Design Respect : sharing & social media

I just wanted to quickly share the Design Respect initiative piloted by Brett over at iamthelab.com.  As stated on his blog:  Add the badge, whether you are a handmaker, web designer, graphic artist or bloggers. For artists of all kinds, the Design Respect badge means that you aim for authenticity in your designs. It means that you know the difference between being inspired by someone else and copying their original designs.

I whole heartedly believe in respecting the integrity of design and other designers out in the world - inspiration is one thing, copying is another.  Period.  Don't do it. Karma is a bitch.

For more information on how this applies to you - facebook, twitter, pinterest etc. - Jessica from the ever-so popular color blog Design Seeds has a great explanation on how to properly "pin" and share designers work across the internet and why it's important!!!  Jessica says in her blog post about the Design Respect initiative:

" sharing is caring … and it is always appreciated every time work is pinned, tweeted, posted, and “liked.” the key in sharing is that you are giving full credit to whom it belongs. bottom line … simply link back to the original post or image. by doing this, you are providing full attribution while sharing what inspires you and supporting those who create it. "

Another similar initiative is called: Link with Love and they have a nice action list on their site that tells how you can help!

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

• UNDERSTAND that sharing online can be done ethically and easily. Things found onling are not "free for the taking".
• DO YOUR BEST to make sure when you share media - to respect the rights of the creator. Intellectual property can assume many different types of copyright or sharing licenses. If you are unsure, contact the creator for permission prior to sharing.
• SPREAD THE WORD. Share this information with your social networks to help others understand the importance of sharing ethically. Display your badge. Lead by example.

So, please SHARE ON!  It gives us designers, artists, crafters and bloggers a sense of pride and worth to our work. Just be sure to give credit where credit is due. It's that simple.