When the major earthquake hit Japan in March 2011 and caused a nuclear reactor to fail, Joi Ito decided to do something about it. Bypassing the NGOs and government bodies frantically trying to solve the problem, he gathered a group of people online to create a network called “Safecast”, to monitor and report on radiation levels from the area.
It’s a beautiful story of what happens when enthusiastic amateurs tap into the power of the Internet to create something together at grass roots level (in this case literally).
His inspiring TED Talk ends with these words:
“The good news is that even though the world is extremely complex, what you need to do is very simple. I think it’s about stopping this notion that you need to plan everything, you need to stock everything, and you need to be so prepared, and [instead] focus on being connected, always learning, fully aware, and super present.”
Watch the full TED Talk here:
