter. She currently lives in Cambridge, MA.

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In 1972, iconic illustrator Ed Emberley published Make a World — a seemingly simple yet tremendously influential 32-page book, filled with 400 priceless illustrations that taught children how to draw anything and everything, from alligators to zeppelins. It shaped the visual culture of an entire generation of artists, designers and casual art-dabblers, democratizing aesthetic perception and practice.

This year, a collective of dedicated enthusiasts is working on Make a World: The Film — an independent documentary about the life and magic of Ed Emberley.

One of the project’s goals is to crowdsource stories, drawings and sketches inspired by Emberley’s work — so if you have one, email it to the filmmakers.

And like any grassroots art and culture project, the film could use some help from like-minded Emberley evangelists — you can get involved by donating money or your professional services, support the film by buying one of these gorgeous t-shirts from their store, and follow the project on Twitter.

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Last month, we featured 3 extraordinary designers who design for the physically and mentally disabled. One of them was Dutch wunderkind Twan Verdonck.

Today, we’re picking his brains in an exclusive interview about his socially conscious approach to design and his latest project, the brilliant We Are Numbers.

Hey Twan, good to have you. Tell us a bit about yourself, your background and your brand of curiosity.

Hello Brain Pickings! Thank you for having me here!

I’m a 30-year-old Dutch designer. And I’m very much interested in the areas of open design, the nature of things and the internet (especially the concepts of open source, free services, web 2.0 and 3.0.)

Besides many things, I work for my own company, where I self-initiate design projects. I love to do the research and share my experiences with others during seminars, lectures, collaborations, etc.

In the past, you’ve shown at the MoMA. How did this connection happen, and what did you take away from the experience?

In 2005 my Boezels project was selected for the MoMA exhibition Safe: Design Takes On Risk. I just wrote a letter to Paola Antonelli and explained why my project is a metaphor of how we should deal with design, social care and industry. The Boezels are furry animals developed for snoezelen therapy. They are not only made for mentally challenged people, but they are also produced by a workshop for mentally challenged people.

Paola emailed me back telling me that she loved the project. Later on, the Boezels were purchased for the permanent collection. And they are currently on display in the Rough Cut: Design Takes a Sharp Edge show ’till October.

Of course, I was very happy and flattered when the MoMA was enthusiastic. But the most important thing for me was that now many people had the chance to see the project and get inspired to design for a good social cause. And that was the reason I started the project in the first place.

What was the original spark of inspiration behind your latest project, We Are Numbers?

We Are Numbers is an art project to stimulate the fact that, even though everyone is different, we are all equal. And to show that we are beautiful as we are!

For €30, you’ll receive a tee that’s hand-painted by me (Number 1) with your own unique number. You are then asked to submit a photo or video of yourself in the numbered tee. The first 1,000 participants will appear in an art book. So far, more than 300 people have joined the We Are Numbers art project. Besides the photos and videos, the website also shows the world map and personal links, so Numbers can track down other Numbers and meet each other.

My first inspiration started when I was visiting the Bread & Butter fashion fair a few years ago. I saw all these global fashion brands creating all these new styles every season and thought that it was not logical.

Why are we creating new things even though there’s no real reason for it? Just for the sake of commercialism and hyper consumption? Or for the sake of showing status or superiority to others by buying as many new things as possible?

Even many “eco” brands could not comfort my unease. Since they are still producing things that we don’t really need. Maybe in a slightly better way, but they still stimulate the hunger to buy, buy, buy.

So instead of developing another “hyper consumption” tee, (or an organically produced “hyper consumption” tee), I decided to make uniquely numbered tees consisting of only one simple graphic. The longer you keep the shirt, the lower your number gets in comparison to the majority of the group. An early number, such as 500, may be cooler than a later number like 10,000. And number 10,000 may be cooler than a number 100,000. So instead of going out of style, the shirts become even more stylish with time. The older, the cooler.

I think that a We Are Numbers t-shirt should be an interesting object for life. One should be able to wear and feel great in it as long as it is physically possible. One may even see it as a personal investment that becomes more valuable over time!

