Can we really call it progress when it creates so much waste? What if your phone — the one you’re using right now — was your last phone? Take a good look at it and imagine using it for the rest of your life. Could it even last that long? Could you? Probably not. Today I want to think about what that means. What happens to a planet and its people when technological progress is measured in product cycles. And what happens when there's no balance sheet to account for the other side of that — when every new product leaves billions of products and accessories and packaging behind…
Show Notes
- My first cellphone
- My second cellphone
- This clip ended up on the cutting room floor, but here's Derek Zoolander's tiny phone
- You can learn more about the Agbogbloshie landfill by reading its Wikipedia page, looking at these photographs, or watching this documentary. Please watch it!
- You can learn more about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch here.
- "The Victims of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch," a clip from 60 Minutes
- Project Ara Demo at Google IO 2015
- Google Cancels Project Ara
- The Fairphone
- Danny Boyle interviewed by Marc Maron
Music
All music used in this episode was independently produced by r beny and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.
- Felt
- Fall Creek Unit
- Formation Process
- Novation Peak
- Mariposa
- Alluvial
- Natoma
- Spindle
- Illumination Ceremony
Credits
Design Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.
You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.
Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.
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