Blog

Posts by: Michelle Mullineaux

Zàijiàn (Goodbye) World Expo!

Michelle Mullineaux
By Michelle Mullineaux
October 31, 2010
Shanghai Expo
Dream Cube Escalator

It’s hard to believe, but six months and 73 million visitors later, the 2010 Shanghai World Expo came to a close today, and we are having a tough time saying goodbye to our dream project, the Shanghai Corporate Pavilion (affectionately known as the Dream Cube for being the carrier of people’s dreams for the future of Shanghai).

We braved the sea of last-minute Expo visitors this week to give our last round of tours, attend closing ceremonies and explore what’s next for ESI in China. A testament to our incredible design and production team, including PRG (systems integrator), Spinifex (media production), Full Flood (lighting) and Pico (fabrication), the Dream Cube looked as fresh, and operated as efficiently, as it did when it opened in May.  And the message—that a more sustainable future can only be co-created through collective action—is more resonant than ever as it will take a huge collaborative effort to evolve the Expo site after next week.

Read more

desigNYC + Coffee = Inspiration

Michelle Mullineaux
By Michelle Mullineaux
April 13, 2010
Sustainability + Social Impact

Today was an inspiring day. The desigNYC community — client organizations, design partners, desigNYC advisors, as well as our volunteer communication specialists and documentary team — met for an informal get-together to mix, mingle, share updates and celebrate the progress of these exciting collaborations. The event was generously hosted by Maddy Burke-Vigeland and Monica Schaffer at Gensler’s gorgeous Rockefeller Center office.

About two and a half months ago, desigNYC launched its first round of pilots by matching 12 organizations (nonprofits, community groups and city agencies) doing great work in the city with 12+ talented design professionals who are leaders in the fields of architectural, landscape, interactive, interiors, lighting, graphic and communications design. The projects are creating solutions impacting a range of range of social and environmental issues including affordable housing, sustainable development, social justice, health, green space, urban farming / local food systems, youth leadership, and more.

Read more

Worldchanging Crowdsourcing

Michelle Mullineaux
By Michelle Mullineaux
April 1, 2010
Collaborative Design

The betacup's goal is to eliminate paper cup consumption through the design of a more convenient alternative to the reusable coffee mug.

One of the reasons I work at ESI is because I’m a passionate believer in the power of collaboration and open innovation to help solve the great global environmental and social challenges of our time, so my ears perked up today when I heard about the betcup challenge sponsored by Starbucks. 

Drink coffee (or tea) on the go?  In a paper cup?  At five cups a week, the average North American consumes 250 cups a year, which adds up to 8 billion paper coffee cups being thrown away every year.  Ouch. Unfortunately, travel mugs have been slow to transform the issue — consumers find them bulky, inconvenient and hard to clean.

Read more