The Olympic Spirit is inspiring, if often predictable. It is tough to resist reveling in the humanity demonstrated every day of this quadrennial event. From Bulgaria to Belize, Ghana to Greenland, viewers old and new, including myself, are emotionally caught up in the athletes' extraordinary tenacity and spirit. Many positive aspects of nationalism are on display, as is demonstrative, border-less support of individuals and teams on the field, track, pool, and floors. Learning about an athlete's path to the Olympics definitely adds to the allure, regardless of a sport's massive popularity or relative obscurity, and the media knows this all too well.
For Gustavo Sousa, Mother London's Creative Director, Olympic inspiration came from the iconic rings, and a much more common reality: inequality. His 16 statistically-based infographics address continental disparities on topics such as prevalence of McDonald's, the number of billionaires, and gun ownership. The ring-themes infographics have also absolutely delighted the teacher in me who often explores world history and geography though current events. Six infographics are now posted on the bulletin boards outside my classroom, and any one of them is sure to generate plenty of thought-provoking questions and reflection in my classroom.
If you want to see more of these timely, visually appealing, and eye-opening infographics, visit Oceaniaeuropeamericaasiaafrica. This article from Fast Company, where I first came across these gems, also provides a little more background.
I'm looking forward to the discussions with my students based on these infographics. What is your reaction?
