Freeman Thomas won his first drawing competition in the first grade—it was a fire truck. Today, Thomas is credited with delivering some of the hottest designs in the automotive industry. A pioneer in his field, he has designed everything from the New Beetle to the Audi TT, and he’s been steering Ford’s Strategic Design department as Director since 2005. In anticipation of our ‘Design with a Conscience’ webcast—a thought-provoking event, which brought together visionary California architects and automotive designers eager to talk about the intersection of car and building design—we asked Mr. Thomas to answer few questions for us about the future of car design, as well as some of the things that inspire his work. Read on to hear what he had to say, and then find out what was discussed in the webcast here.

Read the rest of INTERVIEW: Freeman Thomas, Director of Strategic Design at Ford Motor Company

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Post tags: aia conferences, aia discussions, aia panels, AIA san francisco, American Institute for Architects (AIA) San Francisco, architecture conference, architecture panel, architecture webcast, automotive panel, design conference, design panel, design webcast, design with a conscience, eco design, ford, ford motor company, Ford Strategic Concept Group, Freeman Thomas, Green Design Events, live webcast, strategic design ford, strategic design ford motors, sustainable design, webcast

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Post tags: david trubridge design, david trubridge light rain, david trubridge wanted design, eco lighting, green lighting, LED lighting, light rain, light rain installation, wanted design

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Post tags: Adam Pellecchia, Allison Goding, Asher Israelow, BAGGU, Benjamin Cameron, Brad Ascalon, Brendan Mullins, Chiara Tiara, Colleen and Eric, Dana D'Amico, Daniel Moyer, Danis Sie, David G. Flatt Ltd., d’emploi, Dressed in Yellow, e13, Egg Collective, Emilie Baltz, FilzFelt, furniture auction, grain, Hangar Design Studios, Hurricane Sandy, hurricane sandy new jersey, hurricane sandy nyc, Hurricane Sandy Relief, hurricane sandy staten island, Ike Edeani, Jerry Nance, Joe Doucet, Jonah Takagi, Kevin Michael Burns, Kreh Mellick, kwh, Ladies & Gentlemen Studio, Leo Hubbard, Lindsey Adelman, Marius Myking, Nancy Callan, Naula Workshop, Nicholas Nyland, Noah Lambert, ny red cross, randoms acts of kindness, reclaim nyc, reclaim x2, reclaimed wood, reclaimed wood furniture, Reunion, RUX, Scout Regalia, Sean Brewer, Sit and Read, smck studio, Souda, Stéphane Hubert Design, StickBulb, submaterial, Sure We Can, Token, Uhuru, um project, Vidar Koksvik, VOLK, Wyn Bauer, Zach Klein

If you find yourself in the Bay Area on May 28th, don’t miss out on your chance to attend a sneak peek screening of If You Build It—a full-length documentary film about Studio H‘s revolutionary design/build program at a rural high school in Bertie County, NC. The full-length documentary chronicles one year in Studio H and tells the story of designers Emily Pilloton, Matthew Miller and their 13 students who dreamed up—and built—a beautiful solution that changed the face of their hometown. The story exemplifies the power of hands-on education, the raw brilliance of youth, and the impact a few budding minds can have on the future of a community. Come see the film before it is widely released, meet some of the Studio H’s new students from REALM Charter School, and learn more about how design and hands-on building can transform youth education. All proceeds from tickets sales will go to help fund building materials for the Studio H program in Berkeley. Inhabitat readers also receive 25% off their tickers—just enter “inhabitatlove” at checkout!

PURCHASE TICKETS HERE >

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Post tags: architecture film, Emily Pilloton, if you build it documentary, if you build it fil, if you build it move, project h, Studio H, Sustainable Building, sustainable design

Inhabitat’s favorite local NYC design show, BKLYN Designs, just wrapped up a three-day run in the DUMBO neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY, and the Inhabiteam was on the scene to source the latest and greatest green designs at the show. From adjustable, magnetic lights designer by Bower to a Mesmerizing 3D LED LUCID Mirror from Adam Frank to this incredible concept for a flood-proof, prefab beach building by Garrison Architects, see all the designs that really stood out in the Inhabitat editors’ eyes. And don’t forget to check out which designer won best in show according to Inhabitat readers.

READ MORE >

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Post tags: Adam Frank, aellon, Bien Hecho, Bower, Brooklyn, brooklyn chamber of commerce, Brooklyn Designs, Caleb Zipperer, casa kids, Dog Tag Designs, eco design, from the source, furniture design, Garrison Architects, green design, home goods, hooker and co, house ware, industrial design, inhabitat, inhabitat nyc, Lamacek, Mark Jupiter, new york city, Noble Goods, palo samko, pickett, reclaimed wood, recycled aluminium, Recycled Materials, salvaged materials, salvaged wood, sustainable design, Urban Chandy, west elm

TODAY is the LAST DAY to vote for your favorite finalists!

