Marc Alt + Partners

Marc Alt + Partners is a design, research and strategy agency dedicated to sustainability and social innovation.

We partner with mission-driven companies and organizations on ideation, product development, futures forecasting, social innovation engagement and sustainability planning.

Marc Alt will teach Designing Living Systems in the Fall 2010 semester at NYU's Tisch ITP (Interactive Telecommunications Program).

Marc Alt spoke on the topic of "Pure Living" and how it is currently manifesting itself in design, technology, urban living, and transportation at the PSFK Good Ideas Salon, Tokyo. Good Ideas Salons are events in which forward-thinkers come together to share ideas to make things better, whether that's better work, better play or a better world. Drawing from a range of industries, Good Ideas Salons bring together people with a focus on lateral thinking, the desire to showcase their knowledge, and the wish to renew existing relationships with likeminded peers as well as forge new ones. Other panelists included Mark Dytham, Partner at Klein Dytham Architecture, and Founder of Pecha Kucha, Peter Rojas, Founder at gdgt, Engadget and Gizmodo, Piers Fawkes, Founder at PSFK (moderator), Rie Azuma, Azuma Architecture, Jun Ishida, Editor, Vogue Japan, Hiromi Matsubara, Co-founder, Greenz.jp and Danny Choo.

Marc Alt spoke at the 2009 Icograda World Design Congress in Beijing about social innovation, future systems and the role of design in solving the most pressing challenges of the next two decades. Icograda (the International Council of Graphic Design Associations) is the world body for professional communication design. Icograda promotes the vital role of communication design in society and commerce, and unifies the voices of graphic designers and visual communicators worldwide.

Marc Alt introduced Opportunity Green Enterprises, a new joint venture promoting entrepreneurship through competitions, training and events at the 2009 Opportunity Green Conference. Marc also introduced the first OG25 competition and invited finalists on stage to present in front of a panel of judges and audience members. OG25 is an open business competition that recognizes the most promising start-ups committed to building a new green economy. The competition highlights the brightest initiatives in clean technology, product design, mobility, social innovation, water and resource conservation, food systems, community development and more. Opportunity Green inspires a collaborative culture of new thinking and unconventional ideas that pushes change in unexpected ways.

Marc Alt participated as one of 60 delegates in the 2009 Aspen Design Summit. AIGA and Winterhouse Institute joined forces to stage the Aspen Design Summit to galvanize the global design community to engage in projects that promote social change. The goal is to foster collaboration and collective action among the participants to utilize the power of design to help solve large social problems. This summit is supported by the Rockefeller Foundation through a grant to develop collective action and collaboration for social impact involving the design profession as catalysts for solutions.

Marc Alt participated as a founding research advisor in the launch of PLAY REPORT, an evolving global study on child development initiated by IKEA. The project is being managed by the very cool Great Works agency. Other participants included Carlos Friedrich of IKEA, Derek Lyons of HelloFelix, Evan Oransten and Wendy Dembo of Cool Hunting, Jill Fehrenbacher of Inhabitat, and Johanna Björk of Goodlifer.

Marc Alt was a visiting critic for the Project M Winterhouse project. John Bielenberg's Project M partnered with Bill and Jessica Drentell's Winterhouse to run a one week design intensive project to apply design thinking and social innovation to a challenge facing a rural community. Twelve students participated in a unique collaborative enterprise to create a single design project of lasting value. Other critics include Michael Bierut, Allan Chochinov, Julie Lasky, Alice Twemlow and Michael Vanderbyl.

Marc Alt was the guest speaker at the New York City launch of the MINI-E. BMW North America is piloting a field test of 500 all-electric MINI Coopers to a select group of pioneers in Los Angeles, CA, New Jersey and New York City for a one year trial beginning in June. Marc Alt + Partners has been fortunate to work with BMW North America's MINI USA as an advisor on environmental initiatives.

