i
Global Spotlight : India Edition
Contents
Navigation
1
[INTRODUCTION] Design’s Impact Professional Practices Genealogy of the Living Principles The Evolution of Visions, Principles, Frameworks and Tools for Sustainability The Landscape Designer’s Roadmap [ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION] Spotlight on India: The e-Waste Problem Total Beauty Cradle to Cradle Sustainable Packaging Coalition AIA Sustainable Architectural Practice Position Statement [SOCIAL EQUIT Y] Worker-Owned Tara Books: A New Model for Publishing First Things First First Things FIrst 2000 The EIDD Stockholm Declaration [FINANCIAL STABILIT Y] Building Sustainable Livelihoods in India Natural Capitalism Kyoto Design Declaration The Sustainability Helix
[CULTURAL VITALIT Y] Keeping India’s Hand-Painted Lettering Alive The Designer’s Accord The Natural Step The Presidio Model Graphic Design Canada Sustainability Principles [TOOL S & RESOURCES] 11 Design Questions Labels and Certifications Sustainable Design Checklist Integrated Sustainability Poster Glossary of Terms Authors and Contributors Production Notes
The Living Principles for Design INTRODUCTION AIGA Center for Sustainable Design October 2009
Created by the AIGA Center for Sustainable Design (CFSD), the Living Principles for Design were born out of the design profession’s need for an aspirational and actionable framework that provides designers and their clients with a common understanding of the core facets of sustainability and enables them to take action. Its ongoing development is dependent on the contributions of the design community at large. Conceived and developed over the summer of 2009, the Living Principles were officially unveiled at the AIGA Design Conference in Memphis on October 9, 2009. As one of the defining ideas of the 21st century, sustainability holds tremendous possibilities for the creative community, its business partners and society. And while 87% of recently surveyed AIGA members view sustainability as a top priority, many of them confess they are ill-equipped to apply its principles effectively. Sustainability is complicated. The decentralized nature of resources, the complexities of the issues and the lack of filtering for how they relate to design appear to be the main barriers for turning motivation into action. Everyone wants to do the right thing, but no one relishes attacking this knowledge hairball. The Living Principles for Design distill the collective wisdom found in decades of sustainability theories and bring them to life in the first quadruple bottom-line framework for design. The Living Principles weave together environmental protection, social equity, and economic health — thus building upon commonly accepted, triple bottom-line frameworks. But most significantly, they incorporate cultural vitality because culture is where all aspects of sustainability find their way into the blood stream of society, and culture is where designers have the deepest impact as their creations and choices shape habits and values. The Living Principles framework is a lens that brings clarity to integrated sustainability and makes it accessible, relevant and ready to put into action.
Share it Enrich it Teach it Live it
3 Design’s Impact Design is a powerful conduit for change. As the messages, artifacts and experiences we create pass through the hands, minds and hearts of people, we have an opportunity to weave sustainability into the broader fabric of culture and to shift consumption and lifestyle aspirations to a more sustainable basis for living.
Professional Practices
The Living Principles for Design are meant to guide purposeful action. They will evolve, grow and draw openly from a wide range of professional practices. Join our feedback loop on Facebook and help create and share tried-and-true best practices, guidelines, tools, ideas, case studies, and general support for a broad range of design disciplines, including: Communication Design Packaging Design Experience Design Interaction Design Fashion Design Industrial Design Architecture/Interior Design Service Design
AIGA Center for Sustainable Design October 2009
Support
In order for individuals, societies, economies and the planet to flourish, we must support environmental responsibility, social equity, economic health and cultural vitality and recognize that they are inextricably linked. The Living Principles for Design form a practical framework that illustrates the confluence of these four streams – the key to sustainable design.
FRAMEWORK
Genealogy of the Living Principles FRAMEWORK
In developing the Living Principles for Design,
Gary Brink, Nathalie Destandau our goal was to distill the collective wisdom and Phil Hamlett AIGA Center for Sustainable Design found in decades of sustainability theories October 2009 and make it accessible to a broad audience of design
practitioners and their clients. In order to uncover a meaningful opportunity, we started by looking at the landscape of the major sustainability visions, manifestos, principles, frameworks and tools that have been developed over the past 50 years and that are relevant to design. We think of this research document as the genealogy of the Living Principles. It is also a chronology and a primer of sorts – an invitation for further discovery. Upon close investigation, we noticed some trends: a. Many of the principles and frameworks focus squarely and solely on environmental sustainability. b. Several are based on a systems approach, but this do not necessarily add relevance for designers beyond the environmental and social realms. c. Some of the tools and frameworks that appear very useful are not widely used or adopted. d. There are countless resources for material choices, production techniques, energy, waste and even on the social impact of design. However, few address design’s impact on culture and the role culture plays in sustainability. So while a lot of good and useful information already exists, it is fragmented. It is also missing a compelling case for looking at design’s impact on trends and habits. We believe that for sustainable design to be attainable, designers need a common understanding of the interdependence of all four streams of sustainability – environmental protection, social equity, economic health and cultural vitality.
Namasté The Living Principles for Design stand on the shoulders of giants. The DNA of their work will become evident as you peruse this genealogy.
5 The Evolution of Visions, Principles, Frameworks and Tools for Sustainability
First Things First
1965 1985
Ceres Principles The Hannover Principles
1990
1995
Life Cycle Assessment (60s)
History
1960
The Natural Step™
Total Beauty™
Biomimicry | Social Return on Investment | LEED Wingspread Statements First Things First 2000 IDSA Eco Design Principles
EIDD Stockholm Declaration© AIA Sustainable Architecture
2000
Cradle to Cradle© | Natural Capitalism | Sustainability Scorecard
2005 Sustainability Helix | Sustainable Packaging Coalition PHAROS Project
The Designers Accord
11 Design Questions | Design Can Change
Kyoto Design Declaration GDC Sustainability Principles
Designers Field Guide to Sustainability | Presidio Model
2010
The Living Principles
Designer’s Roadmap This book is divided into four sections, each highlighting one of the four streams of integrated sustainability, as well as articles of interest directly relating these topics in our Global Spotlight country. At the start of each section, you will find definitions and design opportunities for each area of responsibility. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION Learn and inform about the environmental impacts of choices and behaviors. Consider intended and unintended ecological consequences of components over the entire lifecycle, including extraction of raw materials from nature, conversion of materials into artifacts, artifact use/reuse, transportation, disposal, and recycling. Consider the entire supply chain. Seek sustainable suppliers and clean production technologies at every step. Plan to optimize shipping volumes and transportation distances. Eliminate waste. Maximize use of recycled, recyclable and compostable materials. Plan for use of materials in continuous cycles including disassembly, ease of recovery, take-back programs upcycling and recycling.
SOCIAL EQUIT Y Create messages, artifacts, services and experiences that respond to the needs of all people, celebrate beauty and promote and enable joyful, healthy living. Consider intended and unintended consequences for individuals and communities from all components over the entire lifecycle, including impacts on human toxicity, water pollution, cancer causing potential, resource depletion and climate change. Understand the ethical supply chain to ensure that products and services are manufactured under safe and fair labor conditions, supporting human rights and basic needs like sufficient pay, healthcare and benefits. Minimize environmental, health and safety risks to employees and communities involved in manufacturing, use, and endof-life scenarios with safe technologies, facilities and operating procedures.
Direction Avoid the use of any substances that may cause environmental damage to air quality, water or the earth.
Consider appropriate durability to make artifacts last longer or decompose more easily. Design for multiple functions and repairability to encourage reuse. Minimize energy use and maximize the employment of clean energy sources such as wind and solar in manufacturing, transportation and product usage.
7
FINANCIAL STABILIT Y Understand financial parameters and ensure that solutions meet market criteria for performance and cost.
CULTURAL VITALIT Y Create messages, artifacts, services and experiences providing people with choices that can change attitudes and redefine prosperity.
Communicate truthfully and with transparency.
Support and promote the uniqueness of different cultures and recognize that highly functional systems like ecosystems and human communities are resilient because of their diversity.
Understand and communicate sound business values and short- and longterm benefits of sustainable solutions including efficiency, competitive advantage, profitability, increased sales, brand equity and employee morale. Consider and encourage business models that incorporate product takeback systems, end-of-life product collection, product upgrading and material recycling. Consider solutions that turn products nto lease or service models. Consider equitable systems of corporate ownership and governance, such as co-ops.
Consider historical, place-based, social, cultural and economic contexts to make design and messaging culturally relevant and to preserve local cultures. Promote desirable visions that compel people to want to live sustainably.
Designer
Individuals
People
Planet
Environment
Prosperity
Culture
Economy
Society Business
Designer’s Roadmap
Environmental Protection Actions and issues that affect natural systems, including climate change, preservation, carbon footprint and restoration of natural resources.
The Four Streams of
Social Responsibility Actions and issues that affect all aspects of society, including poverty, violence, injustice, education, healthcare, safe housing, labor and human rights.
GDC Sustainability Principles
The Living Principles
Kyoto | Cumulus
Presidio Model
Natural Capitalism
habits aspirations choices
artifacts messages services
Sustainability Helix The Natural Step
First Things First Manifesto 2000
VISIONS
PRINCIPLES
Sustainable Packaging Coalition
FRAMEWORKS
TOOLS
Designer’s Accord
First Things First Manifesto 1984 EEID Stockholm Declaration
Total Beauty 11 Design Questions
Cradle to Cradle AIA
Financial Stability
Actions and issues that affect how people and organizations meet their basic needs, evolve, and define economic success and growth.
The Sustainability Scorecard
Design Can Change
Cultural Vitality C
Action and issues that affect how communities Actions manifest identity, preserve and cultivate traditions, and ma develop belief systems and commonly accepted values.
Environ
Design’s Opportunity: Design can visualize complex information and make it comprehensible and relevant. It can help invent new systems, products and services to deliver more value for less material and energy used. Design solutions that integrate environmental criteria at each step can overcome natural resource constraints.
Pr
nmental Environmental protection refers to actions or issues that affect natural systems, including climate change, carbon footprint, preservation and restoration of natural resources.
rotection
Bilva is the bael tree. Its fruit, flowers and leaves are all sacred to Siva, liberation’s summit. Planting Aegle marmelos trees around home or temple is sanctifying, as is worshiping a Linga with bilva leaves and water.
