Kiln

Recent projects

An interactive animation (‘Talkie’) and data map to mark the launch of a major new report by Carbon Tracker. Featured by the Guardian as well as Carbon Tracker themselves.

Better or Worse

A Talkie that summarise twenty years of global economic and environmental data to ask whether the world is getting better or worse. Created for the Guardian Global Development Desk.

The Carbon Map

An interactive website using our ‘squishy maps’ (cartograms) to explore responsibility for climate change. It was featured prominently by the Guardian and was a finalist in the World Bank’s Apps for Climate competition.

Where they started

A fun interactive squishy map created for the charity Join In to show which British counties have produced which Olympians in which sports since the modern games began in 1896.

People

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Kiln was founded and is run by Robin Houston and Duncan Clark but draws on a network of others on a project-by-project basis.

Duncan Clark

Duncan is a journalist and author. He is a consultant environment editor at the Guardian and an honorary research associate at UCL. He has previously worked at BBC Worldwide, Profile Books, 10:10 and elsewhere.

Robin Houston

Robin is a web developer and mathematician. He has worked at MySociety, the Sanger Institute, 10:10 and the Guardian, where he built the original website. Robin has a PhD in category theory.

FAQ

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Why ‘Kiln’?

Information is like clay: it exists in abundance but only becomes interesting when it’s been processed, shaped and glazed. A kiln is a furnace where materials and form come together to create something useful or beautiful.

So Kiln doesn’t stand for anything?

Not really. We could say ‘Knowledge, Ideas, Learning, News’, but that would be a backronym.

Are you Italian?

No. We chose the .it domain because kiln is also a verb (‘to kiln it’) and also because it’s a homophone for ‘killin’ it’ (which, among other things, can mean ‘to be doing something very good’).

Can we hire you or collaborate?

Yes, we regularly take commissions and work with partners. Get in touch below.