Sustainability

○Sustainable
Word definition:
1. To support the weight of, as a structure. endure without giving way or yielding or to keep up or keep going, as an action or process
Sustainability is a cycle process which always ensures that there is a beginning and an end. It is a controlling process which allows you to manage what resources etc you have. Ultimately it creates a balance between all factors that are in the cycle.
○Design for sustainability
Using sustainability in design allows the designer, manufacturer, and consumer to control the resources, pollution, carbon footprint, and environmental cost it results in on the earth. Sustainability balances the resources with the demand of a product. It’s a way of looking after the future of the product and the bio effects on the earth.
○Carbon footprint
A carbon footprint measures the carbon dioxide contributed from each person. The carbon dioxide that is produced from each activity you undertake every minute of the day all results in rising the earths temperature. As a whole the carbon dioxide produced from all over the world is too much and continues to stay at the same level or rise. The reason why it’s such a hot topic is that it’s at an unnatural level and nothing has been done to solve the problem. The rising temperatures results in the ice bergs malting, hotter summers, colder winters etc. The ice bergs melting creates a chain reaction of problems throughout the world. The sea levels will rise which will increase flooding on islands, the polar bears will lose their refuge, a lot of polar bears will die which will affect the sustainable cycle of nature and the food chain.


○Three pillars of sustainability
Sustainable design is built round the three P’s.
People: Sustainable design gives the opportunity to supply small/large communities with jobs which provides extra revenues to communities. The extra revenue ultimately provides a better life style for civilians and takes the pressure of governments to introduce schemes to help the local’s money situation. Providing jobs also gives the product a strong foundation to meet consumer’s high/small demand throughout the products life.
Profit: For the product to be successful a profit has to be made in more ways than one. Firstly the demand of the product from consumers has to meet the manufacture productivity to allow there to be no wastage on material and resources. If there is wastage it affects the company manufacturing budget and it effect the environmental cost through pollution and the planets limited resources. If the product is not successful it takes away the opportunity for creating local jobs to small communities and all of the above.
Planet: Sustainable design has to start with a sustainable natural resource. For a product to have a sustainable future the manufacturer/consumer etc has to replace what they take from their vital natural resource. The manufacturer has to manage their resource to meet the demand of the product and not exploit their resource.
○Eco-efficiency
Eco efficiency is a way of retailing products to allow a profitable outcome for workers with small and large roles in the product life cycle. Eco efficiency also looks at material consideration. The ability to maximise the use of waste product to use as a sustainable source profits the environment( landfill) and gives the manufacturer a cheap readily available source.



○Two examples of sustainable design
Example one:

The glass cookery bowl is a sustainable designed product because:
Multi Uses
In the kitchen the glass bowl can be used for a number of uses which gives the product flexibility for extra demand from consumers. The glass bowl has grown to being a standard item in the kitchen environment through its countless function.









Example Two:
BARR drinks had a glass bottle return scheme. The user returned their empty bottle of juice and profited from an extra twenty pence in their pocket. The scheme ensured that BARR could reuse the glass bottle which reduces the need to manufacture new bottles and ultimately a reduced cost in manufacture and on the environment resources. Reusing is one of the key elements in the cycle of sustainability but however it all depends on the consumer doing it for themselves.










○Example three:
Religious pieces is a product that carry’s the teddy bare effect with the consumer. The secret history gives the product much more sentimental meaning and ultimately belief in the product. The product makes the user feel apart of something and give their life meaning morally. The products life cycle could last for years to generations through its personal attachment.
○Issues in product design
Designers today and in the future have to consider sustainable design as a must. Future designers must fully understand all the elements of the products design process down to its grass routes and consider everyone in that process. Considering all the elements in the design cycle allows there to be a control process and a real life knowledge of the environmental impact their product has.
○Solution
The designers of tomorrow have to communicate with manufacturers/local communities/green organisations etc and all work as a unit to tackle this ever rising issue that need to be addressed. There has to be less emphasis on profit from major design firms and more on the environmental cost short term and long term. I suggest to look back to go forward, You would be amazed how many methods of sustainable design was used generations ago. Example: The Indians hunted the buffalo and had a purpose for every part of that animal, not one bit of waste.
○Why should designers give a damn
Designers have to consider this factor (sustainable future, environmental issues) as a designer professionally and personally. As a hole this is a problem that effects us all and finding a sustainable solution for our products effects the way we live our live in the future.