World Wide Waste

As Lead Motion Designer for World Wide Waste, I helped craft the visual language for one of Business Insider’s most impactful environmental series. The show highlights global entrepreneurs who turn waste into valuable resources — from plastic-eating bacteria to upcycled fashion — while shedding light on the environmental cost of human consumption.

For the episode Can Bamboo Replace Paper and Plastic? And Should It?, we weren’t given a behind-the-scenes look at how the bamboo bioplastic was actually made, so the approach had to be conceptual. I designed an old-timey machine inspired by vintage cartoons, animating the process as if the bamboo products were being created from “sugar, spice, and everything nice.”

For the episode How Indians Handle Millions of Tons of Temple Offerings, this animation illustrates how each type of flower offered in temples is associated with a specific Hindu deity. The visual style was inspired by the animated idols and devotional imagery often seen in local Indian grocery stores, with careful attention paid to portraying the Hindu gods respectfully and accurately.

For the episode Why Most “Biodegradable” Products Are Probably Fake, this animation illustrates how most sneakers are made from multiple types of plastic. The visual style was inspired by technical blueprints, highlighting the complexity of materials beneath the surface.

For the episode Why the US Loses $800 Million a Year in Unrecycled Aluminum Cans, this animation explains how “bottle bills” work and traces where the money goes—from consumers to distributors—when cans are returned for recycling. The entire piece, from the hands crushing the can to the rotating nickels, was created in a stop-motion style.

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