Gold Social Design · 2021
Olive A Website with Open Designs for Survival
- A' Design Award 2021 Gold Winner in Social Design
- Awarded April 15, 2021
- CLIENT: Nosigner
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 81,078
- Verification code 9024D9D875 · Verify this award
About Olive A Website with Open Designs for Survival
Olive is a wiki site that gathers and shares practical knowledge during a disaster. The project was named Olive, derived from the letter O (an emblem of the Japanese national flag) + Live (to live on). Ideas were quickly gathered with help from worldwide, on how to build necessities to survive in affected areas without the supplies. It achieved over one million page views within three weeks. It is still expanding today as a database of disaster countermeasures using collective intelligence.
Eisuke Tachikawa's Olive A Website with Open Designs for Survival represents a significant contribution to contemporary social design practice, embodying principles of democratic information access and humanitarian communication that have gained increasing importance in our interconnected world, the work demonstrates how thoughtful interface architecture can transcend linguistic boundaries to deliver essential survival knowledge during crisis situations, displaying the platform across a modest flip phone device deliberately emphasizes accessibility rather than technological exclusivity, suggesting that vital information should reach communities regardless of their access to cutting-edge hardware, the typographic treatment balances urgency conveyed through bold crimson lettering with navigational clarity achieved through consistent circular marker elements, the multilingual options presented prominently on the landing screen reflect careful consideration of diverse user populations and their varying needs during emergency circumstances, compositionally the work achieves elegant simplicity that serves functional rather than purely aesthetic purposes, every visual element contributing to rapid comprehension and efficient wayfinding, the choice to document this interface through hand-held demonstration rather than isolated screen capture humanizes the technology, reminding viewers that design ultimately serves people in moments of genuine need, this approach to social design extends traditions of public information systems while embracing contemporary digital distribution methods, the platform functions as a living repository where survival knowledge becomes collectively authored and freely shared, viewers might contemplate how design thinking applied to humanitarian challenges can create systems of mutual aid that persist and evolve through community participation.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- OLIVE is a wiki site that gathers and shares practical knowledge during a disaster. The project was named OLIVE, derived from the letter O (an emblem of the Japanese national flag) + LIVE (to live on). Ideas were quickly gathered with help from worldwide, on how to build necessities to survive in affected areas without the supplies. It achieved over one million page views within three weeks. It is still expanding today as a database of disaster countermeasures using collective intelligence.
- Inspiration
- As a result of seeking the Internet for several hours since the occurrence of the Great East Japan Earthquake, we realized there were tons of people who wanted to help the affected areas as we do. People were sharing information, however, as it was a colossal disaster, the speed of information uploaded was too rapid to keep track. It was necessary for a place to store and organize this kind of useful information together. We, therefore, decided to create a wiki site, OLIVE.
Colors of Olive A Website with Open Designs for Survival
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Grand Interview about Olive A Website with Open Designs for Survival
When a massive earthquake struck in Tohoku, I was in Tokyo, I experienced significant shaking and a subsequent power outage. Overwhelmed by the desperate circumstances that followed, I started this project, which quickly gained traction. Many others, driven by a desire to help save lives that were being lost by the minute, joined in, providing a strong tailwind for the project's growth.
The name 'Olive' was inspired by the olive tree from the Old Testament, which symbolized hope for Noah's Ark during a flood. Interestingly, the name 'Olive' came to mind first, followed by the idea to incorporate it with the Japanese flag, and only then did I learn about its biblical significance. Perhaps, it was divine providence that guided us to this name.
The project began immediately after the disaster when rapid response was crucial as lives were being lost. This urgency led to the development of a simple, accessible system that could provide immediate help.
The editorial approach evolved in response to the incoming information, ultimately reaching virtually all Japanese citizens through resources like the Tokyo Disaster Preparedness Guide. We treated the knowledge as malleable rather than definitive, which was crucial for its ongoing evolution.
Immediately after the disaster, methods for constructing makeshift toilets and making sanitary napkins were particularly appreciated, highlighting the importance of maintaining basic hygiene in crisis situations. Five years later, this project led to the publication of the largest-ever disaster preparedness book distributed to all Tokyo residents, exceeding eight million copies.
By tracking how many people actually used the information provided, we saw the impact gradually expand from the early stages of disaster recovery. It's crucial to continue believing in and persisting with what is deemed important.
Given that this project started 13 years ago, it should evolve in response to changes in media. This initiative has grown into various projects, but to continue design projects for society, it's necessary to consider fundraising. Eventually, I hope to expand this project into a brand of disaster prevention products.
Design is about creating high-quality outputs, but during disasters like this, it's essential to put quality aside temporarily and focus on co-creation with many people. This collective intelligence proves invaluable in such times.
The key to creativity is the self-efficacy belief that one can change the situation. Being the project leader and showing people in Japan and worldwide that they can make a difference, even in the face of the largest disasters, can transform a sense of powerlessness into efficacy.
We have launched a project called ADAPTMENT, building on our disaster prevention efforts to create a comprehensive strategy for climate change adaptation. Given the increasing frequency of disasters, the importance of design for disaster preparedness and resilience will only grow. I hope our design efforts will inspire future designers.