sweet persimmon

Nectarines in season at the Farmers Market in San Francisco

Sun, 02 Jun 2013 15:46:40 -0500

Nectarines in season at the Farmers Market in San Francisco

Dinner: Gnocchi with pumpkin seeds and cabbage at Van Horn...

Fri, 24 May 2013 19:56:01 -0500

Dinner: Gnocchi with pumpkin seeds and cabbage at Van Horn Sandwich Shop

Helping out at DesigNYC at IdeasCity Festival

Wed, 22 May 2013 11:45:00 -0500

Helping out at DesigNYC at IdeasCity Festival

Vegan French Toast at Meli’s

Wed, 22 May 2013 11:35:09 -0500

Vegan French Toast at Meli’s

10 Shocking Things About Sunscreen

Mon, 20 May 2013 10:20:01 -0500

10 Shocking Things About Sunscreen:

What you don’t know about sunscreen may be hurting you. Let’s just say that according to one expert everything we have been taught by dermatologists and skincare experts over the last decade in regards to sunscreen is Wrong.

About Last Night | Edible Schoolyard NYC Spring Benefit

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:07:25 -0500

About Last Night | Edible Schoolyard NYC Spring Benefit :

The making behind Monk’s Meat: Seitan in...

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 11:53:00 -0500

The making behind Monk’s Meat: Seitan in Brooklyn

I’m a huge fan of seitan and this looks delicious.

Here’s the original post on NYTimes Diner’s Journal

Experiencing some Momofuku Noodle Bar

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 20:21:00 -0500

Experiencing some Momofuku Noodle Bar

Pouring green tea over the sundae dessert at Corcoron

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 23:53:54 -0500

Pouring green tea over the sundae dessert at Corcoron

A Vegan Passover

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 10:49:02 -0500

A Vegan Passover:

Check out the New York Times article and recipes for the Holiday:

Too Few Fish in the Sea...A debate

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 09:22:46 -0600

Too Few Fish in the Sea...A debate :

Is there a way to meet consumer demand for quality seafood and protect threatened marine life at the same time? A thoughtful debate with experts voicing in on the question.

Vegan Pho at Home

Sun, 27 Jan 2013 09:53:10 -0600

Vegan Pho at Home

Believe the Hype About Chia Seeds: The kitschy house plant of yesteryear is a bonafide superfood.

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 09:11:18 -0600

Believe the Hype About Chia Seeds: The kitschy house plant of yesteryear is a bonafide superfood.:

Starting the new year filled with Chia Seeds!

Design Thinking and Building Resilient Systems

Thu, 29 Nov 2012 16:12:01 -0600

Being a user experience designer and researcher, I tend to question the status quo and think about how to improve experiences. And since Sandy hit New York, I’ve been thinking a lot about storm preparedness, response, recovery, and relief.

The interesting thing about designing in today’s age is that we can no longer create rigid solutions and expect them to be meaningful 5, 10 or 20 years out, as the population increases and the environmental shifts continue. Solutions must be more ﬂexible and adaptable, especially when they apply to one of the most complex systems of all—cities.

In a recent op-ed in the New York Times, “Learning to Bounce Back,” PopTech founder Andrew Zolli writes about resiliency (an area of interest for Hot’s Sarah Brooks, as well). “Resilience speaks not to just how buildings weather storms, but to how people weather them, too,” says Zolli. Building resilient systems requires empathy and compassion, knowing people and understanding their needs, communities, culture, networks, and attitudes to the conditions and environments they live in. We must take all of these into account when we design and plan, which is the essence of a design thinking process.

Design thinking is a holistic approach that can tackle complex system problems. It considers the bigger picture and offers myriad possibilities, which can be ﬂexible and adaptable. Design by nature is collaborative and consists of teams from different backgrounds and disciplines. This should also be true when it comes to tackling natural disaster planning and recovery. Designers should be at the table with government ofﬁcials, institutional and company leaders, urban planners, economists, and other stakeholders to think of creative ways of working, reorganize information in thoughtful ways, and develop processes to implement.

Now more than ever, we need to come together in a coordinated effort. We must to learn from our mistakes and to do so we need to be transparent about the process and the decisions we make. This will allow room for continual adjustments along the way and for people to play integral parts, especially residents who eventually are the ones who rebuild in the long term.

Chuck Owen, distinguished professor emeritus at Institute of Design, IIT, said it best in his article “Design Thinking: Notes on Its Nature and Use”:

“…the handiwork of humankind is ﬁnally beginning to impress itself on the global environment and on us, its inhabitants. This should inspire us as design professionals to reconsider what we do, who our clients are, and where we can best offer our expertise. In particular, the decision processes of high-level decision makers are in need of serious overhaul. The ultimate value of human- and environment-centeredness is a guarantee that the best interests of humankind and environment will be considered in any project.”

Our work needs to consider the complex systems in which people work, live, and play. Today we have information, technology, and talent at our fingertips. We must shift our mindset that complex systems in place cannot change. They will eventually fail if they don’t. Rethinking our systems to becoming more resilient is an investment. Designers dream to tackle big complex problems and the time has come to make it happen.

Coconut carob snowball at Karyn’s Cooked

Tue, 27 Nov 2012 23:14:49 -0600

Coconut carob snowball at Karyn’s Cooked

The best five environmental books of all time

Mon, 05 Nov 2012 10:00:28 -0600

The best five environmental books of all time

Introducing TakePart Tastemakers: Our Guide to Food Done Right

Sun, 04 Nov 2012 22:19:50 -0600

Introducing TakePart Tastemakers: Our Guide to Food Done Right:

“We all want to do our part to change the way we eat and support businesses doing the right thing. But sometimes it’s hard to know where to look. TakePart’s acclaimed food journalists fanned out across America to discover the country’s most colorful and exceptional shops. We’re celebrating the small, food-focused businesses that embrace principles we admire: local, sustainable, organic, humane and unprocessed. We’ve got 10 fantastic finds in each city—cool, fun merchants that embody ‘food done right.’ Check out our nationwide guide!”

Apple season at the farmer’s market

Sun, 04 Nov 2012 13:55:33 -0600

Apple season at the farmer’s market

Local Embrace Biking in Hurricane Sandy’s Aftermath

Fri, 02 Nov 2012 23:10:00 -0500

Local Embrace Biking in Hurricane Sandy’s Aftermath:

People dusting off their bikes and getting around New York as roads and public transportation are slowing reopening and jammed packed.

Just finished reading “Resilience” by Andrew Zolli....

Tue, 30 Oct 2012 21:28:04 -0500

Just finished reading “Resilience” by Andrew Zolli. Lots of great examples of resiliency in people, communities and nature. Another amazing example is how New York City prepared and responded to the storm. The city is like no other living system…pretty cool.