I ask people to submit a photo or video of themselves and a personal link, so the whole Numbers family can meet each other and start doing nice things together. We’ve already organised a mini-concert, expo and I’m sure more will follow!

What’s the project’s ultimate goal?

The ultimate goal is to number everyone around the world. Since I think it will help to bring people together and will stop unnecessary consumption and inequality.

There seems to be an interesting duality in your work, with the quest for innovation on the one hand and the outrage at disposable everything on the other. And that’s a bit of a paradox — one needs to get rid of the old in order to make room for the new, it’s the natural cycle of innovation. Is there a happy medium?

Yes, but it’s not a very difficult duality, since I always ask myself if there is a need for this new thing.

Is it a physically better thing than the things that already exist? Or, when the thing is not physically better: is the intention/nature/soul of the thing better than the things that are already there? Because then it will teach people to understand their world in a more meaningful way.

When one of the answers is yes, then I’ll go for it!

For example: The We Are Numbers shirt is physically not much better than any other t-shirt in the same price range. However, if people buy this shirt they will experience that owning just one We Are Numbers t-shirt may be cooler than buying many new t-shirts every year. It will bring creativity, new friendships, access to events, you can advertise your skills, etc.

Many people even claim to have a better sex life since they have been wearing the We Are Numbers t-shirt! ;)

Regardless of how we may feel about it, we live in a commercial culture. Are personality and self-expression even possible without consumerism? How does We Are Numbers approach this?

I have nothing against consumerism. I think it’s great when people can afford the things they need. I only think that people should buy wisely and very consciously.

I think that buying and wearing the latest fashion trends is just overmarketed and overrated as a perfect mean of self-expression and individuality. I think there are more interesting things for people to show than their latest pair of Nike sneakers. You are not what you wear.

The We Are Numbers t-shirts are at once the same (the numbers constructed from a digital matrix) and yet every number is unique. You look at the individual, not the message, or the design, or the attempt to influence through fashion signifiers linked to individious marketing.

A hat-tip from Paola Antonelli is probably every designer’s dream. But achievement in art is subjective — what do you feel is the ultimate acclaim for an artist?

I don’t know and I don’t think it’s very important.

I just think that the most important thing is to be happy with what you are doing. If others like what you do, than that’s great. But happiness is not caused by external factors. No one but yourself can make you happy.

Well, thanks for letting us pick your brains, Twan. Any last thoughts left unpicked?

Thank you very much for the interview and your time!

Please take a few moments to visit the We Are Numbers website. There are some super clever and funny photo and video submissions from Numbered people from all around the world! And you can check who is already numbered in your neighbourhood.

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You know data visualization is big when you see it on one of those 4 x 6 postcards distributed in bars. In Bulgaria.

Spotted recently: The Colors of Democracy, a flyer displaying voting results by party affiliation for Bulgarian Parliament elections since the fall of Communism.

The Colors of Democracy: Voter color preference in Bulgarian Parliament elections.

It's time to vote again on July 5. Don't act rashly. Think!

Each dot represents the official color of a specific Bulgarian party — the visualization clearly shows the declining grip of the conservative party (in red), the one most closely aligned with Communist ideology. More importantly, it shows the proliferation of alternative viewpoints and the diversification of the political landscape — a sign of hope in the dialogue on democracy.

The postcard — printed and distributed independently by Bulgarian designer Mihail Mihaylov — is part of a PSA campaign aiming to combat the vote-buying allegations plaguing the upcoming Parliament elections, encouraging people to vote based on judgment, not incentive. Political analysts have estimated that up to 12 million BGN, roughly $8.6 million, have been allocated to vote trade, a devastating slap in the face of democracy.

The back of the card reads, “Vote by conscience! Your vote is not for sale.”

This is important for two reasons. For one, it’s a timely dialogue to be had, in light of the recent unrest surrounding the Iranian elections — a gory example of vote fraud and the severely undemocratic ways in which protests against it were handled.

Secondly, it’s uplifting to see a thriving undercurrent of grassroots democracy activism among a nation slammed by The New York Times as a country whose entire political system is one big money-laundering machine for the mob.

