Photo and design Pamela Lindgren. All rights reserved © 2016

This is Lars-Ola Bligård, he is a researcher at Chalmers University of Technology.
Thank you Lars-Ola for promoting organ donation! All people working on the RECYCLE ME movement are volunteers, working in their free time.

An approximate estimation of how many breaths you take in a lifetime is 500 million. The lungs are complex organs, taking oxygen from the air and releasing the carbon dioxide we don´t need.

It is possible to live with only half of your lungs, but not without both. Therefore it was an important step when the first lung transplant was performed in 1963 and later in the 80ies they developed medications etc. that increased the success rate. As of today, doctors have not found a substitute for these complex organs and are depending on organ donors.

Don´t hold your breath about organ donation, make your wishes known!

Photo and design Pamela Lindgren. All rights reserved © 2016

This is Isabell Lindell Warensce posing for organ donation by wearing the RECYCLE ME LIFE silver liver! In the photo is also her daughter Lou, almost 5 months old, so cute! Thank you Isabell for participating in the RECYCLE ME movement for organ donation!

Isabell is a wife and a mother, when she is not on maternity leave she works as a social worker in an acute home for families and children ages 1-12.

The human liver is incredible with the ability to regenerate and regrow to full size after donating a small part of the giver´s liver!

“Weighing in at around 3 pounds, the liver is the body’s second largest organ; only the skin is larger and heavier. The liver performs many essential functions related to digestion, metabolism, immunity, and the storage of nutrients within the body. These functions make the liver a vital organ without which the tissues of the body would quickly die from lack of energy and nutrients. Fortunately, the liver has an incredible capacity for regeneration of dead or damaged tissues; it is capable of growing as quickly as a cancerous tumor to restore its normal size and function.” Text from http://www.innerbody.com/image_digeov/card10-new2.html
 
While views of organ donation are positive there is a large gap between the numbers of registered donors compared to those awaiting organ donations on a global level.
So remember; make your wishes known, your decision can save lives!

Photo and design Pamela Lindgren. All rights reserved © 2016

This is Mikael Johansson who works as a project assistant at the department of Design and Human Factors at Chalmers University of Technology. He is currently involved in projects regarding the interaction between humans and machines.

By showing his support for organ donation Mikael helps spread the word- organ donation concerns us all! Thank you Mikael!

Working 24/7 as purifier of the human blood, the liver is a busy organ. However, an overdose of i.e. paracetamol or eating poisonous mushrooms can cause the liver to fail. In those cases liver transplant is the only way. Scientists are working on solutions, among others researcher David Hay and his colleagues; follow link for article http://www.crm.ed.ac.uk/…/pluripotent-stem-cell-hepatocyte-…

PS; Did you know that you can donate part of your liver? The recipient gets a piece that grows inside them and your liver grows back inside you. This is mainly used with parents-child, and the parent leaves approximately 20% of their liver.

Thank you Expressen for this nice article! Top Photo: Thomas Holm Photography. All rights reserved © 2016. Benita Bünger ballet dancer. BRAVE HEART design Pamela Lindgren. All rights reserved © 2016.

This is Benita Bünger. She is a professional ballet dancer with the Royal Danish Ballet in Copenhagen, Denmark. She is now collaborating with us to spread the RECYCLE ME movement globally. Thank you Benita, your participation means a lot to us! This incredible photo of Benita wearing the BRAVE HEART jewellery for organ donation awareness is a work of the Danish photographer Thomas Holm. Thomas is also collaborating with his profession as a photographer with RECYCLE ME.

We think this photo of Benita floating in the air in a weightless condition expresses so much hope, grace and compassion. It is like an imprint, an image of magic. That mind and body can achieve even the most impossible thoughts. Think about it. If we unite together around the cause of life with our compassion and strength, together we will make magic.

Both Benita and Thomas have participated on a non-profit base for the cause of organ donation. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts. You have managed to bring our united cause to the next level by your art. Sincerely thank you.

If you would like to contribute to the movement, you can do so by purchasing the RECYCLE ME jewellery by Designer Pamela Lindgren at www.recycleme.life
 
The profits from RECYCLE ME jewellery will go to Professor Lars-Erik Gelin Memorial Foundation for Transplant Research. www.gelinfonden.org
 
Photo: Thomas Holm Photography. All rights reserved © 2016
facebook.com/thomasholmphotography

Photo and design Pamela Lindgren. All rights reserved © 2016

This is Maral Babapour Chafi posing for RECYCLE ME in a liver t-shirt! Maral was born and raised in Tehran, Iran. She moved to Sweden to study Industrial Design Engineering, and now she is a PhD student at Chalmers University of Technology. Her research interest lies in people’s interaction with product systems and their surrounding environment. One of her most favorite free-time activities is climbing.

Thank you, Maral for helping us spread the message; organ donation concerns us all!

The liver is an important part of our body, functioning both as a purifier and as a manufacturer. There is currently no way to compensate for the absence of liver function in the long term, although liver dialysis techniques can be used in the short term. Liver transplantation is the only option for complete liver failure. More interesting facts about the liver on Wikipedia; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liver

Photo and design Pamela Lindgren. All rights reserved © 2016

This is Fredrick Ekman posing for organ donation awareness in a RECYCLE ME t-shirt.