BANGALORE, INDIA : Old computers and electronic parts are for sale at a local market on April 13, 2008 in Bangalore, India. India’s growing digital economy has contributed to the amount of e-waste it generates. According to the Karnataka, a state pollution control board, more than 10 tons of electronic waste is produced in Bangalore alone every year, and about 80 percent of e-waste generated in the US is exported to India, China and Pakistan to be recycled. (Photo by Uriel Sinai/Getty )
The e-Waste Problem
Technology
13
The global information and communications technology industry accounts for approximately 2% of global carbon dioxide emissions, a figure
equivalent to that for aviation, according to information technology research company Gartner, Inc. In addition, the use-and-throw nature of most gadgets, PCs and other technology products is leading to the generation of mountains of e-waste in the developing world. Technological change, following Moore’s law, has led to a useand-throw culture where the latest is always better and the older product necessarily discarded. The electronics industry thrives on obsolescence. Computers, cell phones, and other gadgets go out of date quickly, sometimes within months of release. E-waste is big and by Namrata Rana getting bigger everyday. While Friday, July 30, 2010 many companies have signed Reposted from the Features blog at www.thelivingprinciples.org. up to the Basel Convention, and many are now partnering with the UN’s Step Initiative, most recycling initiatives are more greenwash than actual reality.
The challenges faced by developing countries such as India are enormous. India is the software factory of the world and is the growth engine for hardware providers such as Apple, HP and Dell. Total PC shipments to India during 2007-08 (April-March) were beyond the 8.25 million mark, recording a year by year growth of 22.3 per cent (source: Mait India). The booming PC market is also leading to a boom in the the total e-waste generation of 330,000 tons per year, as per the study conducted by IMRB, Mait & GTZ. India is also receiving large amounts of e-waste through trade and illegal imports.
The Hazardous Waste Rules of 1989 prohibit the import of e-waste without prior permission from the Ministry of Environment and Forests. Import of such waste is allowed for processing and reuse of raw materials upon merit from the state pollution control boards. The import of second-hand computers less than 10 years old and donations of computers to non-profit organisations are also permitted.
Of the total e-waste, a study found, only about 43.2 percent finds its way into recycling. An additional 50,000 tons is estimated to be illegally imported. Most of this is refurbished and resold,
e many companies have signed up to the onvention, and many are now partnering h the UN’s Step Initiative, most recycling tiatives are more greenwash than actual reality.�
leaving about 19,000 tonnes, representing 5.7 percent of the total waste, which is processed in the country. Does the solution lie in recycling, consumer awareness or redesign? While all of the above needs to be done for a long-term solution, India needs an immediate way of coping with e-waste as well as a long-term strategy to ensure that we are no longer playing catch-up with a massive inflow of waste. The strategy also needs to take into account that India does not manufacture most IT products. Instead, we import most of our hardware requirements. The strategy for India also needs to look at a multi-dimensional view of the socioeconomic environment, regulatory challenges, and the need for balanced growth. India could design a three-step strategic framework to solve this problem: Step 1 Develop a business model that focuses on social good and economic value to resolve the e-waste problem. a. Develop a central repository of all IT technology products available for reuse and recycling. b. Train people to collect, refurbish and recycle products. c. Provide products to the needy. These products can be used to put more power and responsibility in the hands of the local communities through services for government interactions: Computer-enabled education for children, programs to upgrade skill sets, help in village planning, and monitoring microcredit facilities. Step 2 Make it mandatory for hardware and software firms to recycle e-waste. This would ensure that we strike at the root of the problem. Step 3 Undertake a mass awareness campaign to ensure behavior change of home users. While many industrial bodies are aware of the problem and several forums have been launched, slow implementation is a serious cause for concern and much needs to be done.
15 Total Beauty™ FRAMEWORKS Edwin Datschevski
ff E icient
Edwin Datschevski redefines the ‘beauty’ of design by calculating the total impact of products and services in five categories:
1994
Cyclic : closed loop material sourcing (recyclable /recycled, compostable, organic or sourced sustainably) Solar : uses safe, renewable sources or renewable energy both during the manufacturing process and during use Safe : non-toxic (i.e. does not affect negatively plant, human, animal life and the environment in general) Efficient : requires 90% less materials, energy and water than 1990 standards (i.e. improved by a factor of ten over 1990 standards). Social : manufactured under fair labor conditions, overall supporting human rights and ‘natural justice’ The ‘total beauty’ of products or services is calculated as an equation for each category except for “social” because products and services that rate poorly on the social scale should not be considered any further. The scoring includes ‘ugly points’ which are taken out for poor performance, certain materials use, and energy inefficiency.
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.
Cyclic mined : increased recycled content or recyclability Cyclic grown : increased compostability Alternative energy in use Alternative energy in manufacture Substitute materials : replace with non-toxic ones Stewardship sourcing : increase safety and habitat preservation Utility : increased efficiency with multi-function Durability : make it last longer Efficiency Bio-everything : using biomimicry techniques or live organisms Communication : changes the behavior of users.15
15 www.biothinking.com/btintro.htm
Datschefski finds that 99% of all environmental innovation for products resides in 11 categories.
Cradle to Cradle FRAMEWORKS Michael Braungart and William McDonough 2002
Swiss architect Walter Stahel first used the term “cradle back to cradle” in 1982 to describe what he saw as the only path to a sustainable economy, one in which durable goods are used in continuous loops as opposed to relying on end-of-pipe solutions. Around the same time, the chemist Michael Braungart promoted material recycling as a “cradle back to cradle” loop, again as a reaction to the end-of-pipe issue of “cradle to grave.” 20 The Cradle to Cradle© framework Braungart later developed with architect William McDonough further envelops the concept of eco-effectiveness, which “seeks to design systems that emulate the healthy abundance of nature”20a, as opposed to eco-efficiency, which aims to fine-tune the systems to “do less bad.” The key principles of eco-effectiveness are based on the Intelligent Product System that was developed by Braungart and his colleagues at EPEA between 1987 and 1992. In addition to the elimination of toxic materials and the use of “upcyclable” materials, the Braungart and McDonough’s C2C Design model is based on three principles: 1. Waste equals food (redefining our perception of waste) 2. Use of the current solar income21 of energy 3. Celebrate diversity The C2C Certification system is based on the following: 4. Product/material transparency and human/ environmental health characteristics of materials (including toxic materials and processes)
Upcycling 5. Product/material reutilization (including use of recycled materials and well-defined material recovery, such as a take-back program)
6. Production energy (including the use of renewable energy for product manufacturing and product uses) 7. Water use at manufacturing facility (including implementation of conservation and discharge measures at the manufacturing plant)
8. Social fairness/corporate ethics (including whether the organization provides a CSR and makes other decisions transparent and whether these materials are audited by a reputable third party).21
17 Sustainable Packaging Coalition TOOLS The Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC) 2005
Essential
A project of the Cradle to Cradle© inspired nonprofit institute GreenBlue, the SPC’s mission is to “advocate and communicate a positive, robust environmental vision for packaging and to support innovative, functional packaging materials and systems that promote economic and environmental health through supply chain collaboration.”30 For the SPC, sustainable packaging: 1. Is beneficial, safe and healthy for individuals and communities throughout its entire life cycle; 2. Meets market criteria for performance and cost; 3. Is sourced, manufactured, transported, and recycled using renewable energy; 4. Maximizes the use of renewable or recycled source materials; 5. Is manufactured using clean production technologies and best practices; 6. Is made from materials healthy in all probable end of life scenarios; 7. Is physically designed to optimize materials and energy; 8. Is effectively recovered and utilized in biological and /or industrial cradle to cradle cycles.31
In addition to extensive design guidelines and checklists of strategies, other tools and resources available to designers include:
21
20a
THE PACK AGING DESIGN LIBRARY : an online library that showcases package design innovation and solutions that implement sustainable attributes.34
20
THE ESSENTIALS OF SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING : a course designed for packaging designers and corporate professionals seeking a deeper understanding of sustainability and how sustainability criteria can be effectively integrated into the packaging development process to enhance the lives of people, lower environmental impact and reduce costs. 33
http://www.product-life.org/en/cradle-to-cradle www.mbdc.com/c2c_ee.htm the amount of solar energy that literally falls on us during the day 22 Nathan Shedroff, ibid 30 www.greenblue.org/ 31 www.sustainablepackaging.org/about_sustainable_
COMPAS S SM : an online software tool to assess the human and environmental impacts of packaging design32
AIA Sustainable Architectural Practice Position Statement PRINCIPLES The American Institute of Architecture 2005
The AIA recognizes a growing body of evidence that demonstrates current planning, design, construction, and real estate practices contribute to patterns of resource consumption that seriously jeopardize the future of the Earth’s population. Architects need to accept responsibility for their role in creating the built environment and, consequently, believe we must alter our profession’s actions and encourage our clients and the entire design and construction industry to join with us to change the course of the planet’s future. E XPL ANATION Altering current practices of design and construction to realize significant reductions in the use of natural resources, nonrenewable energy sources, and waste production and promote regeneration of natural resources will require a multiple-year effort in conjunction with clients, industry partners, and concerned organizations. To achieve these changes, the AIA will act through all its Board Committees, Knowledge Communities, Task Forces, Working Groups, and related activities to: 1. Promote sustainable design including resource conservation to achieve a minimum 50 percent reduction from the current level of consumption of fossil fuels used to construct and operate new and renovated buildings by the year 2010, and promote further reductions of remaining fossil fuel consumption by 10 percent or more in each of the following five years;
Resources 2. Collaborate with other national and international organizations, the scientific research community, public health community, and industry leaders engaged in issues related to sustainable / restorative design to facilitate the dialogue, share knowledge, and accelerate the rate of change for all those seeking to improve the industry’s current practices and utilize integrated approaches to achieve a sustainable future; 3. Develop and promote the integration of sustainability into the curricula for education of architects and architectural students to enhance their design skills;
Planning
19
4. Develop standards for the architectural profession that incorporate greater sustainability into design, education, management, and licensure standards and provide resources to assist integrating these standards into the daily practices of all architects;
5. Promote documentation of the measurable contributions resulting from implemented sustainable design and construction approaches to the health of humankind and the planet to promote the value and achievements of increased use of sustainable design; 6. Promote research by industry, scientific, and governmental entities to provide the design and construction industry with full life cycle assessment data for all products and assemblies used in the construction of the built environment at every scale in order to facilitate decision making and communicate benefits to all; 7. Promote the AIA’s building performance design targets to local, American Institute of Architects Sustainable Architectural Practice Position Statement state, and national governments;
10
9. Assume a global role as advocates for sustainable design freely sharing knowledge and actively promoting sustainable practice throughout the world.10
www.aia.org/advocacy/federal/AIAS078718
8. Communicate possible beneficial economics of environmentally responsible design to both public and private sector clients; and
Social
Design’s Opportunity: Messages and designs that are based on principles of inclusion, equality and empathy provide harmonious and healthy conditions in which all members of society can flourish. Design can visualize acute needs, raise awareness, prompt response, and affect policy to improve quality of life.
