Runner-up in the 2011 Urban Water Design Challenge, sponsored by Visualizing.org and Circle of Blue.

Matt and Hal Watts earned a runner-up prize in the 2011 Urban Water Design Challenge—sponsored by Circle of Blue and Visualizing.org—for their quirky and artistic entry, “Urban Water Needs—Can We Keep Up? (Increase in Urban Domestic Water Use by 2030).”

Infographic © Matt and Hal Watts for Circle of Blue and Visualizing.org “Can We Keep Up?” was awarded a runners-up prize in the 2011 Urban Water Design Challenge. Click to enlarge image.

Combining their engineering-trained precision with creativity that was honed at the London Royal College of Art, Matt and Hal first designed a world map entirely out of inexpensive kitchen sponges. They then poured water onto each country in amounts that were proportional to the expected urban water consumption in 2030. The sponges grew in height according to how thirsty the countries will be, generating a stark topography of future needs for urban domestic water.

See the other winning designs here.

Did you miss your chance to participate? Designers can continue to share their visualizations throughout the year by uploading to visualizing.org.