We received nearly 200 amazing entries in our Lighten Up! LED Lighting Design Competition over the last few weeks, and after countless hours of deliberation, we’ve narrowed these entries down to just 30 finalists. Now it’s time for you to have your say! Vote for your favorite designs and decide which of these fantastic commercial and residential lighting projects should be awarded a $1000 prize from Elemental LED. Will it be this fully interactive LED drum wall, this billowing Cosmic Quilt, this gorgeously lit net-zero home in California, or these classrooms inspired by Galileo’s night sky observations? There are no doubt plenty of impressive designs to admire, but ONLY TWO can win. Cast a vote for your favorites, and if you happen to be a finalist, don’t forget to remind your friends and family to vote for your design! Voting ends TONIGHT, Friday, May 10th, 11:59PM EST.

VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITES HERE >

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Post tags: "lighting design", green design, green interiors, green lighting, inhabitat competition, Inhabitat Design Competition, interior lighting design, LED lighting installation, Lighten Up, lighten up competition, lighten up lighting design competition

Nemesi & Partners Srl, Proger SpA and BMS Progetti Srl just won an international competition to design the Padiglione Italia pavilion for the World Expo 2015 in Milan. The Italian team’s “Tree of Life” proposal is an energy-independent four-block community hub that features an expansive open courtyard space.

Read the rest of Massive Energy-Independent ‘Tree of Life’ Pavilion Unveiled for the World Expo 2015 in Milan

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Post tags: Eco Architecture, green architecture, milan architecture, milan expo 2015, off-grid architecture, Padiglione Italia, Tree of Life, world expo

Just under a year ago, the brains over at the Morpholio Project released Morpholio, a mobile and web-based app that created a new platform for presentation, critique and collaboration. They then followed this up with Trace, a digital design tool that allows creatives to instantly draw on top of imported images or background templates and layer comments or ideas to generate intelligent sketches to be shared. Now they’re back again with Morpholio 2.0, a new suite of seven forward-thinking design tools. The app re-imagines the portfolio as a design utility, providing a means to share, discuss and get feedback on work from a global community of users.

Read the rest of Morpholio Builds on Their Design App with the Launch of ’7 New Tools for the Creative World’

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Post tags: 7 New Tools for the Creative World', architecture portfolio, columbia morpholio, custom portfolio, design a portfolio, design portfolio, digital portfolio, drawing apps, drawing software, modern portfolios, morpholio, morpholio 2.0, portfolio app, portfolio software, portfolios for architects, presentation and portfolios, presentation app, presentation for architects, trace, trace app, trace by morpholio, tracing apps, tracing software

In 1980, E. Fay Jones, noted architect and apprentice to Frank Lloyd Wright, unveiled the Thorncrown Chapel – a magnificent glass and timber construction located in the middle of a thicket near Eureka Springs, Arkansas. The chapel is one of the world’s finest examples of organic architecture and it has become a beloved monument for the people of Eureka and architecture enthusiasts across the globe. Unfortunately, the Southwest Power Company (SWEPCO) recently submitted an application to the Arkansas Public Service Commission (APSC) to construct a 48-mile-long high voltage transmission line across Northwest Arkansas that will encroach upon the Thorncrown Chapel‘s untouched landscape. While a number of community members have voiced their opposition, much more support is needed – sign this petition to stop SWEPCO from destroying the site of this important work!

SIGN THE PETITION HERE >

Read the rest of Save the Thorncrown Chapel by Signing a Petition to Stop SWEPCO from Destroying the Surrounding Landscape!

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Post tags: "sustainable architecture", arkansas architecture, arkansas chapels, chapels in the forest, eureka springs architecture, eureka springs chapel, green architecture, green chapels, throrncrown chapel, throrncrown chapel petition, throrncrown chapel preservation, timber chapels

Are you an eco-conscious architect, designer or lighting professional looking to stay up to date on the latest innovations coming off the energy-efficient lighting front? We’ve teamed up with Elemental LED to provide designers with the ultimate resource for all things LED by creating the Elemental LED Design Center, a one-stop destination for green lighting carefully curated by leading industry professionals. Here you can learn about everything from how to choose an LED vendor to retrofitting or creating new constructions with low voltage LED lights and systems. You’ll even find plenty of inventive ideas that showcase new and unexpected ways to use LEDs to interior spaces. Check out the Elemental LED Design Center today and start creating your own new and beautiful LED lighting designs!
 

