Do the Green Thing

As scientists issue dire warnings about the state of our planet, designers across the globe are working to "Do the Green Thing."Pictured above is street art created by Portuguese artist Bordalo II who uses everything from burnt aluminum cans and old appliances to scrap wood and old tires to create life-like animal figures. In the process, he keeps this material from ending up on the streets, in the oceans, and in landfills.Other initiatives include work by photographer Benjamin Von Wong who works on issues of social responsibility and sustainability. One recent project by Von Wong is to call attention to e-waste and the fact that less than 15 percent of electronics and circuitry that we throw away each year is recycled into new products. Von Wong strives to shed light on this disturbing statistic through his elaborate hyper-realistic visual style.Founded more than 10 years ago by Andy Hobsbawm and Pentagram partner Naresh Ramchandani, "Do the Green Thing" is a public service for the planet that uses creativity to tackle climate change. They've spent the last decade making films, posters, podcasts, and products to inspire more than 45 million people to live more sustainably.As we celebrate another Earth Day, take inspiration from these photographers, artists, and designers and think about ways that you can "Do the Green Thing."http://www.designindaba.com/articles/creative-work/6-designers-who-use-waste-inspiration-new-productshttp://99u.adobe.com/articles/58984/pentagrams-naresh-ramchandani-do-the-green-thing