Marc Alt moderated a panel on Making Consumer Electronics Green at the Clean Tech Summit in San Francisco. A two-day, multi-track, multi-disciplinary industry conference, the GLG Clean Tech Summit explored three key themes: Intellectual Property, Innovation and Investment. The other speakers on the panel were Richard Brown, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Gary Feather, Sharp Laboratories of America

Marc Alt joined the Advisory Board of Design Ignites Change. A project of Mark Randall's Worldstudio, Design Ignites Change challenges students to use design thinking to explore and create solutions for pressing social problems.

Marc Alt, Brian Dougherty and Eric Karjaluoto each presented their strategies and suggestions for practical activism within a design practice.

Marc Alt was a keynote speaker at Opportunity Green, a conference dedicated to facilitating business transformation for good. Through creating dialogue by bringing together some of the key innovators and influencers driving today's new green economy, the team behind Opportunity Green provides open-minded professionals unprecedented access and approaches to sustainability that are bankable and exciting.

Marc Alt participated as a delegate in the 2008 Yale/Green Electronics Council Sustainable Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Visioning Forum.

Marc Alt was a keynote speaker at The Future of Green Technology conference on a panel about Greening Design at SINOCES. The gateway to the Chinese consumer electronics market, SINOCES offers opportunities for leading consumer electronics business from China and abroad to view and showcase the latest technologies and cutting-edge products. The show is also a forum for communication between Chinese companies and their international partners.

Marc talked about best practices of design houses, designers, engineers or academics who introduce new environmentally-friendly attributes to new technologies. The other panelists were Chen Min, Senior Manager, Environmental Affairs, Nokia and Jeff Omelchuck, Director Green Electronics Council and Program Manager, EPEAT.

AIGA San Diego Y Conference Keynote Presentation

Marc Alt spoke at AIGA San Diego's Y13 - Seeds of Change, a conference that examined how individuals, communities, nations and the world are developing new paradigms for a more healthy and sustainable culture.

PSFK New York Conference

PSFK presented a day of trends, inspiration and creative ideas on Thursday March 27 in New York City. Investigating the most pressing themes of 2008, PSFK invited a select group of inspirational speakers that helped explore subjects such as Good Business, Tomorrow's TV, Collaborative Co-Working and New York culture.

Marc Alt lead a "Good Business" panel discussion with Graham Hill of Treehugger, Johnny Vulkan of Anomaly, Jeff Staple of Staple Design/Nike Considered and Jeffrey Hollender of Seventh Generation investigating one of the key trends driving business. Is good the new green? Does being good mean making good profits?

Greener Gadgets Conference 2008

On February 1st, 2008 in New York City industry leaders, entrepreneurs, journalists, and designers gathered to discuss the business case for the greening of the consumer electronics industry. The one day conference featured key representatives from some of the largest consumer electronics companies in the world, innovators from academic thinktanks, members of startups focused on renewable energy, and some of the leading minds in the word of sustainable design and business. Topics addressed included: design for sustainability, product life cycle management, take-back and recycling programs, energy efficiency, greener materials, and green lifestyle and product marketing. An attached gallery space featured a green prototype office display and technology exhibits from companies on the cutting edge of green tech.

Greener Gadgets is presented by
Inhabitat and Marc Alt + Partners.

www.greenergadgets.com

Here are some links to event coverage: Inhabitat, Metropolis, CNET News (photos, here), Core77 (photos, here), more Core77, Makezine, Wired News, AOL's Green Daily, Hearst's Daily Green, Smartplanet, Informationweek and PC Magazine's Gearlog. More photos here and here.

Marc Alt and Jill Fehrenbacher at Greener Gadgets

Conference Co-Chairs Marc Alt & Jill Fehrenbacher
announcing winner of Voltaic solar backpack raffle.
(photo: Glen Jackson Taylor)

The Designers Accord

Marc Alt + Partners is one of the inaugural adopters of The Designers Accord, a coalition of design and innovation firms focused on working together to create positive environmental and social impact. Marc Alt is a member of the Advisory Board and serves as Vice President of the Executive Board of The Designers Accord. The organization was founded by Valerie Casey of IDEO as a call to arms for designers to engage in the environmental movement with optimism and creativity. Adopting The Designers Accord provides access to a global community of peers who share passion and ideas around environmental innovation.