Anjali, the gesture of two hands
Social equity refers to actions and issues that affect all aspects of society, including poverty, violence, injustice, education, healthcare, safe housing, and human rights.
Equity
brought together near the heart, means to “honor or celebrate.� It is the Hindu greeting, two joined as one, the bringing together of matter and spirit, the self meeting the Self in all.
CHENNAI, INDIA : The staff of Tara Books poses outside their offices in April 2010. Tara Books is an independent publisher of picture books for adults and children based in Chennai, South India. Founded in 1994, they are a collective of dedicated writers, designers and artists who strive for a union of fine form with rich content. They continue to work with a growing tribe of adventurous people from around the world. Fiercely independent, Tara Books publish a select list that straddles diverse genres, offering readers unusual and rare voices in art and literature.
Personal Inv 23
Worker-Owned Tara Books: A New Model for Publishing
In Hindi and Sanskrit, the word tara means “star,” and in the crowded galaxy of book publishing, Tara Books, based in Chennai, India, has a resplendent
shine. Fifteen years ago, founder Gita Wolf charted the publishing house’s course based on feminist tenets. “One of the guiding principles of feminism for me has been a critical relationship to power,” explains Wolf. “The second is a belief in dialogue and communication.”
Like all branches of media today, publishing has grappled with cost-saving measures and corporate consolidation. Tara is a workerowned collective that bucks the traditional publishing model and empowers individuals. It also reminds readers that books can possess a magical quality. Tara’s by Buzz Poole gorgeous illustrated books fuse Friday, July 16, 2010 Indian folklore and traditions Reposted from the Features blog at www.thelivingprinciples.org. with workmanship crafted by an array of international artists and writers. Some of the titles are offset-printed, but several of them are hand-bound in Chennai; letterpress and screen-printing bring text and imagery to life on sumptuous handmade papers. Working with a team of about 15 craftspeople, head of production Arumugam, or Mr. A., as he’s affectionately known within the company, is responsible for production, including all of the handmade books. SSSS: Snake Art & Allegory, Tara’s latest handmade offering, evidences Mr. A.’s incredible ability to teach people the craft of book-making on a commercial scale. Artist Ianna Andreadis, already working on a large-scale project based around pieces in the collection of Musée du quai Branly in Paris, was so impressed by another handmade title, The Night Life of Trees, that she approached Tara with an idea. Using Manasa, “a cult figure of a snake goddess,” as a starting point, Andreadis researched the presence of snakes in Hindu and Buddhist lore and then created fluid, bold artworks that accompany a text written by Wolf.
As soon as you hold the book, you can feel that it’s something different and special. Turning the pages releases an amazing aroma of ink and hints of sandalwood — apparently this is what Mr. A.’s studio smells like. You can’t help but continually run your fingers over the screen-printed ink held on the textured paper as you read these sensuous and sacred tales. (cont’d next page)
“Tara’s gorgeous illustrated books fuse Indian folklore and traditions with workmanship crafted by an array of international artists and writers.”
Tara’s offset-printed books boast exciting illustrations and high production values, but the handmade operation is staggeringly impressive by any measure. Tara has released seventeen handmade titles in several different languages — well over 100,000 units. Screen-printing one 32-page, three-color book requires 100 pulls of ink. And once the pages are printed, the books need to be assembled, which is a true craft. Over the years, Mr. A. has mentored and encouraged a fleet of artisans. Those that move on to other jobs remain dedicated to Tara, happy to return to the shop to help make sure a big order gets out on time. Tara’s approach works, both for the people that create the books and for those that read them. The books regularly garner international awards and accolades, and are distributed through traditional trade channels in North America and Europe. The titles have also been selling better and better in India, with the promise of increased sales once construction of a new office, which will include a bookshop and gallery space, is complete. In SSSS, the story “The Tight Knot” reminds us that if living creatures did not “fall victim to their own unwisdom …The tight knot of habit would start to unravel.” As ambition and dedication lead to an expansion of the publishing operation, Tara’s wisdom is in its ability to make unique books by staying true to Gita Wolf’s initial vision, nurturing a creative and progressive publishing culture that values art, artists, and the entire collective involved .
A Patua scroll created by the West Bengalise artists, Moyna & Joydeb Chitrakar, about the effects of the 2004 tsunami.
25
Inception
First Things First “We, the undersigned, are graphic designers, photographers and students who have been brought up in a world in which the techniques
and apparatus of advertising have persistently been presented to us as the most lucrative, effective and desirable means of using our talents. We have been bombarded with publications devoted to this belief, applauding the work of those who have flogged their skill and imagination to sell such things as: cat food, stomach powders, detergent, hair restorer, striped toothpaste, aftershave lotion, beforeshave lotion, slimming diets, fattening diets, deodorants, fizzy water, cigarettes, roll-ons, pull-ons and slip-ons. By far the greatest efforts of those working in the advertising industry are wasted on these trivial purposes, which contribute little or nothing to our national prosperity.
In common with an increasing number of the general public, we have reached a saturation point at which the high-pitched scream of consumer selling is no more than sheer noise. We think that there are other things more worth using our skill and experience on. There are signs for streets and buildings, books and periodicals, catalogues, instructional manuals, industrial photography, educational aids, films, television features, scientific and industrial publications and all the other media through which we promote our trade, our education, our culture and our greater awareness of the world. We do not advocate the abolition of high-pressure consumer advertising: this is not feasible. Nor do we want to take any of the fun out of life. But we are proposing a reversal of priorities in favour of the more useful and more lasting forms of communication. We hope that our society will tire of gimmick merchants, status salesmen and hidden persuaders, and that the prior call on our skills will be for worthwhile purposes. With this in mind we propose to share our experience and opinions, and to make them available to colleagues, students and others who may be interested.1
VISIONS Ken Garland 1963
The ‘First Things First’ manifesto was signed by 22 designers and first published in The Guardian newspaper in January 1964.
First Things First 2000 VISIONS 1999
We, the undersigned, are graphic designers, art directors and visual communicators who have been raised in a world in which the techniques
This update of First Things First was published concurrently in Adbusters, the AIGA journal, and apparatus of advertising have persistently been presented to Blueprint, Emigre, Eye, Form and us as the most lucrative, effective and desirable use of our talents. Items with 33 signatories. Many design teachers and mentors promote this belief; the market
rewards it; a tide of books and publications reinforces it. Encouraged in this direction, designers then apply their skill and imagination to sell dog biscuits, designer coffee, diamonds, detergents, hair gel, cigarettes, credit cards, sneakers, butt toners, light beer and heavy-duty recreational vehicles. Commercial work has always paid the bills, but many graphic designers have now let it become, in large measure, what graphic designers do. This, in turn, is how the world perceives design. The profession’s time and energy is used up manufacturing demand for things that are inessential at best. Many of us have grown increasingly uncomfortable with this view of design. Designers who devote their efforts primarily to advertising, marketing and brand development are supporting, and implicitly endorsing, a mental environment so saturated with commercial messages that it is changing the very way citizen-consumers speak, think, feel, respond and interact. To some extent we are all helping draft a reductive and immeasurably harmful code of public discourse. There are pursuits more worthy of our problem-solving skills. Unprecedented environmental, social and cultural crises demand our attention. Many cultural interventions, social marketing campaigns, books, magazines, exhibitions, educational tools, television programs, films, charitable causes and other information design projects urgently require our expertise and help.
Mindshift We propose a reversal of priorities in favor of more useful, lasting and democratic forms of communication–a mindshift away from product marketing and toward the exploration and production of a new kind of meaning. The scope of debate is shrinking; it must expand. Consumerism is running uncontested; it must be challenged by other perspectives expressed, in part, through the visual languages and resources of design.
In 1964, 22 visual communicators signed the original call for our skills to be put to worthwhile use. With the explosive growth of global commercial culture, their message has only grown more urgent. Today, we renew their manifesto in expectation that no more decades will pass before it is taken to heart.2
27 The EIDD Stockholm Declaration
Diversity
Across Europe, human diversity in age, culture and ability is greater than ever. We now survive illness and injury and live with disability as never
before. Although today’s world is a complex place, it is one of our own making, one in which we therefore have the possibility–and the responsibility–to base our designs on the principle of inclusion.
PRINCIPLES
European Institute for Design and Disability 2004
Design for All is design for human diversity, social inclusion and equality. This holistic and innovative approach constitutes a creative and ethical challenge for all planners, designers, entrepreneurs, administrators and political leaders.
Design for All aims to enable all people to have equal opportunities to participate in every aspect of society. To achieve this, the built environment, everyday objects, services, culture and information – in short, everything that is designed and made by people to be used by people–must be accessible, convenient for everyone in society to use and responsive to evolving human diversity.
2 www.emigre.com/Editorial.php?sect=1&id=14 5 www.designforalleurope.org/Design-for-All/EIDD-Documents/ Stockholm-Declaration/
The practice of Design for All makes conscious use of the analysis of human needs and aspirations and requires the involvement of end users at every stage in the design process. The European Institute for Design and Disability therefore calls on the European institutions, national, regional and local governments and professionals, businesses and social actors to take all appropriate measures to implement Design for All in their policies and actions.5
Financi
Design’s Opportunity: Design thinking can help invent new economic and business models for 21st-century realities and set the foundation for a more sustainable world. Design’s approach to investigation, analysis, and visualization can be leveraged to create opportunities and value for companies and people across all streams of sustainability.
St
ial
Mankolam, the pleasing
Financial stability refers to actions and issues that affect how people and organizations meet their basic needs, evolve and define economic success and growth.
tability
paisley design, is modeled after a mango and associated with Lord Ganesha. Mangos are the sweetest of fruits, symbolizing auspiciousness and the happy fulfillment of legitimate worldly desires.
JAIPUR, INDIA - APRIL 06: A local man poses in his shop in the local markets of the walled city centre on April 6, 2010 in Jaipur, India. Jaipur which is the captial city of Rajasthan state is popularly known the Pink City. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
Innovation
31 Building Sustainable Livelihoods in India
Across the world, change and sustainability are leading to large-scale urbanization and mass migration to urban hubs. The situation in India too is not very different. The absence of jobs in the rural heartland and an inability to eke out a decent living from farming is leading to mass migration to urban hubs. There is a crying need to build self sustaining rural livelihoods that can ensure a decent quality of life in rural habitats and reverse this trend.
While most people in many Indian forums are discussing the need for rural entrepreneurship, the discussion seems to be restricted to agribusiness. Agriculture is undoubtedly a large part of the rural economy, but what about the others we forget—the women of rural India who contribute equally to the domestic income by generating some of the most beautiful hand-crafted products?
