Plant Money makes a T-shirt

Consider the global supply and production chain involved in making a simple clothing article, such as a T-shirt. NPR's Plant Money recently did, and from it created this enlightening rich-media series. Each of the five parts (cotton, machines, people, boxes, you) is comprised of a short overview video, followed by images, text, graphics, and links to additional resources, deconstructing the process. The series was initially funded as a Kickstarter project, in which the intent was to finance the manufacture of 2,000 shirts; 25,000 were ultimately made. Note: the deadline for ordering a project T-shirt is December 31, 2013. (YouTube playlist available at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2Zod7Sd3rQ&list=PLp-wXwmbv3z8aAJrhyttiqPMiKy0WVJym).

the iEconomy

Yesterday's New York Times has an informative article on how Apple jobs came to leave the U.S. for Asia.   How U.S Lost Out on iPhone Work by Duhigg and Bradsher is slated as the first in the series, The iEconomy.

The second article in the series, In China, Human Costs are Built into an iPad, examines various health and safety issues surrounding the production of Apple products in China, including the extent to which Apple is aware of such problems and has taken corrective action.

A related NY Times piece features Dreamwork China, a new documentary giving voice to workers at Foxconn, the major Apple contractor in China.