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Earth Day is getting a sequeland it comes with an unusually engaging logo. Founded by environmentalist Bill McKibben and Earth Day founder Denis Hayes, Sun Day is a global day of action that will be held this Sunday, September 21. The iconography of the first Earth Day was fascinating, says McKibben. There were a lot of things people were protesting againstyou know, oil spills off Santa Barbara, the Cuyahoga River catching on fire.The most important design element, though, was the picture that had come back from Apollo 8 about a year before, the first vision of the Earth as seen from space, and this fragile, blue-white marble in the black void, arguably the most important photograph ever taken, McKibben tells Fast Company.How do you compete with that? For Sun Day, McKibben wanted to do something perhaps less iconic but equally impactful: Thus, the logo is unfinished and invites us all to fill in the rest.A participatory logo[Art: Courtesy of Sun Day]Before it was called Sun Day, McKibben says he had the idea for Sky Day. After turning to the team at the consultancy Collins, the realization was that there was no good way to draw a picture of the sky, but everybody was drawing the sun.In this case, the design element is the sun, which is, if you think about it, literally the one object on the planet you cant look at, he says.The resulting logo represents only half the sun, with an asterisk-style mark on the left side and a blank space on the right for people to fill in their own drawing. As a symbol, the sun is simple and easily abstracted; as a work of advocacy, it gives people a first thing to do. Its participatory by design.The basic message becomes we have half of what we need, we now have the technology. We live on a planet where the cheapest way to make power is to point a sheet of glass at the sun, McKibben says, noting that whats lacking is the political will to make clean energy work.Collins created the branding for Sun Day with Commercial Type, which designed a custom Sun Day typeface that comes in print, brush, and outline weights. Garden3d built an application that lets users make their own sun drawings directly in the browser with MS Paint-like ease.[Art: Courtesy of Sun Day]The resulting brand is one thats meant to look more DIY than professionally designed. Already about 10,000 people have made their own logos, including Jane Fonda, who drew a heart while in the rainforest of Ecuador doing advocacy work. So many of these protests . . . when really well-meaning designers get involved, they end up looking like national design conferences instead of something where people make shit, designer Brian Collins says. I think part of what people need to see is their own voice in these things, whether its their children . . . their parents, their aunts, their friends. Whats important is giving people a voice to participate collectively.This isnt climate activism as visualized through sad polar bears on ice caps or images of a cause thats lost and a planet thats too far gone. Its optimisticand something everyone can latch on to.As Collins sees it, Hope is a strategy, and hope is our strategy here.
Category:
E-Commerce
Lets be honest: Monetization today is broken. Most platforms are still stuck in a mindset that treats users like ATMs, squeezing every last drop of value through interruptive ads, upsells, and bait-and-switch tactics. Its lazy, short-term thinking, and its killing loyalty, destroying brand equity, and stunting real growth. Rewards platforms have long been dismissed as gimmicks. Get a coffee for clicking here or watch an ad, earn a buck. Thats a fundamental misunderstanding of their potential. Done right, shared-value ecosystems dont just hand out perks. They flip the entire revenue model on its head. Giving more doesnt erode profit. It fuels it. Heres our take: If your business model depends on user extraction rather than user empowerment, you’re on borrowed time. Cynical ploys Weve seen what happens when platforms forget who they serve. Snapchats infamous redesign led to a $1.3 billion drop in market value overnight. Why? Because users smelled what it was: a cynical ploy to cram in more ads, regardless of the experience. The backlash wasnt subtle. Over one million users signed a petition demanding a rollback. That wasnt just a bad PR day. It was a warning shot. Too many companies are chasing revenue at the cost of trust. They prioritize short-term results over long-term loyalty. In doing so, they erode the very foundation their business rests on. You dont optimize your way out of that. You rethink the entire equation. The Value Triangle Enter the Value Triangle: a simple but radical framework that says platform monetization only works long-term when it delivers for everyone: the user, the advertiser, and the platform. Platform value means delivering experiences, not just exposure. Spotify nailed this with Discover Weekly. No one asked for algorithmically generated playlists. But when they delivered billions of personalized streams without a single annoying ad, they proved that relevance beats interruption every time. Advertiser value isnt about reach. Its about resonance. Duolingo integrates ads into study breaks so seamlessly they actually feel helpful. Users are primed, context is appropriate, and ROI improves. Thats what ads should feel like: additive, not disruptive. User value is the ultimate unlock. Personalization, agency, and real benefits. Amazon Prime is the obvious example. People want to pay for something that gives them speed, convenience, and exclusive access. Its not just a subscription. Its a loyalty engine. Put all three together and something incredible happens. Users want to stick around. Advertisers want to spend. Platforms dont have to choose between growth and goodwill. User declines dont happen by accident. They are the natural outcome of data overreach, ad fatigue, and treating engagement as an end rather than a means. The lesson is clear: when you reduce people to targets instead of partners, they walk awayand they take their loyalty and their wallets with them. Building for the future The old playbook of extract first, apologize later is dead. Todays users are smarter, savvier, and less tolerant of being exploited. Growth doesnt come from outsmarting them. It comes from respecting them. Empowering them. Building with them, not on top of them. The future is now. The choice is whether to build for it or cling to an outdated, crumbling model.
