In a world of information overload and 'alternative truth' we can be lead to believe we live in a bad place of huge inequality and divide.
One person fighting for "his dream of a fact-based worldview" was Hans Rosling a statistician and Professor of International Development at the Karolinska Institute In Sweden who sadly passed away on Tuesday 7 February 2017.
Hans was passionate about changing our knowledge base by using scientific data to describe the positive reality of our world. How did he do this? Apart from his charming, gentle personality and infectious enthusiasm, Hans used data visualisation - science and art coming together to give a deeper meaning.
He founded a data visualisation software called GapMinder with his son Ola Rosling. It takes publicly accessible data from the United Nations and World Bank and translates them into interactive charts that you can play with.
This coming together of art and science in order to give us a deeper understanding of the world is exactly what we are stardust is about. Where Hans Rosling worked with large scale data, we are stardust reveals small stories, facts and curiosities about the natural world through everyday objects. A little reminder of the wonders of the universe.
Hans Rosling can change the world as you know it in four minutes. His death his a huge loss. Here are a couple of my favourite talks. Enjoy.