Craftspeople form the second largest employment sector in India, second only to agriculture. Handicrafts are rightly described as the craft of the people: There are by Namrata Rana twenty-three million craftspeople July 1, 2010 in India today (Jaitly, 2001). The Reposted from the Features blog at handicrafts sector is a homewww.thelivingprinciples.org. based industry, which requires minimum expenditure, infrastructure or training to set up. It uses existing skills and locally available materials. Many agricultural and pastoral communities depend on their traditional craft skills as a secondary source of income in times of drought, lean harvests, floods or famine. Their skills in embroidery, weaving, and basket making are a natural means to social and financial independence. Many Indian crafts are the sole domain of the women in the household. This tradition of creating beautiful pieces of work is ingrained in the Indian ethos. Often, necessity and absence of resources built up self sufficiency, which was reflected in the way we lived and how many rural communities still do. Almost every plant in the backyard had a use, food was grown in the vegetable patch behind the house or fished from the stream nearby, and cloth was spun from locally available trees and plants. This concept of using everything available now has a modern twist, and many new materials have been added into the traditional mix to develop totally unique, Indianized solutions. On my friend Anurag’s recent trip to Jaisalmer District in Rajasthan, she was astonished to find, in a mud house, a room full of vibrant
“[The] concept of using everything available...has a modern twist, and new materials have been added into the traditional mix to develop totally unique, Indianized solutions.�
coloured charpais (woven beds). They had been made from rope spun out of fabric. Old garments had been used to spin these multi-colored ropes and woven into many of the wooden cots. Each one was unique. In a corner of the same room there were ropes made out of fabrics, plastic, camel hair, goat hair and even some canvas from an old army tent! Such remarkable examples of innovation are found in many rural households. However, instead of building up on its strengths of creativity, innovation and craftsmanship, modern India seems to have forgotten its ancient heritage. Every Indian state has its own unique set of traditional crafts that are now slowly eroding due to the absence of right infrastructure to promote them. Corporate India, too, has shown little interest in promoting rural skills. With the right kind of input the craft sector can be developed into a powerhouse of sustainable skill and livelihood: Design, Skill and Financial Input Most Indian crafts are still being made the same way they were hundreds of years before. While this is interesting, some of our crafts desperately need modern design input to increase quality and utility and improve aesthetics. Simple yet modern designs can help rural artisans in finding new buyers and better profit margins.
NEW DELHI, DELHI: People look around a bustling market at the start of the day in Old Delhi on October 14, 2010 in Delhi, India. Across the world, change and sustainability are leading to large-scale urbanization and mass migration to urban hubs.
Branding While Indian malls are full of branded products imported from various countries, there is a glaring absence of branded Indian Craft products (with a few notable exceptions such as Fab India). Could this be a business opportunity for corporate India, which is now looking for socially responsible business opportunities? Sustainable Buying The change in consumer buying trends and the entry of various new, aggressively promoted factory-produced commodities into the rural and urban market, has meant that craft producers need more support than ever if they are to become viable and competitive. One simple way in which all of us can exercise our social responsibility could be through sustainable buying. Can we all do our bit by supporting local craft groups? After all, many local craft groups are not looking for charity, they are self supporting, highly creative women who could do with a bit of help.
Natural Capitalism
Investment
33
For decades, environmentalists have been warning that human economic activity is exceeding the planet’s limits. Of course we keep pushing those
FRAMEWORKS
Paul Hawken, Amory Lovins, Hunter Lovins 2002
limits back with clever new technologies; yet living systems are In this seminal text, Hawken, undeniably in decline. These trends need not be in conflict-in Lovins and Lovins describe a fact, there are fortunes to be made in reconciling them. framework for a new economy To achieve eco-efficiency, four shifts are required: 1. Radical resource productivity (designing more efficient solutions while using less energy to design them) 2. Ecological redesign (turning to nature as a model) 3. Service and flow economies (shifting the emphasis from products to services) 4. Investing in natural capital19
that rethinks social and natural resources, and values sustainable design.18
19
Even today, when natural capital is hardly accounted for on corporate balance sheets, these four principles are so profitable that firms adopting them can gain striking competitive advantage-as early adopters are already doing. These innovators are also discovering that by downsizing their unproductive tons, gallons, and kilowatthours they can keep more people, who will foster the innovation that drives future improvement.
18
The first of natural capitalism’s four interlinked principles, therefore, is radically increased resource productivity. Implementing just this first principle can significantly improve a firm’s bottom line, and can also help finance the other three. They are: redesigning industry on biological models with closed loops and zero waste; shifting from the sale of goods (for example, light bulbs) to the provision of services (illumination); and reinvesting in the natural capital that is the basis of future prosperity.
www.natcap.org/sitepages/pid5.php Nathan Shedroff, Design is the Problem: The Future of Design Must be Sustainable, Rosenfeld Media, 2009
Natural capital refers to the natural resources and ecosystem services that make possible all economic activity, indeed all life. These services are of immense economic value; some are literally priceless, since they have no known substitutes. Yet current business practices typically fail to take into account the value of these assets-which is rising with their scarcity. As a result, natural capital is being degraded and liquidated by the wasteful use of such resources as energy, materials, water, fiber, and topsoil.
Kyoto Design Declaration PRINCIPLES YRJÖ SOTAMAA AND CUMULUS 2008
By signing the Kyoto Design Declaration on March 28, 2008, the 124 members of Cumulus committed to sharing global responsibility for building sustainable, human-centred and creative societies. The Declaration has received support from the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID ), BE TA, AI GA, and EIDD. A statement of commitment by the members of Cumulus to sharing the global responsibility for building sustainable, human-centered, creative societies. PROPOSING NE W VALUES AND NE W WAYS OF THINKING All the people of the world now live in global and interdependent systems for living. We continue to enhance the quality of our lives by creating environments, products and services utilizing design. Design is a means of creating social, cultural, industrial and economic values by merging umanities, science, technology and the arts. It is a human-centered process of innovation that contributes to our development by proposing new values, new ways of thinking, of living and adapting to change. AN ERA OF HUMAN - CENTERED DE VELOPMENT A paradigm shift from technology driven development to human centered development is underway. The focus is shifting from materialistic and visible values to those which are mental, intellectual and, possibly, less material. An era of “cultural productivity” has commenced where the importance attributed to modes of life, values and symbols may be greater than that attributed to physical products. Design thinking stands steadfastly at the centre of this continuum. Simultaneously, this development highlights the importance of cultural traditions and the need to extend and revitalize them.
Education THE IMPERATIVE FOR DESIGNERS TO ASSUME NEW ROLES Global development and an awareness of the growth of related ecological and social problems are posing new demands and offering new opportunities for design, design education and design research. Design is challenged to redefine itself and designers must assume new roles and commit themselves to developing solutions leading to a sustainable future. COLL ABORATION IN FORWARDING THE IDE AL S OF SUSTAINABLE DE VELOPMENT The members of Cumulus, representing a global community of design educators and researchers, undertake the initiative
Collaborate
35
outlined in this, ‘The Kyoto Design Declaration’, to commit themselves to the ideals of sustainable development. Furthermore, the members of Cumulus have agreed to seek collaboration with educational and cultural institutions, companies, governments and government agencies, design and other professional associations and NGOs to promote the ideals of, and share their knowledge about, sustainable development.
FROM EDUCATION TO GLOBAL RESPONSIBILIT Y In order to fulfil its declared mission to contribute to sustainable social, environmental, cultural and economic development for current and future generations, and to contribute to an environment and culture that makes harmonious and healthy life possible, the Cumulus members make this declaration. Members will commit themselves to accepting their part in the further education of our youth within a value system where each of us recognizes our global responsibility to build sustainable, human-centered, creative societies. THE POWER TO MAKE FUNDAMENTAL IMPROVEMENTS TO OUR WORLD Human-centered design thinking, when rooted in universal and sustainable principles, has the power to fundamentally improve our world. It can deliver economic, ecological, social and cultural benefits to all people, improve our quality of life and create optimism about the future and individual and shared happiness.
12
www.cumulusassociation.org/index.php
IMPLEMENTATION The signatories of this Declaration agree to submit annually a Sustainability Report to Cumulus Secretariat informing of the actions they have taken to implement this Declaration. The reports will be published on the Cumulus website and through this they are available to all interested parties.12
The Sustainability Helix FRAMEWORKS The Sustainability Helix is a strategic tool Natural Capitalism Inc, The for businesses and organizations to “drive Natural Edge Project, Global sustainability into their DNA �23, evaluate their Academy, TABATI Group, MBA commitment and monitor their progress. The Sustainability Helix candidates at the Presidio School covers three domains of sustainability: social, environmental, of Management and financial. 2005 THERE ARE F IVE STAGES TO ACHIE VING SUSTAINABILIT Y: 0 unsustainable 1 exploration 2 experimentation 3 leadership 4 restoration IN a. b. c. d. e. f.
SIX CATEGORIES OF BUSINESS: Government and management Operations and facilities Design process and innovation Human resources and corporate culture Marketing and communication Partnerships and stakeholder management
E ach category provides a long list of strategies. Under design process and innovation, developers/designers are encouraged to utilize: 7. Whole systems design strategy: address the full life cycle of products and services; engage all stakeholders in research and innovation to reduce risk
Exploration 8. Product/service design strategy: readdress the value chain (design for use, disassembly, dematerialization) 9. Process design strategy: to better understand processes and achieve more sustainable solutions 10. Testing strategy: to ensure solutions have reduced impacts and are in fact more sustainable. 24
Procedure
37
Governance & Management
Stage 0 Unsustainable
Operations & Facilities
Design & Process Innovation Human Resources & Corporate Culture Marketing & Communications
Stage 3 Leadership
Stage 4 Restoration
24
Stage 2 Experimentation
23
Stage 1 Exploration
www.sustainabilitydictionary.com/s/sustainability_helix.php Nathan Shedroff, ibid
Partnerships & Stakeholder Engagement
Cultural Design’s Opportunity: When applied to cultural issues, design can connect people with ideas, motivate behavior change, and shift mindsets. This transformative power can shape new values and provide a compelling understanding of sustainability that ensures its assimilation by a broad array of people, nations and cultures.
Pranava, Ohm, is the root mantra
Cultural vitality refers to actions and issues that affect how communities manifest identity, preserve and cultivate traditions, and develop belief systems and commonly accepted values.
Vitality
and primal sound from which all creation issues forth. It is associated with Lord Ganesha. Its three syllables stand at the beginning and end of every sacred verse, every human act.
OLD DELHI, INDIA: Painter Kafeel, a typeface created as part of the HandPainted Type project, comes with 9 layers, which gives it a very unique indian street look. Painter Kafeel, 45, is originally from Azamgarh, UttarPradesh but has lived in Delhi for almost 20 years. He’s been painting for even longer. Having never been to school, he moved to Delhi to become a street painter, establishing himself in labyrinth Old Delhi. Like other painters, he too has abandoned his brush for a computer.
