The time around the first days of January is just perfect for making resolutions for the whole year, and since 2012 promises to be very sportive with the London Olympic and Paralympic Games, a plan for this year should include a bunch of sport related goals. Nike supports both renowned athletes and ordinary people who just like to keep fit and encourages them to make a pledge on Twitter on how they will #makeitcount in the coming 12 months.

The article is written by Darren Foley, Managing Director at Pearlfisher, London

December. Presents are lit up in every shop window, emblazoned across every advert and in the front of everyone’s mind. Every magazine and editorial page recommends the best Christmas gifts. Over recent years, we have seen the rise of the alternative ‘charity gift’ and, as Present Aid states, «it’s the gift that keeps giving». However, more recently, an extended range of brands have also woken up to an altruistic approach, challenging the traditional charity giving language and aesthetic.

The next year will be the last one for D&G, the line by the fashion giant Dolce & Gabbana as Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana announced they are going to fold the D&G line to focus on the top brand offer. “For the upcoming seasons, D&G will become part of Dolce & Gabbana, giving even more strength and energy to our collections. To us, it’s like going back to when we began our adventure: full of ideas,” they commented in an emailed statement as Reuters reported back in September. Now, the brand is calling its fans to help create the farewell video to the youthful line, which was first launched almost 20 years ago and now is coming to an end.

Today’s Popsop interview (the last one this year) is with Darren Foley, Managing Director of Pearlfisher studio in London, a packaging design specialist with fresh approach, unique culture and a long list of happy international clients. We asked Darren about how the UK design industry came through the post-recessionary 2011 year, about overseas opportunities and his vision on what’s to come in 2012.

Brands are trying to make use of the new feature, Facebook’s Timeline, which has been rolling out globally starting last week, and incorporate it into their communication with fans. Now, Facebook Timeline is not open for brands, so they have to be inventive enough in case they want to use this feature for strengthening their connections with fans online. “We are currently focused on Timeline for individuals and will consider how to make consistent experiences for Pages,” commented a Facebook representative to Mashable, “but we have nothing to announce at this time.”

But Mountain Dew has find a way out—it is encouraging its consumers to download the free, customizable images (851 x 315 pixels) in the Mountain Dew style for their Timeline profiles. Now, users can add the skin images to their profile and so get the brand ‘embedded’ into their lives.