Videos

BUSINESS & SUSTAINABILITY | BUSINESS & THE BASE OF THE PYRAMID

ECOLOGICAL ISSUES / CONSERVATION | SOCIAL ISSUES / HUMANITARIAN

BUSINESS & SUSTAINABILITY

These videos deal directly with sustainable business strategy.  Some videos include examples of innovation and design relating to fields of green building, clean technology, and other environmental product designs.

12 Sustainable Design Ideas from Nature (Janine Benyus) – In this inspiring talk about recent developments in biomimicry, Janine Benyus provides heartening examples of ways in which nature is already influencing the products and systems we build.

Company Cribs - A slideshow looking inside the workplace of socially responsible companies such as Google, Yahoo!, Microsoft, Apple, Twitter, eBay, Adobe.

Ethical Marketplace TV Program – A series of weekly half-hour programs aired on public television featuring a number of different topics. The show will examine corporate responsibility through case studies, special guests, and both social and economic performance indictors.  Viewers will have opportunities to interact during show via web.

The Future of Sustainable Innovation - A film about sustainable innovation, presented by the Centre for Sustainable Design, University for the Creative Arts, Malmo, Sweden. (Part 2) (Part 3) (Part 4) (Part 5)

Interview with Honest Tea CEO (Seth Goldman) - Seth Goldman discusses following your dream through the creation of his own fair-trade organic tea brand.

Leveraging Environmental Stability and Growth (Bill Morrissey) - This presentation describes the Clorox company’s strategy for leveraging sustainability into 3 brands: Brita, Burt’s Bees, and GreenWorks.

Seeking Salvation and Profit in Green Tech (John Doerr) - “I don’t think we’re going to make it,” John Doerr proclaims, in an emotional talk about climate change and investment. Spurred on by his daughter, who demanded he fix the mess the world is heading for, he and his partners.

Winning the Oil Endgame (Amory Lovins) - Cars, trucks and planes lie at the heart of Amory Lovins’ plan for kicking the oil habit. We must make all our vehicles both lighter and stronger, using composite materials; more aerodynamic; and capable of running on biofuels, says Lovins. “We could cut oil use in half by 2025, and by 2040, oil use could be zero,” he states. It’s a $180-billion-dollar investment “with handsome returns.” Lovins marshals many arguments against the skeptics.

The Wisdom of Designing Crade to Cradle (William McDonough) – Green-minded architect and designer William McDonough asks what our buildings and products would look like if designers took into account “all children, all species, for all time.”

BUSINESS & THE BASE OF THE PYRAMID

The Base of the Pyramid are the 3 Billion people living on less than $2 a day.  Businesses are beginning to serve these consumers and make profits.  Here are some examples of how businesses and microlending institutions are turning a sustainable profit and helping people work their way out of poverty at the same time.

A Fistful of Dollars: The Story of a Kiva Loan – This video follows the path of a $25 loan from London, England to Preak Tamao village, Cambodia. Kiva.org is a website that allows internet users like you or I to lend money to people that need it in developing countries, with the aim of empowering them to lift themselves out of poverty.

The Future of Aid (Bill Gates) – This video provides an insight into the ‘aid policy’ of the world’s leading philanthropist. One of his core messages is that individuals are better placed than governments to provide aid as they can take ‘risks’.

Kiva Entrepreneurs: Loans That Change Lives - This is the video of Kiva entrepreneurs shown at Craig Barrett’s keynote speech at the 2009 International CES, January 9 2009. The footage was shot by Kiva Fellow Nick Sabin in Sierra Leone.

Nobel Peace Prize Recipient Muhammad Yunus – A talk at UCSD about the microfinance revolution around the world, the Nobel Prize, and the launch of Grameen America, which will bring microcredit to the U.S.

Tackling Poverty with “Patient Capital” (Jacqueline Novogratz) - Stories of how “patient capital” can bring sustainable jobs, goods, services — and dignity — to the world’s poorest.

ECOLOGICAL ISSUES / CONSERVATION

Here are some videos about some environmental problems and how our actions pertain to the ecology of the entire planet.  These videos also offer some suggestions for more sustainable behaviors and practices for a healthier planet.

Electronic Wasteland (Scott Pelley) - Where do the millions of computer monitors, cell phones and other electronic refuse our society generates end up? A 60 Minute explains the situation of a special town in China.

How to Regrow a Rainforest in 20 years (Willie Smits) - by piecing together a complex ecological puzzle, biologist Willie Smits has found a way to re-grow clearcut rainforest in Borneo, saving local orangutans — and creating a thrilling blueprint for restoring fragile ecosystems.