Perpetuate
41 Keeping India’s Hand-Painted Lettering Alive
Growing up in the small town of Talaja in India’s state of Gujarat, Hanif Kureshi admired the colorful flourishes of hand-painted signs advertising everything from films to juice, so he studied with local painters to learn the trade. At university, Kureshi discovered graphic design and typography, which led to him working for the advertising agency Wieden + Kennedy.
In India today, according to Kureshi, the hand-painted sign look is considered kitsch. While some brands embrace this style that originated on the streets, most ad campaigns favor slick Western visual poses and machine printing, which rob street by Buzz Poole painters of their livelihood, July 6, 2011 thus threatening to erase a Reposted from the Features blog at longstanding visual tradition. www.thelivingprinciples.org.
Enter HandpaintedType32, Kureshi’s project aimed at preserving this tradition by converting the painters’ lettering into digital fonts. “As these painters are going rapidly out of the streets,” Kureshi says, “I thought I should do something before they disappear completely. The best way is to connect them with the digital world, and that’s how I launched this project, which gives painters a global platform.” Working with Mumbai’s WhiteCrow, Kureshi asks a “painter to paint a cloth banner with a to z and all the symbols on a computer keyboard. I click pictures of the banner and then send them to Sarang Kulkarni. He converts these photographed banners with typographical and technical expertise and develops userfriendly fonts.”
32
http://www.handpaintedtype.com/
According to Kureshi, the project has two phases: “The first one is based on Latin fonts and the second phase will focus on regional languages.”
The Designer’s Accord PRINCIPLES VALERIE CASEY 2007
Launched in 2007 by Valerie Casey, the Designers Accord is “a global community of design thinkers and problem solvers.” As of June 2009, 528 design firms, 22 corporate entities and 24 educational institutions had adopted the Designers Accord. 9a In addition to its website which encourages collaboration and co-opetition and provides resources for practitioners, the fast growing organization has a new online presence at FastCompany.com9b where ideas and case studies are shared. Design Firms adopt the accord at Core77’s DesignDirectory.com. VISION AND MIS SION The vision of the Designers Accord is to integrate the principles of sustainability into all aspects of design practice and manufacturing. Our mission is to catalyze innovation throughout the creative community by collectively building our intelligence around issues of climate change and social justice, and tackling those challenges together with optimism and creativity. BASIC CODE OF CONDUCT Do no harm. Communicate and collaborate. Keep learning, keep teaching. Instigate meaningful change. Make theory action. Guidelines for the three types of adopters are roughly the same, but they are tuned to the industry orientation. DESIGN FIRM ADOP TERS 1. Publicly declare participation in the Designers Accord.
Integrate 2. Initiate a dialogue about environmental and social impact and sustainable alternatives with each and every client. Rework client contracts to favor environmentally and socially responsible design and work processes. Provide strategic and material alternatives for sustainable design. 3. Undertake a program to educate your teams about sustainability and sustainable design.
4. Consider your ethical footprint. Begin by measuring the carbon/greenhouse gas footprint of your firm, and pledge to reduce it.
5. Advance the understanding of environmental and social issues from a design perspective by actively contributing
43
Cooperate
to the communal knowledge base for sustainable design. CORPORATE ADOP TERS 1. Publicly declare participation in the Designers Accord.
2. Provide strategic and material alternatives for sustainable design of products and services, and pledge to help customers reduce their negative impact. 3. Undertake a program to educate your teams about sustainability and sustainable design.
4. Consider your ethical footprint. Begin by measuring the carbon/greenhouse gas footprint of your firm, and pledge to reduce your footprint annually.
5. Advance the understanding of environmental and social issues from a design perspective by actively contributing to the communal knowledge base for sustainable design. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION ADOP TERS 1. Publicly declare participation in the Designers Accord.
2. Initiate a dialogue about environmental and social impact and sustainable alternatives with every student and colleague in your educational program. Rework curricula and assignments to emphasize environmentally and socially responsible design and work processes. Provide course content, lectures, and assignments that focus on strategic and material alternatives for sustainable design.
5. Advance the understanding of environmental and social issues from a design perspective by actively contributing to the communal knowledge base for sustainable design.11
9a
4. Consider your ethical footprint. Begin by measuring the carbon/greenhouse gas footprint of your institution, and pledge to reduce your footprint annually.
www.designersaccord.org/index.php?title=July_2009_ Progress_Report 9b www.fastcompany.com/tag/designers-accord 11 www.designersaccord.org
3. Undertake a program to educate your colleagues about sustainability and sustainable design, and plan the integration of these concepts into course curricula.
The Natural Step™ FRAME WORKS Dr. Karl-Henrik Robèrt and Dr. John Holmberg 1990s
Developed by Swedish oncologist Dr. Karl-Henrik Robèrt and physicist Dr. John Holmberg in the early 1990s, The Natural Step™ framework (TNSNS) addresses what and how we take, make, and maintain the earth’s resources and systems while meeting humanity’s needs now and in the future. To apply the framework, The Natural Step™ has developed a strategic process known as backcasting, which allows looking at a current situation from a future perspective. THE PROCES S HAS FOURS STEPS: 1. Awareness Developing a common understanding of the situation within an organization 2. Base-line mapping Mapping current operations of an organization in terms of the four system conditions 3. Clear vision Creating a vision and identifying measures that take an organization from where it is now to where it can be in a sustainable future 4. Decide on priorities Prioritizing measures for achieving the organization’s vision that move it toward sustainability. TNS recommends organizations to tackle easy things first and reach for the ‘low hanging fruit’.14
Strategize
45 The Presidio Model
Prioritize
Developed by Nathan Shedroff, with Hunter Lovins and Nicola Acutt from the Presidio Gr aduate School, this comprehensive
model for design is based on principles that transcend disciplines and build upon existing sustainability frameworks. It also highlights specific tools easily usable in the design process and lists a range of design strategies for more sustainable outcomes. The Presidio Model is extensively described and illustrated in Shedroff’s book, Design is the Problem: The Future of Design must be Sustainable, Rosenfeld Media, March 2009.
DESIGN TOOL S Sustainability Helix Biomimicry Design Spiral LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) Total Beauty™ Metrics SROI (Social Return on Investment)
REUSE Design for Durability Design for Reuse Recycle Design for Disassembly Closing the Loop Design for Effectiveness RESTORE Redesign Systems25
Nathan Shedroff, ibid
FRAME WORKS/ PERSPECTIVES Natural Capitalism The Natural Step™ Cradle to Cradle © (including both Stahel’s original approach and McDonough & Braungart’s later one) Holistic Management
DESIGN STRATEGIES REDUCE Design for Use & Meaning Dematerialization (Materials, Energy, & Transportation) Substitution (Energy, Materials) Localization Transmaterialization (Products into Services) Informationalization (Products into Digital Products)
25
PRINCIPLES SYSTEMS PERSPECTIVE Diversity = Resilience Centralization & Decentralization Competition & Cooperation Social, Cultural, Economic, and Environmental Vitality Multiple Stakeholders Customer-centric Engagement
FRAME WORKS Nathan Shedroff, with Nicola Acutt and Hunter Lovins 2008.
GDC Sustainability Principles PRINCIPLES The Society of Graphic Designers of Canada (GDC) 2009
The Society of Graphic Designers of Canada (GDC) created a working definition of sustainable communication design, supported by a set of principles and values, to guide its membership. It was unanimously endorsed in 2009 at the GDC’s annual general meeting in Winnipeg, Canada. DEFINITION: Sustainable communication design is the application of sustainability principles to communication design practice. Practitioners consider the full life cycle of products and services, and commit to strategies, processes and materials that value environmental, cultural, social and economic responsibility. PRINCIPLES AND VALUES : Encourage the evolution of the GDC and the graphic design practice by: 1. Acknowledging that we are part of an interdependent world; 2. Accepting responsibility for the consequences our actions have on our natural environment; 3. Developing and building sustainable strategies and practices; 4. Participating with the international design community in developing global best practices
Participate 5. Working to create products and services that are re-usable and/or provide long term value; 6. And by purchasing recycled, local and nontoxic materials wherever possible.
Demonstrate our commitment to improve the natural environment by:
1. Sharing these principles through our icograda network; 2. Collaborating with other design organizations worldwide to promote and develop best practices for sustainable communications design;
Encourage
47
3. Integrating environmental criteria into all design processes and organizational decision making; 4. Employing accountable and transparent processes and procedures;
5. Reviewing our environmental impacts regularly and continually working to reduce them; 6. Adopting practices that use materials in continuous cycles;
7. Seeking suppliers who use sustainable practices; 8. Acting as community and industry advocates for environmentally responsible design practices;
9. And by developing and providing products and services that improve the quality of life of all beings and support the health and well-being of the planet. Raise and foster awareness of sustainable communication design practice by: 1. Promoting the intrinsic and greater value of sustainable communication design;
2. Encouraging clients to integrate sustainable principles into their communication projects;
3. Providing education and information resources to our members and the community at large to inform environmentally responsible design decisions; 4. And by championing sustainable communication solutions for our communities.13
Tools Resources AND
49
1. Do we really need it? 2. Is it designed to minimize waste?
E valuate
11 Design Questions TOOLS
Chris Hacker, Johnson & Johnson, 2007
3. Can it be smaller or lighter or made of fewer materials? 4. Is it designed to be durable or multifunctional? 5. Does it use renewable resources? 6. Is reuse practical and encouraged? 7. Are the product and packaging refillable, recyclable or repairable?
8. Is it made with post-consumer recycled or reclaimed materials? If so, how much?
11. Is it made locally?38
.
