Social Design

Social21 is a social design network, whose mission is to inspire social activism through design. We connect people who want to explore ways design can positively impact our many worlds, and who want to create change here, now.

We heard of them through a piece on Treehugger which discussed one of the products to come out of a competition they held in 2008 called Power to the Pedal, which asked for designs that could enhance the biking experience. The brief reads:

Promoting bicycle use also means enabling it; local governments are being
tasked to improve infrastructure to create more convenient and safer routes as
well as incentives for biking... This competition calls for a biking accessory or add-on for existing bikes that would improve the bicycling experience and encourage more people to make biking their primary means of transport – more convenient, more enjoyable, safer and more integrated into daily lifestyles – whether it's for commuting, working, shopping, transporting, leisure or all of the above.

They received TONS of submissions over the duration of the competition, which closed last May. Finalists & winners were chosen through public voting through the Social21 website and a jury process, and three awards were given. The top prize went to a power cell that runs from riding a bicycle, but submissions ranged from handmade helmet covers to trailers to folding handlebars to a concept that blows bubbles through your rotating wheel, which in turn scatters seeds throughout the city, like Johnny Appleseed. Or this, which turns your bike into a wind instrument:


I still can't believe that this whole business eluded the FH radar screen...obviously we might have had something to say about it. But I'd say go check out what designers dreamed up for those of us on two wheels, there's some crazy stuff. I mean...we like crazy.