The paradox, of course, is that the people this messaging is likely to resonate with are probably those already aligned with the very platform of the PSA campaign and thus least in need of an intervention. But that’s the fundamental folly of all cause marketing, so we’ll have to take it for what it is.

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Today’s continuation of video week is a particularly timely piece of sociocultural commentary — Clay Shirky’s TED@State talk about how cell phones, Twitter and Facebook are changing the world. Timely not only because those of us in the modern democratic world are completely immersed in these technologies, but mostly because we’re beginning to see them as tools of citizen activism and freedom of speech in areas where the democratic process falls short — most recently, the case of the social-media-powered Iranian national strike.

Media, the media landscape that we knew, as familiar as it was, as easy conceptually as it was to deal with the idea that professionals broadcast messages to amateurs, is increasingly slipping away. In a world where media is global, social, ubiquitous and cheap, in a world of media where the former audience are now increasingly full participants, in that world, media is less and less often about crafting a single message to be consumed by individuals. It is more and more often a way of creating an environment for convening and supporting groups.” ~ Clay Shirky

Although the idea isn’t new to those of us who have been paying attention in the past couple of years, Shirky contextualizes it in a way that points to the ever more rapidly impeding end of top-down news, which is in turn effecting the next big leap in the evolution of politics.

Watch, appreciate the era we live in, and go tweet about it.

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In October 2007, Victoria Orizarska, a successful thirtysomething finance professional with a fantastic career, riveting social life and enviable wardrobe, decided to trade it all in for something completely irrational and unmarketable — the pursuit of a lifelong dream. So she armed herself with a backpack and a camera, and set out to travel the world.

But besides the incredible richness of experiencing new cultures, Victoria was struck with something else — the devastating poverty stifling certain regions of the world. So instead of tossing some spare change at some charity to alleviate her privileged guilt, she decided to start a philanthropic effort of her own — the 100 Girls Back to School Appeal was born.

Sitting at the beach at Copa Cabana, it was very difficult to ignore the kids that rush to collect my beer can as soon as I empty it, so they can make 1/20 of a $1 on it.

The effort aims to to raise funds for at least 100 school scholarships for girls in South East Asia, India and Nepal — some of the least-developed areas, where cultural bias and economic constraint prevent girls from getting the education needed to break the cycle. To put this in the context of numbers, it will take roughly $250,000 to achieve the project’s goal — $250 per girl per year, for 10 years.

But heartwarmingness aside, the effort oozes one very important takeaway — you don’t have to be, or work for, an NGO to make a tangible difference. The private sector holds formidable potential for solving global problems — just ask Acumen Fund’s Jacqueline Novogratz.

So far, the effort has amassed over $28,000. Learn more about it, see the other side like you never have before (did me mention Victoria’s photography goes well beyond her self-described hobbyist level?), and contribute to one of the best grassroots causes we’ve come across in a while.

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If there ever were a formula for cool, it wouldn’t be far from simplicity + social statement + Helvetica. And Pick One is just that. Part social experiment, part art project, part brilliant head-scratcher, it’s artist Ben Nyberg‘s clever stab at getting your priorities straight — and it’s as playful or as serious as you want it to be.

All you do is go through pairs of cultural items — from Google to guns to God, and everything in between — and pick the one you prefer within each pair, which gives it a score of 1 point.

After a couple of hundred clicks, we lost patience in trying to reach some sort of end — we suspect it’s an infinite loop that randomly pairs each item with every other, then starts all over again — and voyeured over to the Top 10 and the Bottom 10, based on the crowdsourced cumulative score of each item.

It’s a sign of the times when The Internet ends up amidst the most fundamental of human needs. Then again, if it were up to us, it would even rank four positions higher.

And a note to all the budding social psychologists and ethicists out there — you may want to rethink your career path: Morality, which appears in the pick-pairs, didn’t even make a cameo on the Top 10. Neither did art — ironic, in the context of an art project.

Pick One is also a testament to its own hipsterness — there’s no question about the psychographic composition of a crowd that hates Uggs more than hate itself, George W, or death.

HT @BBHLabs

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