CHECK OUT THE DESIGN CENTER HERE >

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Post tags: "lighting design", and led lighting design competition, design a lamp, Design Competition, design resources, eco design contest, eco lamp, elemental design center, elemental LED, elemental led lighting design, elemental led store, green design competition, green lamp, industrial design competition, inhabitat competition, inhabitat contest, interior lighting resources, lamp design, lamp design contest, learn about lighting design, LED bulb, led lamp design, led light design, Lighten Up, Lighten Up! An LED Lighting Design Competition, lighting contest, lighting design center, lighting design competition, lighting design contest, lighting design resources, lighting resources, product design competition, win this

Last week, students and alumni from the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) furniture design department presented their latest designs at the Salone Satellite during the 2013 Milan Furniture Fair. SCAD was the only US university invited to participate in this year’s event, and students brought with them eight beautiful handmade crafts, each with their own modern twist. Also on show were a number of renderings featuring additional student works currently in progress. From crocheted stools to energy efficient lamps, click through our photo gallery to see a few highlights from the show!

Read the rest of SCAD’s Furniture Design Students Show Off Their Best Work at the 2013 Milan Furniture Fair

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Post tags: "green furniture", Milan, Milan Design Week, milan furniture, Milan Furniture Fair, Salone del mobile, Savannah College of Art and Design, SCAD, scad design, scad furniture

Seattle’s Bertschi Elementary School was just certified as the world’s fourth Living Building. The elementary school, situated in the heart of Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, is a 3,380-square-foot interactive learning environment filled with numerous green features – including composting toilets, solar panels and a slew of other additions that allowed it to meet the rigorous standards of the Living Building Challenge 2.0.

READ MORE >

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Post tags: bertschi living science wing, bertschi school, brigitte bertschi, Capitol Hill, Energy Recovery Ventilator, ethnobotanical garden, fsc certified, KMD Architects, leed certified, Living Building Challenge, restorative design collective, Seattle

If you’ve ever seen a standard ultrasound, you’ve probably feigned an understanding of what you were looking at. Those grainy, blurry, black and white images could very soon be a thing of the past with the introduction of GE’s HDlive technology. The HDlive offers incredible 3D images that are startlingly clear and in color, giving parents a true to life view of their unborn child. So, how is it done? Keep reading to learn more.

READ MORE >

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Post tags: 3D, color, dynamic rendering engine, fetus, ge healthcare, hdlive, imaging, prenatal, ultrasound

Hey Inhabitat readers! In case you missed it, we just wrapped up our broadcast of the Design with a Conscience conference in San Francisco, CA! We teamed up with Ford Motor Company and the American Institute for Architects (AIA) San Francisco to deliver you a peek at a thought-provoking event, which brought together visionary California architects and automotive designers eager to talk about the intersection of car and building design and how conscious design can spur innovation in both industries. This year’s star panel included: Allison Williams, principal architect at AW ink; Anne Fougeron, Founder of Fougeron Architecture; Ann Hand, CEO of Project Frog; and Freeman Thomas, Director of Strategic Design at Ford Motor Company. Though the event is over, you can read a few highlights from the panel after the break. We’ll also be posting a video recording of the conference very soon, so check back for it if you missed the live event.

Read the rest of Hear What Leading Automotive Designers and Architects Had to Say at Our ‘Design with a Conscience’ Webcast!

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Post tags: aia conferences, aia discussions, aia panels, AIA san francisco, Allison Williams, American Institute for Architects (AIA) San Francisco, Ann Hand, Anne Fougeron, architecture conference, architecture panel, architecture webcast, automotive panel, design conference, design panel, design webcast, design with a conscience, eco design, ford, ford motor company, Ford Strategic Concept Group, Fougeron Architecture, Freeman Thomas, Green Design Events, live webcast, perkins + will, Project Frog, sustainable design, webcast

Interested in the intersection of car and building design? Wondering what happens when architects and automotive designers get together to talk about design innovation? Here’s your chance to learn more about what cars and buildings can teach each other and how they can help us push the boundaries of design. We’re extending an exclusive e-vite to Inhabitat readers to join us online at ‘Design with a Conscience’ — a panel discussion between visionary California architects and automotive designers at 12:30 pm pst April 11th, 2013. We’ll be live streaming this discussion on Inhabitat.com (here), and we’ll focus on how thoughtful, emotionally resonant and sustainable design is improving lives. Featuring notable and visionary minds from both American Institute for Architects (AIA) and Ford Motor Company, this year’s panel discussion will include: Allison Williams of AW ink; Anne Fougeron, Founder of Fougeron Architecture; Ann Hand, CEO of Project Frog; and Freeman Thomas, Director of Strategic Design at Ford Motor Company. Join us live on April 11th to tune into this design discussion — and take part in the conversation by submitting your questions for the speakers below in the comments! We’ll be sending Inhabi-Tees to selected question submitters, so join in!