Fredrick Ekman is an Industrial Design Engineer (M.Sc.) who is currently working in different automotive related projects at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Thank you Fredrick for helping promoting organ donation awareness with RECYCLE ME LIFE!

This is a non-profit movement driven by people in their free time.
RECYCLE ME movement wants to raise awareness for Organ Donation. The need for Organ Donors is great and in some cases organs are sold on the black market from living donors who risk their lives in the operations for small money, or by organ harvesting. By spreading the word and signing up for organ donation you can help shortening the waiting list for organs that exist today.

Remember- organ donation concerns us all. www.recycleme.life

On this excellent webpage “IRODaT” The International Registry of Organ Donation and Transplantation, you find a database that provides information by country of donation and transplantation activity. Click on the countries you are interested in http://www.irodat.org/

On this webpage you find Doctors against forced organ harvesting (DAFOH) a medical community and society with objective findings of unethical and illegal organ harvesting. http://www.dafoh.org/

Photo and design Pamela Lindgren. All rights reserved © 2016

This is Örjan Söderberg.
He is a father of three sons and an industrial designer. Örjan works at Chalmers University of Technology where he divides his time between teaching at the Msc program in Industrial Design Engineering and leading the program. As the head of Programme he is responsible for the educational and strategic work in one of Sweden's most sought after educations. The goal is to give students a broad base of design and technology with a lot of knowledge and a strong focus on the user.

Örjan lost his spleen in 1986 and then needed a transfusion of 4,5 liters of blood - so he knows the importance of giving and receiving.

Thank you so much Örjan for your participation with RECYCLE ME LIFE for organ donation awareness!

Remember we can all make a difference by talking about our feelings and wishes about organ donation. Organ donation includes all of us all over the world. One person’s life can save the lives for 8 people - you might be one of them in need for a new organ.

The RECYCLE ME movement is a design proposal for organ donation awareness. The movement is global and we would like to include more countries and organizations working for this cause. All of the people working and contributing to this project are doing it on a non-profit basis in their free time. Let’s work together! Because organ donation includes us all. www.recycleme.life

Thank you ETZIA, for sharing this off stage photo with us!

ETZIA, Born in NY now living in Gothenburg Sweden. ETZIA supports and promotes the RECYCLE ME movement by wearing both the silver jewellery heart and the larger braveheart jewellery on stage. By making your wishes known, you can help others, because organ donation concerns us all! 

The heart usually beats at 50-100 beats per minute. Our hearts beat for organ donation awareness! 

 
More about ETZIA here; https://www.facebook.com/Etziamusic/?fref=ts

More about RECYCLE ME here; www.recycleme.life

and FB https://www.facebook.com/pages/RECYCLE-ME/347641490666

Photo and design Pamela Lindgren. All rights reserved © 2016

This is Isabel Ordoñez from Chile posing for organ donation awareness in a RECYCLE ME t-shirt.

Isabel is a Chilean industrial designer that came to Sweden to do a master program in sustainability and ended up staying longer. As a PhD student she focuses her research in closing the material loop in society by improving municipal solid waste handling using design and participation.

Thank you Isabel for helping promoting organ donation awareness with RECYCLE ME LIFE! RECYCLE ME is a non-profit movement wants to raise awareness for Organ Donation. The t-shirt material that Recycle Me use is made of bamboo and organic cotton. 

“There are over 1600 species found in diverse climates from cold mountains to hot tropical regions. About 40 million hectares of the earth is covered with bamboo, mostly in Asia. The high growth rate of bamboo and the fact that bamboo can grow in such diverse climates makes the bamboo plant a sustainable and versatile resource.” Source https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bamboo_textile

Bamboo is a very special kind of plant, not only because it's the strongest and fastest growing plant on earth but also because of the exceptional natural antibacterial qualities of bamboo. It's these antibacterial qualities that have helped bamboo become so incredibly successful in the wild. Because it's developed an amazing barrier against bacteria, almost all types of bacterial pests that try to grow on the plant are killed on contact. 

What's really astounding, though, is the fact that this particular quality isn't destroyed during the process of turning bamboo culms into fabrics. In fact, a study by the CTITC (China Textile Industry Testing Centre) showed that after introducing bacteria to a sample of bamboo fabric a 99.8 reduction in bacteria occurred over a 24-hour period. Another study by The Japan Textile Inspection Association showed that bamboo fabric could eliminate over 70 of introduced bacteria over a 24-hour period even after 50 industrial wash cycles. The natural antibacterial qualities of bamboo will also help naturally eliminate odours, great isn’t it!

Remember - organ donation concerns us all. Don't let your organs go to waste! www.recycleme.life

Globally - The International Registry of Organ Donation and Transplantation. Click on the countries you are interested in http://www.irodat.org/

Here are some more links to sign up for organ donation:

Chile http://www.minsal.cl/

Sweden https://www.socialstyrelsen.se/donationsregistret/anmalan

Norway http://organdonasjon.no/en/donorcard/

England https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/

India http://www.transplantindia.com/

Australia http://www.donatelife.gov.au/

South Africa https://www.odf.org.za/

Germany http://www.dso.de/