Marc Alt spoke on a panel on Greenwashing vs. Eco-Branding at the PSFK Trends Conference in New York City. Tamara Giltsoff of Live|Work and OZO Car moderated a discussion on how brands approach green marketing. The other panelists were Jill Fehrenbacher, publisher of Inhabitat and Hemal Vasavada-Gill of The Eightfold consultancy.

AIGA/NY Grow Conference

AIGA Grow Conference

As an advocate of sustainability, Marc develops environmental conferences, including Grow, the first conference dedicated to the intersection of design, sustainability and business in New York City. This trailblazing event featured senior executives from Wal-Mart, Johnson & Johnson, Osram Sylvania, IDEO, Cook+Fox Architects, Material ConneXion, the UN Global Compact and many other industry leaders who gathered to discuss the power of harnessing design to address the challenges of climate change and supply chain transformation.


	Marc Alt + Partners is a design, research and strategy agency dedicated to sustainability and social innovation. We partner with mission-driven companies and organizations on ideation, product development, futures forecasting, social innovation engagement and sustainability planning. news Design Week Brisbane Marc Alt will speak at Design Week Brisbane, Australia, October 11-17, 2010. Designing Living Systems @ ITP Marc Alt will teach Designing Living Systems in the Fall 2010 semester at NYU's Tisch ITP (Interactive Telecommunications Program). archive PSFK Good Ideas Salon Tokyo Marc Alt spoke on the topic of "Pure Living" and how it is currently manifesting itself in design, technology, urban living, and transportation at the PSFK Good Ideas Salon, Tokyo. Good Ideas Salons are events in which forward-thinkers come together to share ideas to make things better, whether that's better work, better play or a better world. Drawing from a range of industries, Good Ideas Salons bring together people with a focus on lateral thinking, the desire to showcase their knowledge, and the wish to renew existing relationships with likeminded peers as well as forge new ones. Other panelists included Mark Dytham, Partner at Klein Dytham Architecture, and Founder of Pecha Kucha, Peter Rojas, Founder at gdgt, Engadget and Gizmodo, Piers Fawkes, Founder at PSFK (moderator), Rie Azuma, Azuma Architecture, Jun Ishida, Editor, Vogue Japan, Hiromi Matsubara, Co-founder, Greenz.jp and Danny Choo. Icograda World Design Congress Marc Alt spoke at the 2009 Icograda World Design Congress in Beijing about social innovation, future systems and the role of design in solving the most pressing challenges of the next two decades. Icograda (the International Council of Graphic Design Associations) is the world body for professional communication design. Icograda promotes the vital role of communication design in society and commerce, and unifies the voices of graphic designers and visual communicators worldwide. Opportunity Green 2009 Marc Alt introduced Opportunity Green Enterprises, a new joint venture promoting entrepreneurship through competitions, training and events at the 2009 Opportunity Green Conference. Marc also introduced the first OG25 competition and invited finalists on stage to present in front of a panel of judges and audience members. OG25 is an open business competition that recognizes the most promising start-ups committed to building a new green economy. The competition highlights the brightest initiatives in clean technology, product design, mobility, social innovation, water and resource conservation, food systems, community development and more. Opportunity Green inspires a collaborative culture of new thinking and unconventional ideas that pushes change in unexpected ways. Aspen Design Summit Marc Alt participated as one of 60 delegates in the 2009 Aspen Design Summit. AIGA and Winterhouse Institute joined forces to stage the Aspen Design Summit to galvanize the global design community to engage in projects that promote social change. The goal is to foster collaboration and collective action among the participants to utilize the power of design to help solve large social problems. This summit is supported by the Rockefeller Foundation through a grant to develop collective action and collaboration for social impact involving the design profession as catalysts for solutions. IKEA Play Report Marc Alt participated as a founding research advisor in the launch of PLAY REPORT, an evolving global study on child development initiated by IKEA. The project is being managed by the very cool Great Works agency. Other participants included Carlos Friedrich of IKEA, Derek Lyons of HelloFelix, Evan Oransten and Wendy Dembo of Cool Hunting, Jill Fehrenbacher of Inhabitat, and Johanna Björk of Goodlifer. Project M Winterhouse Marc Alt was a visiting critic for the Project M Winterhouse project. John Bielenberg's Project M partnered with Bill and Jessica Drentell's Winterhouse to run a one week design intensive project to apply design thinking and social innovation to a challenge facing a rural community. Twelve students participated in a unique collaborative enterprise to create a single design project of lasting value. Other critics include Michael Bierut, Allan Chochinov, Julie Lasky, Alice Twemlow and Michael Vanderbyl. NYC MINI-E Launch Event Marc Alt was the guest speaker at the New York City launch of the MINI-E. BMW North America is piloting a field test of 500 all-electric MINI Coopers to a select group of pioneers in Los Angeles, CA, New Jersey and New York City for a one year trial beginning in June. Marc Alt + Partners has been fortunate to work with BMW North America's MINI USA as an advisor on environmental initiatives. 2009 Greener Gadgets Conference Marc Alt and Jill Fehrenbacher kick off Greener Gadgets 2009. Coverage of the day: Inhabitat, Inhabitat Live-Blogging, press coverage here and here, and Core77 Greener Gadgets Design Competition coverage here. Sustainable Brands International Marc Alt presented at Sustainable Brands International in Miami Beach on The Role of Open Source Design & Collaboration. Gerson Lehrman Group Clean Tech Summit Marc Alt moderated a panel on Making Consumer Electronics Green at the Clean Tech Summit in San Francisco. A two-day, multi-track, multi-disciplinary industry conference, the GLG Clean Tech Summit explored three key themes: Intellectual Property, Innovation and Investment. The other speakers on the panel were Richard Brown, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Gary Feather, Sharp Laboratories of America Design Ignites Change Marc Alt joined the Advisory Board of Design Ignites Change. A project of Mark Randall's Worldstudio, Design Ignites Change challenges students to use design thinking to explore and create solutions for pressing social problems. SGD "Pracitivism" Lecture The Society of Graphic Designers/BC Chapter presented Practivism, Practical Methods for radical sustainability in design, the second in an ongoing series of design speaking events. Marc Alt, Brian Dougherty and Eric Karjaluoto each presented their strategies and suggestions for practical activism within a design practice. Opportunity Green 2008 Marc Alt was a keynote speaker at Opportunity Green, a conference dedicated to facilitating business transformation for good. Through creating dialogue by bringing together some of the key innovators and influencers driving today's new green economy, the team behind Opportunity Green provides open-minded professionals unprecedented access and approaches to sustainability that are bankable and exciting. Marc Alt leads a panel discussion about open source design with Peter Falt, BMW DesignWorks, Jane Savage, Nike Considered, and Scott Mattoon, Sun Microsystems. RGD Ontario Design Thinkers Conference Marc Alt was a featured speaker at RGD Ontario's DesignThinkers Conference in Toronto, where designers from all walks of life gathered to share experiences, new ideas and celebrate the power of design. Marc joined a mainstage panel with Steff Geissbuhler, Massimo Vignelli and Scott Stowell to talk about the future of design. Yale/Green Electronics Council Sustainable ICT Forum Marc Alt participated as a delegate in the 2008 Yale/Green Electronics Council Sustainable Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Visioning Forum. T3 Middle East Feature on Marc Alt and Greener Gadgets T3 Middle East has a feature article on Marc Alt in their July/August issue. Marc shares his thoughts on what it takes for a company to take the green road. Also in this issue an 8-page story on the Greener Gadgets Design Competition. 