38
10. Does it come from a socially and environmentally responsible company?
www.psfk.com/2007/10/johnson-johnsons-11-questionsbefore-you-design.html
9. Are the materials available in a less toxic form?
Labels and Certifications Countries and regions have developed their own label and certification systems to guide manufacturers and producers, and to inform consumers. They fall in three main categories: seals, certification words, and numerically comparative labels. Here are a few that you may recognize: T YPE - I (SE AL S) AENOR Medio Ambiente (Spain) www.aenor.es/desarrollo/certificacion/ productos/tipo.asp?tipop=2#1 AFNOR Certification (France) www.afnor.org/en/certification/dd001 Blue Angel (Germany) www.blauer-engel.de/en/index.php Designed for the Environment (DfE-U.S.) www.epa.gov/dfe/ Environmental Choice EcoLogo (Canada) www.environmentalchoice.com/redirect.asp Environmental Choice (Australia, New Zealand) www.geca.org.au/ Ekologicky Setrany Vyrobek (Czech Republich) www.ekoznacka.cz/__C12572570032F2DB. nsf/$pid/MZPMSFIV17VH Eco Mark (Japan) www.ecomark.jp/english/n_kekka.html Ecomark (India) envfor.nic.in/cpcb/ecomark/ecomark.html EnergyStar (US) www.energystar.gov/ European Union Eco-Label (the EU Flower) ec.europa.eu/environment/ecolabel/ Fair-Trade www.fairtrade.net/
Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) www.fsc.org/ Green Label Singapore www.sec.org.sg/ Green Label Thailand www.tei.or.th/greenlabel/ Green Seal (U.S.) www.greenseal.org/ Good Housekeeping (nutrition labels, U.S.) www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/nutrition/ newHong Kong Green Label www.greencouncil.org/eng/index.asp HUAN Eco-Label (People’s Republic of China) www.sepacec.com/cecen/labelling/ Marine Stewardship Council www.msc.org/get-certified Nordic Eco Label (the White Swan) (Scandinavia) www.svanen.nu PETA’s Leaping Bunny (animal rights) www.peta.org/mc/factsheet_display. asp?ID=96 Qualidad Ambiental (Brazil) www.abnt.org.br/default. asp?resolucao=1920X1200 Sustainable Forestry Initiative www.sfiprogram.org/newsroom/?p=103
TCO (Sweden) www.tcodevelopment.com/ UL (U.S.) www.ul.com/global/eng/pages/corporate/ aboutul/ulmarks/ T YPE - II (CERTIFICA TION WORDS ) Organic (U.S.) www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/
Empower
51
T YPE III (NUMERICA LLY COMPAPARATIV E L AB EL S) EnergyGuide (US, for applicances) www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/homes/ rea14.shtm Fuel Economy Rating (U.S.) www.fueleconomy.gov/FEG/ratingsNewSticker. shtml Tesco /Carbon Trust Carbon label (on food and products in Tesco stores) www.tesco.com/greenerliving/greener_tesco/ what_tesco_is_doing/carbon_labelling.page
Oeko-Text® (textiles, Japan, Europe) www.oeko-tex.com/OekoTex100_PUBLIC/index. asp Timberland Footprint label www.timberland.com/shop/ad4.jsp Pharos (material selection) www.pharoslens.net/about/label
Sustainable Design Checklist TOOL S Design Can Change 2009
Design Can Change, by smashLAB in Vancouver, Canada is a collective & community of designers who share the values and goals of being environmentally conscious in their professional practice. Designers are asked to take the following pledge: In my professional practice, I will endeavor to: 1. LEARN: Engage in the topic and seek to understand the issue 2. THINK: Make a sustainable mindset second nature 3. ACT: Put my knowledge to use in my daily work 4. INFORM: Share information & build awareness of sustainability 5. UNITE: Spark change through collective strength37 Design can Change provides a Sustainability Checklist to guide designers to make “greener” choices (the more check marks, the “greener”). The detachable checklist on the following page can be removed, saved and reproduced for future use to ensure all projects meet the highest sustainability standards.
Examine Pull and save this checklist
53 Sustainable Design Checklist Keep your projects green by using this handy checklist to audit your decision throughout the design process. The goal is to get as many checkmarks as possible. Detach and copy this checklist to use for all future projects. STRATEGY Best serves the client’s needs Employs an effective message Fulfills the objectives Serves multiple purposes Doesn’t require subsequent or parallel efforts to support it Has limited environmental impact through its lifecycle EXECUTION Will unlikely benefit from additional strategy Uses most appropriate format Maximizes space on press sheet Uses of recycled materials Is easy to recycle Considered paperless options Uses as few materials possible Raises awareness by display of environmental specs Limits ink coverage and areas of solid colour Maximizes shelf life Can be proofed on screen Uses die-cuts or embossing rather than an additional ink Combines many components for maximum efficiency PRODUCTION Is on target with print quantities Uses local vendors and sourcing local materials Minimizes transport and shipping Uses vendors that employ
renewable energy Printer Can proof on screen Doesn’t require film; it can go from digital to plate Utilizes an environmental management system Manages waste responsibly Has environmental certification Paper Is smaller and lighter Contains post consumer waste fiber (PCW) Is recycled Uses tree-free fibres such as kenaf, hemp, and bamboo Was produced with renewable energy (Green-e certification) Is FSC-certified Was processed chlorine free Packaging Eliminates adhesives by using an alternative binding or tabs Avoids labels by printing directly on packaging surface Does not require secondary and tertiary containers Minimizes gauge of materials Is robust, reducing the amount of protective materials Is refillable Nest and stack tightly for most efficient transport Does not contain toxic substances such as PVC
Inks Are not specialty metallic or fluorescent inks Are vegetable/soy-based inks Do not require any protective surface coating Post Press Avoids solvent-based adhesives in bindings & labels Limits use of staples Avoids foilstamping, thermography, and lamination Distribution Has mailing lists that are up to date Accurately targets our audience Avoids shipping by air Avoid use of labels by printing addresses directly on the piece END-OF-USEFUL LIFE Can be recycled Can be reused Minimizes the de-inking process Is biodegradable
So, how did you do? Can anything be done about the unchecked boxes? For more information on sustainable graphic design, visit: www.designcanchange.org
Glossary of Terms ALTERNATIVE FIBERS
BIOAC C UMUL ATION
BIOMA S S
Paper pulp sources not derived from
Increased concentration of a
Organic, non-fossil material that
trees. Sources include: agricultural
substance as it moves up a food
is available on a renewable basis.
waste (wheat, flax, rice) as well as
web. Example: mercury, a by-
Biomass includes all biological
crops grown specifically for fiber,
product of burning coal, turns into
organisms and their metabolic by-
such as hemp, kanaf, and cotton.
methylmercury when it enters water.
products, including forest and mill
Small organisms ingest it & are
residues, agricultural crops and
consumed by larger organisms. Each
waste, wood and wood waste, animal
step up the food chain results in
waste, aquatic plants, and municipal
higher toxicity & more detrimental
and industrial waste.
ANC IENT FORE S T FRIENDLY (AFF ) Paper and purchasing policies that help safeguard ancient and endangered forests. AFF paper must be manufactured with a high
effects on consumers.
BIOMIMIC RY
percentage of post-consumer
BIOBA SED/BIODERIVED
A discipline that studies nature’s
recycled fiber or agricultural residue.
MATERIAL(S)
best ideas and then imitates these
Any virgin fiber used in the paper
Organic materials derived
designs and processes to solve
must be both FSC certified and
primarily from contemporary living
human problems.
assessed to ensure that it did not
organisms (new carbon versus
originate from endangered forests.
old fossil carbon). Many bio-
Bleaching must be chlorine-free.
based materials are engineered to
BAC K YARD COMPOS TING The controlled decomposition of organic food waste and yard trimmings in urban, suburban, and
provide a biodegradable alternative to plastics, such as cornstarch packaging pellets or bioplastics created with vegetable oil or starch.
rural backyards which produces a
BIODEGR ADABLE
nutrient-rich top soil. Composting
Characteristic of a material that
is considered waste source
can be broken down into simpler
reduction, not recycling, because the
substances (elements and
composted materials never enter the
compounds) by bacteria and fungi,
municipal waste stream.
changing the chemical makeup and
BAL ANC ED SCORECARD
physical appearance of materials.
BIOPL A S TIC S Plastics derived from renewable biomass sources, such as vegetable oil or cornstarch. Bioplastics are used in the creation of many modern products like tractors, water bottles, and takeaway cutlery. BIOSPHERE Coined in 1875 by Eduard Suess, the biosphere is that part of a planet’s outer shell—including air, land, and water—within which life occurs, and which biotic processes alter or transform. From the
A process introduced by Robert S.
BIODIVERSIT Y
broadest geophysiological point of
Kaplan and David Norton in 1992
The range of living organisms
view, the biosphere is the global
designed to give managers tools
supported by a particular ecosystem.
ecological system integrating all
for measuring the performance
Biodiversity includes genetic variation
living beings and their relationships,
of a business from a: Financial
within species, the variety of species
including their interaction with
perspective, Customer perspective,
in an area, and the variety of habitat
the elements of the lithosphere
Business process perspective, and a
types within a landscape. It is of
(rocks), hydrosphere (water), and
Learning and growth perspective
fundamental importance to the
atmosphere (air).
BI - CYC LING A form of multi-tasking that involves getting to work while simultaneously avoiding traffic, burning calories, and enjoying one’s surroundings.
functioning of all natural and humanengineered ecosystems, and by extension to ecosystem services that nature provides to human society free of charge.
BLUE ANGEL The first environment-related certification label for products and services. A.K.A. Der Blaue Engel, it was introduced in 1978 by the
55 German Federal Ministry for the
which has had its carbon dioxide
the economy will, ultimately, be
Environment, Nature Conservation
emissions 1) calculated 2) reduced
unsustainable.
and Nuclear Safety.
where possible and 3) offset through
CAPITAL There are a number of related
the purchase of real, verified, and additional carbon offset credits.
C LIMATE C HANGE A significant change from one climatic condition to another. In
meanings in finance, accounting
CARBON OFF SE T TING
some cases, climate change has
and economics. Capital refers to
Financial investments made to
been used synonymously with the
assets that can be used to create
‘offset’ the carbon emissions of a
term global warming; scientists,
other assets. Sustainable managers
product or process. These include
however, tend to use the term in the
recognize at least three different kinds
the investment in technologies or
broader sense to include natural
of capital: financial (cash and other
practices that reduce carbon in
changes in climate.
monetary instruments), natural (natural
another industry, or the gathering
resources that can be used to create
and sequestering of carbon through
products or that provide the natural
nature, such as forest restoration,
services of breathable air, drinkable
tree conservation, and renewable
water etc), and human/cultural
energy projects (solar & wind farms).
(employees, customers, governments and almost any other human system a business operates within).
remanufacture by the same firm or industry group. Example: Interface Carpet’s Flor product line, or Patagonia’s Common Threads
be supported indefinitely by the
Garment Recycling.