Category:
E-Commerce
This week in business was a bit of a balancing act. Consumers faced a number of fresh reminders this week that everyday products are not always safe or convenient. Companies are rethinking their footprints, closing stores in some markets while making bold moves to expand elsewhere. The markets reminded everyone that investor confidence can rise faster than fundamentals, especially when a big name signals conviction. Technology updates kept the spotlight, offering both sleek new features and practical questions about how global rollouts actually work in daily life. Real estate data showed a market that is slowing but not collapsing, and credit data highlighted how uneven the recovery feels, with some households finding it harder to keep up even as others benefit from strong asset gains. Heres what stood out in business news this week. FDA expands cookware warning over lead risk You might want to check your pots and pans. The FDA added more imported brass and aluminum cookware to its lead risk warning after new testing showed more products can leach unsafe amounts into food. Several items sold through specialty grocers are now flagged, with the agency urging consumers to toss them, not donate or refurbish. iOS 26 rolls out: timing, features, and supported devices It’s September, which means it’s time for Apple’s annual iOS refresh. This year’s update includes a bold Liquid Glass design, new AI tools, and a refreshed calling experience. The rollout followed Apples usual timing playbook, hitting in the late morning Pacific time. The free update supports models back to the iPhone 12, with related OS updates across iPad, Mac, Watch, TV, and Vision Pro. Housing softens as seasonal tide turns Nearly 40% of the countrys largest metros saw home prices fall year over year in July, the highest share since 2012. Seasonally adjusted national prices slipped slightly month over month, a sign of cooler demand heading into fall. Petco to close 25 stores in 2025 amid portfolio optimization Your local Petco might be closing. The popular pet retailer confirmed it will shut down 25 locations this year, matching last years pace, with 10 already closed by Q2. Shares of the company remain down, with leadership signaling more focus on margins than expansion. Safeway to shutter 12 stores across three states Safeway, owned by Albertsons, is closing 12 underperforming storesmost of them in Coloradoby early November. The decision follows the collapse of the Kroger-Albertsons merger after regulators blocked the deal. Beyond job impacts, the closures add to worries about food deserts in some affected areas. Tesla rallies on a $1B insider buyeven as questions linger Tesla stock climbed this week after Elon Musks family foundation disclosed buying around $1 billion worth of shares. Investors took it as a show of confidence and a hint that Musk may devote more focus to the company. Still, questions remain about competition, product rollouts, and whether the fundamentals can match the markets optimism. Credit scores notch largest two-year drop since the Great Recession Credit scores are starting to look a little rough. The average FICO score slipped to 715, the steepest two-year decline since 2009. Gen Zers saw the sharpest drop, in part due to the return of student loan delinquencies on credit reports. Rising borrowing costs and late payments on auto loans and credit cards are weighing on household finances across the board. Costco issues unusual recall for shattering sparkling wine bottles Costco recalled a Kirkland-branded prosecco after warning that unopened bottles could explodeeven while sitting on a shelf. Customers were told not to bring bottles back but to safely dispose of them. Those who bought the wine were mailed a letter and should bring it to the store to receive a refund. No injuries have been reported, but the warning follows similar packaging issues in the beverage industry. Eye drops show promise as a nonsurgical presbyopia aid One day you might be able to ditch your reading glasses for eye drops. Researchers in Argentina unveiled promising results this week for eye drops that improve near vision, potentially reducing reliance on reading glasses. Patients reported being able to read two to three extra lines on an eye chart, with benefits lasting up to two years. Side effects were mild, but the treatment still awaits regulatory review. ServiceNow plans a 200,000-square-foot AI Institute in West Palm Beach Enterprise software firm ServiceNow announced plans for a massive AI hub in Florida, complete with an education center and startup accelerator. Backed by state and local incentives, the project is set to create about 850 jobs by 2030. The move underscores West Palm Beachs growing pull as a business and tech destination with more affordable living costs than legacy hubs.
Category:
E-Commerce
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