2008 SINOCES Keynote Presentation Marc Alt was a keynote speaker at The Future of Green Technology conference on a panel about Greening Design at SINOCES. The gateway to the Chinese consumer electronics market, SINOCES offers opportunities for leading consumer electronics business from China and abroad to view and showcase the latest technologies and cutting-edge products. The show is also a forum for communication between Chinese companies and their international partners. Marc talked about best practices of design houses, designers, engineers or academics who introduce new environmentally-friendly attributes to new technologies. The other panelists were Chen Min, Senior Manager, Environmental Affairs, Nokia and Jeff Omelchuck, Director Green Electronics Council and Program Manager, EPEAT. AIGA Center for Sustainable Design AIGA Center for Sustainable Design featured on Dwell Magazine's Sustainability Timeline, bookended by Wal-Mart and Al Gore. Marc Alt co-founded the AIGA CFSD in 2005. Dwell Magazine, July/August 2008 issue "Growing up Green" New York American Marketing Association (AMA) Lecture Marc Alt spoke at the New York American Marketing Association about Going Green, Sustainability and Accountability - Ideas on Marketing in the 21st Century. The purpose of this talk was to help inform and inspire agency professionals involved in developing internal expertise on green marketing, sustainability and corporate social responsibility practice in their organizations. AIGA San Diego Y Conference Keynote Presentation Marc Alt spoke at AIGA San Diego's Y13 - Seeds of Change, a conference that examined how individuals, communities, nations and the world are developing new paradigms for a more healthy and sustainable culture. PSFK New York Conference PSFK presented a day of trends, inspiration and creative ideas on Thursday March 27 in New York City. Investigating the most pressing themes of 2008, PSFK invited a select group of inspirational speakers that helped explore subjects such as Good Business, Tomorrow's TV, Collaborative Co-Working and New York culture. Marc Alt lead a "Good Business" panel discussion with Graham Hill of Treehugger, Johnny Vulkan of Anomaly, Jeff Staple of Staple Design/Nike Considered and Jeffrey Hollender of Seventh Generation investigating one of the key trends driving business. Is good the new green? Does being good mean making good profits? Greener Gadgets Conference 2008 On February 1st, 2008 in New York City industry leaders, entrepreneurs, journalists, and designers gathered to discuss the business case for the greening of the consumer electronics industry. The one day conference featured key representatives from some of the largest consumer electronics companies in the world, innovators from academic thinktanks, members of startups focused on renewable energy, and some of the leading minds in the word of sustainable design and business. Topics addressed included: design for sustainability, product life cycle management, take-back and recycling programs, energy efficiency, greener materials, and green lifestyle and product marketing. An attached gallery space featured a green prototype office display and technology exhibits from companies on the cutting edge of green tech. Greener Gadgets is presented by Inhabitat and Marc Alt + Partners. www.greenergadgets.com Here are some links to event coverage: Inhabitat, Metropolis, CNET News (photos, here), Core77 (photos, here), more Core77, Makezine, Wired News, AOL's Green Daily, Hearst's Daily Green, Smartplanet, Informationweek and PC Magazine's Gearlog. More photos here and here. Conference Co-Chairs Marc Alt & Jill Fehrenbacher announcing winner of Voltaic solar backpack raffle. (photo: Glen Jackson Taylor) The Designers Accord Marc Alt + Partners is one of the inaugural adopters of The Designers Accord, a coalition of design and innovation firms focused on working together to create positive environmental and social impact. Marc Alt is a member of the Advisory Board and serves as Vice President of the Executive Board of The Designers Accord. The organization was founded by Valerie Casey of IDEO as a call to arms for designers to engage in the environmental movement with optimism and creativity. Adopting The Designers Accord provides access to a global community of peers who share passion and ideas around environmental innovation. PSFK New York Conference Keynote Panel Marc Alt spoke on a panel on Greenwashing vs. Eco-Branding at the PSFK Trends Conference in New York City. Tamara Giltsoff of Live\|Work and OZO Car moderated a discussion on how brands approach green marketing. The other panelists were Jill Fehrenbacher, publisher of Inhabitat and Hemal Vasavada-Gill of The Eightfold consultancy. AIGA/NY Grow Conference As an advocate of sustainability, Marc develops environmental conferences, including Grow, the first conference dedicated to the intersection of design, sustainability and business in New York City. This trailblazing event featured senior executives from Wal-Mart, Johnson & Johnson, Osram Sylvania, IDEO, Cook+Fox Architects, Material ConneXion, the UN Global Compact and many other industry leaders who gathered to discuss the power of harnessing design to address the challenges of climate change and supply chain transformation.		