The total amount of greenhouse
of a particular area, or even Earth
gases emitted directly or indirectly
itself. Carrying capacity evaluates
through an activity or from a
not just the natural environment, but
product, company or person,
the support of social, human, and
typically expressed in equivalent
built capital as well.
yet to be standardized.
materials from customers for
The maximum population that can available resources and services
dioxide. Methods of calculation have
The practice of collecting used
CARRY ING CAPAC IT Y
CARBON FOOTPRINT
tons of either carbon or carbon
C LOSE - LOOP RECYC LING
C LOSED - LOOP SUPPLY C HAIN Ideally, a zero-waste supply chain that completely reuses, recycles, or composts all materials. However, the term can also be used to refer to corporate take-back programs, where
CAU SE - REL ATED MARKE TING
companies that produce a good are
The association of a for-profit
also responsible for its disposal.
company with a non-profit organization
CARBON L ABELING
or government agency to promote the
A label disclosing a product’s carbon
company’s products or services while
footprint. This concept is still in its
raising money or awareness for the
early stages, with several competing
non-profit or agency. Cause-related
labels in trial. One example:
marketing is distinct from corporate
carbonfund.org offers a Carbon-
philanthropy because the corporate
Free Certified Product label that
dollars involved are not outright
companies can use to promote their
gifts to a nonprofit organization and
products as climate/carbon neutral.
therefore not tax-deductible.
CARBON NEU TR AL
C HE ATER CAPITALI SM
Carbon neutral, or carbon neutrality,
A term coined by Randy Hayes to
refers to a net zero carbon release,
describe the ability for companies
brought about by balancing the
to exploit economic policies that
amount of carbon released with the
insufficiently attribute externalities.
amount sequestered or offset. By
As long as these external costs
extension, it describes an entity
are not addressed by business,
COGENER ATION Cogeneration is the simultaneous production of electrical and thermal energy from the same fuel source. For example, surplus heat from an electric generating plant can be used for industrial processes, or space and water heating purposes. Or, waste heat from an industrial process can be used to power an electric generator DE - INKING The chemical or mechanical extracting of inks, coatings and pigments from recycled paper so that the fibers can be used again.
DEMATERIALIZ ATION
effects based on currently available
robustness against market instability
Reducing the total material that
information, EPA predictive models
or failures. Specifically, when applied
goes toward providing benefits to
and expert judgment.
to a human context, diversity refers
customers. May be accomplished through greater efficiency, the use of better or more appropriate materials, or by creating a service that produces the same benefit as a product.
DE SIGN S TR ATEGY Like Experience Strategy, Design Strategy is more concerned with the ability of a company or organization to respond and perform well in the
to a wide variety of cultures, ethnic groups, physical features (and race), socio-economic backgrounds, opinions, religious beliefs, sexuality, and gender identity.
DE SIGN
long term, rather than for a particular
DOWNCYC LING
Design is a set of fields for
design project or goal. Design
The practice of recycling a material
problem-solving that uses user-
Strategy is the field and approach of
in such a way that much of its
centric approaches to understand
developing strategic policies, usually
inherent value is lost. For example,
user needs (as well as business,
at a high level within a company or
recycling plastic into park benches
economic, environmental, social,
organization, in order to better realize
or office paper eventually becoming
and other requirements) to create
the ongoing creation of successful
pulp to mold an egg carton.
successful solutions that solve real
Design created for users, audiences,
problems. Design is often used as a
participants, or customers. Design
process to create real change within
Strategy is more concerned with
a system or market. Too often,
outward market forces and how these
Design is defined only as visual
impact an organization’s ability to
problem solving or communication
perform and serve its customers
because of the predominance of
successfully, than with the creation
graphic designers. In other fields
of individual experiences (which
and contexts, Design might only
would be the domain of Experience
refer to Fashion Design or Interior
Design). It is also concerned with
Design. However, a recognition of
the internal organization, structure,
the similarities between all design
culture, processes and values
disciplines shows that the larger
within an organization that allow it
definition for Design operates at a
to successfully create experiences
higher level and across many media.
and respond to both market and
DE SIGN FOR DI SA S SEMBLY Designing a product to be dismantled for easier maintenance, repair, recovery, and reuse of components and materials. DE SIGN FOR THE ENVIRONMENT A product label issued by the US EPA that allows consumers to quickly identify and choose products that help protect the environment and are safer for families. The DfE scientific review team screens each ingredient for potential human health and environmental
customer needs. Ideally, there should be no difference between Experience Strategy and Design Strategy but, in practice, Design Strategy is most often performed only in a visual fields and the wider aspects of experiences are rarely addressed. DIVERSIT Y In nature, diversity is a source of ecosystem strength since failures are unlikely to eliminate all species. Therefore, the ecosystem will recover in some form and continue. In business or investing, diversity can provide a similar source of
E - WA S TE Waste materials generated from using or discarding electronic devices (such as computers, televisions, and mobile phones). E-waste tends to be highly toxic to humans, plants, and animals and contaminate water, air (often when burned), and dirt (where dumped or spilled). E-waste is a particular problem since technological devices are superceded so quickly, causing them to be thrown-out more quickly than many other product. Few of these devices are upgradable, easily reusable, or easily separated for recycling of components or industrial nutrients. ECO MARK Issued by the Japan Environment Office, Eco Mark is an ISO Environmental Labeling Program. Every product bearing Eco Mark has passed strict examination and life cycle assessments. ECO - EFFEC TIVENE S S The central strategy in the cradleto-cradle development method and seeks to create industrial systems
57 that emulate healthy natural
ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION
goods they produce. This system
systems. The central principle of eco-
The process of assisting the recovery
serves as an alternative approach
effectiveness is that “waste equals
of an ecosystem that has been
to conventional international trade
food.” The concept was developed in
degraded, damaged, or destroyed.
for producers, typically economically
response to some of the perceived limitations of eco-efficiency which critics claim only slow down the rate of environmental depletion and don’t reverse the production of unused or non-recycled waste.
ECOLOGO Founded by the government of Canada in 1988, the EcoLogo Program is a Type I eco-label, as defined by the International Organization for Standardization
disadvantaged artisans and farmers from developing countries. The producers partner with international organizations to build their skills to market and sell goods such as crafts, and agricultural products such as coffee and chocolate.
ECO - EFFIC IENCY
(ISO), meaning it compares
An effort to achieve the best
products/services with others in the
FAIR TR ADE C ER TIFIED
possible efficiency throughout the
same category, develops rigorous
Fairtrade is an alternative approach
creation, use, and disposal of a
and scientifically relevant criteria
to conventional trade and is based
product or service. Eco-Efficiency
that reflect the entire life cycle
on a partnership between producers
simply means ‘doing more with
of the product, and awards the
and consumers. The Fairtrade
less’. It is not a synonym for
EcoLogo to those that are verified
Labeling Organizations International
sustainability as it considers only
by an independent third party as
(FLO) sets the standards for the
the environmental and economic
complying with the criteria.
mark, coordinate Fairtrade labeling
aspects of the product without regard for the social implications.
ECOLOGY The relationship of living things to
at an international level, and helps producers gain the certification.
ECO - FRIENDLY DY E S
one another and their environment,
FEDER AL TR ADE COMMI S SION’S
Natural dyes such as indigo,
or the study of such relationships.
ENVIRONMENTAL GUIDE S
pomegranate rind, myrobalan, lac and manjistha as well as benign chemicals like aluminium and iron are eco-friendly alternatives to the synthetic dyes and hazardous chemicals used in conventional
ECOSYSTEM The complex of a community of organisms and its environment functioning as an ecological unit.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) seeks to prevent deception and unfairness inthe marketplace. The Guides indicate how the Commission will apply Section 5 of the FTC Act,
FAIR LABOR | ETHICAL TRADE
which prohibits unfair or deceptive
fabric dyeing. Natural dyes are made
A movement that seeks equity and
acts or practices, to environmental
from plants, earth clays and even
transparency for all international
marketing claims. In short, FTC law
insects, which translates to less
trade producers and partners.
requires that environmental claims
harm to the ecosystem. Another
Drivers of this movement, like the
be subtantiated.
eco-friendly alternative is the use of
Fair Labor Association (FLA) and
vegetable dyes on leather garments.
the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI),
ECOLOGICAL (ECO-)INDICATOR A characteristic of an ecosystem that is related to, or derived from, a measure of biotic or abiotic variable, that can provide quantitative information on ecological structure
seek to create lasting solutions to exploitative labor practices. The Fairtrade Labeling Organizations International (FLO) has a certification program for fair labor products.
FOS SIL FUEL Carbon-based fuels such as coal, oil and gas formed over millions of years through the decay, burial and compaction of rotting vegetation on land, and of marine organisms on the sea floor. Burning fossil fuels
FAIR TR ADE
is a major source of greenhouse
and function. An indicator can
A system of trade in which
gases in the atmosphere.
contribute to a measure of integrity
workers receive living wages and
and environmental sustainability.
employment opportunities for the
FREECYC LING The donating of unwanted items,
particularly when said items are
specifically to the growing economic
however, Visual Design is a better
posted on freecycle.org. Originally
interdependence of countries
term since most Graphic Designers
referred to as ‘hand-me-downs’ by
worldwide through increasing cross-
are skilled in more than this narrow
disgruntled younger siblings.
border transactions in goods and
scope of visuals and graphic
services, free flow of international
elements are only a subset of
capital, and more rapid and
the possible visual components
widespread diffusion of technology.
applicable to visual expression.
organization devoted to encouraging
GOVERNANC E
GREEN
the responsible management of the
The systems and processes
A common metaphor referring to
world’s forests. Products carrying
of management that govern an
environmental association based
the FSC label are independently
organization’s behavior and conduct.
on the shared secondary color of
certified to assure that the forests
Governance covers accountability,
many plants. It is often used to
they come from are managed to
auditing, transparency (openness),
associate products, organizations,
meet the social, economic, and
reporting and disclosure,
political parties, or policies with
ecological needs of present and
responsibilities and representation
environmentally sensitivity.
future generations.
of various stakeholders (including
F SC (FORE S T S TE WARDSHIP COUNC IL) C ER TIFIED An independent nonprofit
FUEL , C URRENT SOL AR INCOME A term used to describe the use of an energy source that is renewable and currently available. These sources include solar, wind, biomass, and water (though only in certain circumstances).
shareholders, board of directors, advisory boards, employees, etc.) as well as charters, by-laws, and policies document the rights and responsibilities of all parties. Governance often includes strategy, risk management, and compensation, benefits, and evaluation of senior
G ARBAGE
management. There is growing
Anything that costs less to dispose
inclusion of governance issues within
of than it’s worth commercially.
international certification systems, such as the GRI.
GLOBAL WARMING A term for the gradual, average
GR ANDMA
increase of temperature of the
A beloved family member who may
Earth’s atmosphere and oceans.
never have heard of sustainability
Local temperatures around the
but whose demonstrated expertise
world, however, may increase or
in freecycling, organic victory
decrease in varying amounts. Global
garden cultivation, Cradle-to-Cradle
warming is accelerated by industrial
household maintenance, and
greenhouse gases expelled into the
goodwill towards all makes her an
atmosphere.
excellent role model for the cause.
