This awesome project shows the same day in every country on Earth.
Thousands of people from all over the world filmed what their days looked like on Oct. 10, 2010.
Have you ever wanted to see the world through someone else's eyes?
We live on a pretty big rock, and there are a lot of people on it. In just 24 hours, more than 7 billion humans have more than 7 billion different versions of the same day. It's kind of mind-blowing to think about that.
That sense of awe and wonder is exactly what a couple of filmmakers tried to capture when they created One Day on Earth.
It's a project where thousands of people all over the world filmed what their days looked like on Oct. 10, 2010. They ended up with a snapshot of life from every country in the world, and the footage they collected was pretty amazing...
... so amazing, in fact, that it became a entire documentary.
In their archive, you can click around a map to see footage captured from specific places that day, like this time-lapse video of a sunset in Mecca:
Or these people hanging out on the beach in Rio de Janeiro:
According to the creators, One Day on Earth was grounded in six principles: perspective, inclusivity, individuality, community, education, and technology.
The idea was that by giving people the tools and opportunity to share their own stories and experiences, people all around the world could become connected in new, beautiful ways.
What's cool is that it seems to be working. One Day on Earth has since partnered with global nonprofits and the United Nations to keep the project going. They've sent hundreds of cameras all over the world to expand the collaboration, asking people to film more days. And now, they host all the videos collected in an online archive, too.
Recently, the One Day on Earth project started a new initiative, too, called Your Day. Your City. Your Future.
It's kind of the same idea as the original project but with a focus on city-dwellers' stories and ideas for making their cities more sustainable.
Filmmakers, both professional and amateur, record footage of their cities and the people who live in them, inspired by questions like “Who is your city not serving?" and “What do you hope for your city in the next 20 years?"
One Day in New Orleans has started to compile a lot of interesting stories and recorded conversations that could make a real difference...
...like this one of a Palestinian guy who works at a grocery store and wants to see youth programs that keep kids out of jail.
The One Day platform is a pretty fascinating reminder that many people live in this world — people with families, histories, stories, and whole lives of their own.
Despite geographical and cultural boundaries, our lives are pretty much the same at their core. We want happy and healthy families, good food, and opportunities to share a laugh. And on a day-to-day basis, we only see the tiniest sliver of a glimpse of all those experiences.
With so many tragedies happening all around the world, it's important to be reminded that we share a beautiful window into our common humanity.
You should check it out — I promise you'll get lost in the archives just like I did.