Marc Alt + Partners 160 Varick Street 12th Floor New York, NY 10013 (310) 359-8423 info@marcalt.com Background As a designer, I am fascinated and obsessed with the critical role that design plays in building a more sustainable future. As an entrepreneur, I am ignited by the desire to channel my energy and career towards solving the pressing issues of our time. I have been involved in creating a number of industry organizations, conferences and projects focussing on clean technology, sustainable design, social innovation and entrepreneurship: In 2005, I co-founded the AIGA Center for Sustainable Design as a community of practice to create focus on sustainability in the design profession. AIGA is the oldest and largest design organization in the U.S. I later joined the founding Executive Board and Advisory Board of the Designers Accord, a global coalition of design professionals from every discipline working together to create environmental and social impact. In 2007, I co-founded the Greener Gadgets conference, the first event to look at the business case for greening the $170 billion consumer electronics industry. In late 2009, I founded a cleantech startup, Aquaponica, to create sustainable food and living systems powered by clean technology. We are currently in the early stage R&D phase and will be rolling out prototypes over the next year to support sustainable agriculture and environmental remediation. I am currently Executive Director of the Green Parking Council, a new initiative focused on green building, the emerging EV market, the smart grid, sustainable mobility, cleantech and renewable energy. I serve on the advisory boards of Opportunity Green, Design Ignites Change, Terreform1, Green Leaders Global, New York City Energy Tech. I embrace every opportunity to provide insight and momentum to initiatives that are creating measurable impact and accelerating a global transition to sustainability. speaking engagements PSFK Good Ideas Salon, Tokyo, Japan Icograda World Congress 2009, Beijing, China Opportunity Green, Los Angeles, California Aspen Design Summit, Aspen, Colorado Compostmodern 09, AIGA/SF, San Francisco, CA International CES, Las Vegas, NV Sustainable Brands International, Miami Beach, FL GLG Clean Tech Summit, San Francisco, CA The Society of Graphic Designers/BC, Vancouver, B.C. Opportunity Green, Los Angeles, CA DesignThinkers Conference, Toronto, Ontario NYU Tisch ITP, New York, NY 2008 CEA Industry Forum, Las Vegas, NV Yale/Green Electronics Council Sustainable Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Visioning Forum, New Haven, CT SINOCES, Quingdao, China New York American Marketing Association, New York City Ogilvy Greenery Lab New York City F.I.T. Green Design Lecture Series - Green Paper and Printing, New York City AIGA San Diego's Y13 - Seeds of Change conference, San Diego PSFK Conference, New York City AIGA Philadelphia's Greenstock Spring Lecture series, Philadelphia AIGA New Orleans Green Salon, New Orleans Greener Gadgets Conference, New York City Compostmodern 08, AIGA/SF, San Francisco, CA Solar One, New York City - Green Electronics Seminar Cause/Effect: Design as Change Agent, AIGA/NY, New York City GAA Green Printing Conference, Philadelphia PSFK Trends Conference, New York City press 02.28.09 CNN Energy Fix w/Poppy Harlow Guest commentator 07.25.08 T3 Middle East, July/August Issue - "Marc Alt," feature story 04.24.08 MediaBistro's AgencySpy - "The Greening Of Agencies: Lessons Via MAP's Marc Alt" 04.01.08 Web Designing Magazine (Japan), April - "Design Makes the World Move Forward" 03.21.08 Next American City - "NAC exclusive interview: Marc Alt, founding co-chair of the AIGA Center for Sustainable Design" 03.10.08 AdWeek - "One to Grow On" 02.15.08 Domino Magazine, March, "The Green Issue" - "my green life: the gadget guru" 02.13.08 Paper Specs - "Compostmodern 08: Trash Talking" 01.25.08 BusinessWeek.com - "Quality over Green: Nike's new Air Jordan" 12.15.07 UnBeige - "Marc Alt Introduces the Center for Sustainable Design" 07.12.07 Print Magazine, July/August, "The Consumption Issue" - "Excess as Less" 04.01.07 CNET - "When corporate 'greening' chafes environmentalists" 09.01.06 Dynamic Graphics Magazine, August/September issue - "When recycling is not enough"




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