WHEN: Thursday, April 11, 2013, 12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. pst (3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. est)

WHERE: Link to live webcast here >

Read the rest of LIVE WEBCAST: Participate in ‘Design with a Conscience’ Webcast and Talk to Leading California Architects & Automotive Design Experts

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Post tags: aia conferences, aia discussions, aia panels, AIA san francisco, Allison Willams, American Institute for Architects (AIA) San Francisco, Ann Hand, Anne Fougeron, architecture conference, architecture panel, architecture webcast, automotive panel, design conference, design panel, design webcast, design with a conscience, eco design, ford, ford motor company, Ford Strategic Concept Group, Fougeron Architecture, Freeman Thomas, Green Design Events, live webcast, perkins + will, Project Frog, sustainable design, webcast

In the market for a new pair of headphones? Before you reach for those overpriced Beats by Dr. Dre (which are also made in China), consider wrapping your ears in a pair of LSTN’s gorgeous reclaimed wood headphones that also do good for the world. Ditching conventional synthetics, LSTN Headphones harness the acoustic properties of wood to create sounds as pure as those that come straight from a guitar, piano or violin. Each pair is individually handcrafted from reclaimed wood, and best of all, for every pair of LSTN Headphones sold, the company will donate proceeds from the purchase to one of their charity partners for the deaf — meaning one child with hearing loss receives medical attention and a custom fit hearing aid on your behalf. Purchase LSTN’s earbuds, on-ear headphones, or get a pair of their brand new Troubadour over-ear model (seen above) at www.lstnheadphones.com.

+ LSTN Headphones

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Post tags: cool headphones, eco friendly headphones, green electronics, green technology, high quality headphones, LSTN headphones, reclaimed wood headphones, wood earbuds, wood headphones

VICE is probably best known to most for its Dos & Don’ts, but the characteristically “hipster” publication has been cementing its place as an important journalistic outlet recently with some hard hitting articles and documentaries produced by its ambitious, and somewhat quirky, team of reporters. Their latest foray into moving media is ‘VICE‘, a new HBO series of the same name that “goes behind the news cycle” to cover stories that are often overlooked by mainstream press. We had a chance to watch the first couple episodes in the series last night at a sneak peek, and we must say that we were kind of blown away by the content. Read our review after the break and find out if it could be worth your time.

Read the rest of VICE Launches a New HBO TV Series Exploring Global Issues Overlooked by the Press

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Post tags: eco documentaries, eco TV, global warning documentaries, vice, vice documentaries, vice hbo, vice series, vice tv

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Post tags: architecture portfolio, columbia morpholio, custom portfolio, design a portfolio, design portfolio, digital portfolio, drawing apps, drawing software, modern portfolios, morpholio, portfolio app, portfolio software, portfolios for architects, presentation and portfolios, presentation app, presentation for architects, trace, trace app, trace by morpholio, tracing apps, tracing software

Many of us thought Google had the market cornered when it came to driverless cars, but Apple made a shocking announcement today with news that they would be releasing a new device and app that can transform ANY vehicle into a driverless one! Dubbed the iDrive, the system can be installed without the help of a professional and simply needs an iPhone or iPad to operate.

Read the rest of iDrive: Apple Releases New Device That Will Turn Any Car into a Driverless Vehicle

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Post tags: "april fools", apple car, apple driverless car, apple robot car, driverless cars, Google driverless car, idrive, idrive app, robot cars

Calling all design and architecture writers headed to Milan Design Week!

The 2013 Milan Furniture Fair kicks off next month and we’re on the hunt for a few talented writers and photographers to help us report on the best green products and furnishings at this exciting annual event. This is a great opportunity to share your photography and writing skills with our audience of millions of readers – so if you are planning to attend the fair from April 9th-14th and want to report on the latest innovations in sustainable design for Inhabitat get in touch today!

To Apply:

1. You must be located in or around Milan or already have plans to attend this year’s Milan Furniture Fair — travel expenses are not included.

2. Send an email to editor [at] inhabitat.com with the subject line 2013 Milan Furniture Fair Writer telling us a little about yourself and why you would make a great Inhabitat correspondent.

3. Attach 2-3 writing samples and 2-3 examples of your photography to your email. We look forward to hearing from you!

+ Milan Furniture Fair Coverage on Inhabitat

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Post tags: "green furniture", editorial work, green design, Green Design Events, green furnishings, green interiors, green jobs, inhabitat writers, Milan Design Week, Milan Furniture Fair, photography gigs, photography jobs, salone milan, sustainable design, writing gigs, writing jobs