Nature vs. Humans (Paul MacCready) – In 1998, aircraft designer Paul MacCready looks at a planet on which humans have utterly dominated nature, and talks about what we all can do to preserve nature’s balance. His contribution: solar planes, superefficient gliders and the electric car.

Stuff Happens: The Attic (Bill Nye) - ven if you have a clean and tidy attic, there is likely something up there that we all have in common: fiberglass insulation. Fiberglass insulation, often called “glass wool,” does not come from glass sheep. Actually, it comes from sand or recycled glass that is melted to form the insulating fibers. It’s light weight, great at keeping cold air out and hot air in, and fire-resistant, but there are some problems with glass wool.

Underwater Astonishments (David Gallo) – Jaw-dropping footage of amazing sea creatures, including a color-shifting cuttlefish, a perfectly camouflaged octopus, and a Times Square’s worth of neon light displays from fish who live in the blackest depths of the ocean.

What’s Wrong With What We Eat (Mark Bittman) - In this fiery and funny talk, New York Times food writer Mark Bittman weighs in on what’s wrong with the way we eat now (too much meat, too few plants; too much fast food, too little home cooking), and why it’s putting the entire planet at risk.

SOCIAL ISSUES / HUMANITARIAN

This category contains a variety of videos that relate to the social, cultural, and psychological aspects of development and sustainability.  Issues such as poverty and inequality put on strain on both society and sustainability.  These videos offer a new perspective on social progress.

Best Statistics You Have Ever Seen: Debunking 3rd World Myths (Hans Rosling) - You’ve never seen data presented like this. With the drama and urgency of a sportscaster, statistics guru Hans Rosling debunks myths about the so-called “developing world.”

The Big Picture of American Life (Chris Jordan) – Artist Chris Jordan shows us an arresting view of what Western culture looks like. His supersized images picture some almost unimaginable statistics — like the astonishing number of paper cups we use every single day.

The Case for Informed Optimism (Larry Brilliant) - We’ve known about global warming for 50 years and done little about it, says Google.org director Larry Brilliant. In spite of this and other depressing trends, he’s optimistic and tells us why. From Skoll World Forum, Oxford, UK.

Do Schools Kill Creativity (Ken Robinson) - Creativity expert Sir Ken Robinson challenges the way we’re educating our children. He champions a radical rethink of our school systems, to cultivate creativity and acknowledge multiple types of learning.

Did You Know? (Shift Happens) - stunning statistics about the impact of globalization and the Information Age.

Our Priorities for Saving the World (Bjorn Lomborg) - Given $50 billion to spend, which would you solve first, AIDS or global warming? Danish political scientist Bjorn Lomborg comes up with surprising answers.

Revealing New Insights on Poverty (Hans Rosling) - Researcher Hans Rosling uses his cool data tools to show how countries are pulling themselves out of poverty. He demos Dollar Street, comparing households of varying income levels worldwide. Then he does something really amazing.

The Real Difference Between Liberals and Conservatives (Jonathan Haidt) - Psychologist Jonathan Haidt studies the five moral values that form the basis of our political choices, whether we’re left, right or center. In this eye-opening talk, he pinpoints the moral values that liberals and conservatives tend to honor most.

Rich Taxed Too Little, Poor Taxed Too Much (Warren Buffet) – One of the richest men in America explains that the rich are not taxed enough, while taxes on America’s poor are overwhelming, compromising opportunity and driving inequality.

A Secular, Scientific Rebuttal to Rick Warren (Dan Dennett) – Philosopher Dan Dennett calls for religion- all religion- to be taught in schools, so we can understand its nature as a natural phenomenon. Then he takes on The Purpose-Driven Life, disputing its claim that, to be moral, one must deny evolution.

Tools for Building a Better World (Jamais Cascio) - We all want to make the world better — but how? Jamais Cascio looks at some specific tools and techniques that can make a difference. It’s a fascinating talk that might just inspire you to act.

Why Societies Collapse (Jared Diamond) - Why do societies fail? With lessons from the Norse of Iron Age Greenland, deforested Easter Island and present-day Montana, Jared Diamond talks about the signs that collapse is near, and how- if we see it in time- we can prevent it.

Why we do what we do, and how we can do it better (Tony Robbins) – Tony Robbins makes it his business to know why we do the things we do and discusses the “invisible forces” that motivate everyone’s actions.