GLOBALIZ ATION
GR APHIC DE SIGN
The worldwide integration of products,
Graphic Design is an older term
services, employment, people,
for the field of Visual Design. This
cultures, markets, and economies
term refers specifically to the use
and the compression of both time
of graphic media (such as color,
and distance that often accompanies
symbol, and type) to communicate
it. Globalization often refers
a style or expression. In practice,
GREEN DE SIGN The design of products, services, buildings, or experiences sensitive to environmental issues and achieve greater efficiency and effectiveness in terms of energy and materials. GREEN SE AL An independent non–profit organization dedicated to safeguarding the environment and transforming the marketplace by promoting the manufacture, purchase and use of environmentally responsible products and services. Green Seal sets standards, monitors advertising claims and certifies products made with postconsumer waste. GREEN - COLL AR JOB S Jobs created by investments and sustainable practices. Many skilled and unskilled jobs traditionally referred to as “blue-collar” jobs may be created and supported through the expansion of incentives and demand for sustainable building and installation of sustainable systems (such as solar panels, “green” remodeling, and gray-water systems)
59 in the residential, commercial, and
Human Capital is the sum total
use simultaneously, with a shared
government markets. These “green-
of knowledge, experience, “good
infrastructure.” Other terms for
collar” jobs may employ those who
will,” intellectual property, and
these include, industrial parks,
are often left-out of the tech boom
labor available to an organization or
industrial zones, export processing
cycles or do not have the skills,
society. While many organizations
zones, business parks, industrial
experience, or education to work in
value their people, many do not
development zones, and eco-
“white-collar” jobs. Championed by
manage or measure human capital
industrial parks.
Van Jones, the founder of the Ella
in sustainable terms.
Baker Center for Human Rights in Oakland, California, “green-collar” jobs fill a variety of community and individual needs with rewarding, well-paying work that is sustainable and local (and aren’t outsourced overseas easily). GREEN - E The United States’ leading independent consumer protection program for the sale of renewable energy and greenhouse gas reductions in the retail market. The Green-e logo means that the product has been certified by an independent third party to meet strict consumer-protection and environmental standards. GREENHOU SE G A S (GHG) A gas, such as carbon dioxide or methane, which contributes to potential climate change. HA Z ARDOU S AIR POLLU TANT (HAP) Any air pollutant listed or pursuant to section 112(b) of the Clean Air Act. There are 189 regulated toxic chemicals on this list, including asbestos, beryllium, mercury, benzene, coke oven emissions, radionuclides, and vinyl chloride. HUMAN CAPITAL One of at least four forms of capital used by people, organizations, corporations, and governments, to build and maintain their livelihoods.
INFORMATION ARC HITEC T URE
HUMAN TOXIC IT Y
Information Architecture is a field
Referring to the human safety of a
and approach to designing clear,
product or ingredient: the level at
understandable communications by
which the human body cannot expel
giving care to structure, context, and
a metabolized harmful substance.
presentation of data and information.
INDU S TRIAL COMPOS TING Similar to backyard composting but requiring industrial-scale processes such as higher heats and more controlled conditions, which allow for a greater variety of inputs, including: meat, bones, fats, bioplastics, and food service paper products. INDU S TRIAL DE SIGN Industrial Design is the field of developing physical solutions to meet a particular need. These physical solutions might include products, vehicles, machinery, and even environments.
There is no difference between the two terms. Some designers refer to information Architecture as concerning “high-level” issues and Information Design as concerning “low-level” or visual issues but it is not possible to separate the two in developing clear communications, regardless of medium. INFORMATION DE SIGN Information Design is a field and approach to designing clear, understandable communications by giving care to structure, context, and presentation of data and information. As a field, its principles
INDU S TRIAL ECOLOGY
relate to all communications
The interconnection of multiple
products and experiences,
disciplines to minimize
regardless of medium (print,
environmental impacts. The fields
broadcast, digital, online, etc.).
of study in industrial ecology
Information Design is, primarily,
are: Systems analysis, Industrial
concerned with clarity (instead of
metabolism, flow of materials and
simplicity) and understanding.
energy and their transformation, and closed-loop systems.
INNOVATION The goal of many organizations who
INDU S TRIAL E S TATE S
seek to differentiate their offerings
According to the United Nations
by finding new and more valuable
Environment Programme, “a large
solutions that others have not. Most
tract of land, subdivided and
organizations who seek to innovate,
developed for the use of several
do so as a separate, occasional
companies in close proximity to
function by a designated subset of
employees or consultants. However,
INTER AC TION DE SIGN
KE YS TONE SPEC IE S
true innovation requires cultural
Interaction Design is a field and
A species so critical to an
change throughout the organization
approach to designing interactive
ecosystem that its removal could
to sustain as well as participation by
experiences. These could be in
potentially destroy the entire
as many stakeholders as possible.
any medium (such as live events or
system. A good example of this are
Ultimately, innovation can be a source
performances, products, services,
Blue Jays, which plant acorns that
of transformation for a company
etc.) and not only digital media.
give rise to oak forests. Without Blue
that can increase effectiveness of
Interactive experiences, necessarily,
Jays, oak forests are not naturally
all operations and processes but
require time as an organizing
replenished and without the forests,
requires understanding and value
principle 9though not exclusively)
all other species in the ecosystem
placed on its products as well as a
and Interactive Design is concerned
cannot survive. It is important to
tolerance for change.
with a user, customer, audience, or
consider keystone species when
participant’s experience flow through
making any decisions that could
time. Interactivity should not be
affect the natural environment. A
confused with animation in which
small impact on keystone species
objects may move on a screen.
could cause major disruption for the
Interactivity is concerned with
whole ecosystem.
INTEGR ATED BOT TOM LINE A process, described by Theo Furgusson, for integrating financial, environmental, and social costs and benefits into a unified measure of business activity. Conventional objectives of profitability, competitive advantage, efficiency,
being part of the action of a system or performance and not merely watching the action passively.
K YOTO PROTOCOL An agreement developed by and for industrial nations in 1997 at
and economic growth are judged
INTER AC TOR
the United Nations Framework
successful by their compatibility
A term for an interactive participant
Convention on Climate Change
with biodiversity, ecological
in an interactive experience.
(UNFCC) in Kyoto, Japan, to reduce
sustainability, equity, community
Other terms could include: user,
their emissions of greenhouse gases
support, and maximized well-being
participant, actor, audience.
by at least 5% below 1990 levels
for a variety of stakeholders.
I SO 140 0 0
by 2012. The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in 2005 without the US
INTER AC TION
ISO 14000 is a set of stringent
Interaction is a response experience
environmental management
in which both actor and reactor are
standards, created by the
engaged in a mutually affecting
International Organization for
experience. This means that
Standardization (ISO), which certify
the system is comprised of two
products and companies that meet
interactive partners. In the case of
specific processes and practice
L ANDFILL
interactive media, one partner may
criteria. It serves as a tool to enable
A highly ironic environment: land
only be mildly interactive (such as a
organizations of any size to identify
which we would prefer not to fill and
computer) and only programmatically
and control the environmental
whose convenience depends on it
so. While most of the computer
impact of their activities, products,
being as far from our backyards
actor’s actions are the result of
or services; to improve their
as possible. See earth911.com to
predetermined programming, if the
environmental performance
avoid filling.
variations are ample enough, it can
continually; and to implement a
be said that this actor is interactive
systematic approach to setting
(making it an interactor). Mostly, two
environmental objectives and targets,
humans (being inherently interactive)
achieving them, and demonstrating
will create an interactive system or
that they have been achieved.
experience simple bys conversing.
ratifying it. Currently, the EU expects to achieve the goals two years early, in 2010. Over 200 US cities have decided to meet the Kyoto Protocols on their own.
LEED A registered system of rating existing and new buildings, interiors, and other components based on environmental effectiveness. The
61 LEED checklist integrates over 60
LIFECYC LE (OF A PRODUC T )
ME ANING
different criteria and results in
All stages of a product’s
Meaning is a distinct level
certification at 4 levels: Certified,
development, from extraction of fuel
of cognitive significance that
Silver, Gold, and Platinum. More
for power to production, marketing,
represents how people understand
information: www.usgbc.org
use, and disposal.
the world around them–literally,
LIFE CYC LE ANALYSI S (LCA)
MARKE TING
An examination, like an audit, of
The process of understanding
the total impact of a product or
people and markets in order
service’s manufacturing, use, and
to provide better products
disposal in terms of material and
and services and differentiate
energy. There are few standards
offerings. Marketing consists
yet in measuring and assessing
of both the “inhale” (customer
MILLENNIUM ECOSYS TEM
these impacts but a Life Cycle
and market research aimed at
A S SE S SMENT
Analysis is usually wider in scope
understanding needs, desires,
A UN-funded study of the state of
than similar assessments, such as
and cultural contexts as well as
ecosystem services around the world.
the Environmental Risk Assessment
competitors), and the “exhale”
It is the most extensive and accurate
(ERA) and the Substance Flow
(the creating of messaging
study of its kind. Launched in 2001
Analysis (SFA). This includes an
to effectively communicate
and completed in March 2005, the
analysis and inventory of all parts,
offerings in appropriate ways).
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
materials, and energy, and their
Too often, marketers only focus
reports on habitat status, fishing,
impacts in the manufacturing of a
on the “exhale,” concentrating on
coral reefs, forests, water use,
product but usually doesn’t include
messaging, sales, advertising, PR,
atmospheric carbon and temperature,
social impacts.
and promotion. This often creates
weather, land use, and population.
LIFE CYC LE A S SE S SMENT (LCA) A set of procedures put in place to assess the environmental aspects and potential impact directly associated with a product, process,
ineffective communications that don’t relate to customer needs, wants, or contexts. These are also distinct activities and disciplines in their own rights.
the reality they construct in their minds that explains the world they experience. Meaning is the deepest level of this understanding and is distinct from Values, Emotions, and functional or financial benefits:
MOBIU S LOOP (A .K . A C HA SING ARROWS) The common nickname for the recycling symbol. The three arrows represent the main steps in the
or service system throughout its
POSITIONING
process: 1) the collection and
life cycle. Includes 1) Compiling an
Marketing should always seek to
separation of recyclable materials; 2)
inventory of relevant energy and
understand what people need and
the manufacturing of these materials
material inputs and environmental
value in order to inform business
into new products; 3) the purchase
releases 2) Evaluating their
strategy about what should be
and use of these recycled products.
potential environmental impacts
made, not merely how it should be
associated with the identified
promoted. In this way, organizations
inputs and releases 3) Interpreting
can better satisfy true customer
the results to help you make more
needs in meaningful ways. When
informed decisions.
customers are truly satisfied, they
LIFE CYC LE INVENTORY (LC I) A cradle to grave inventory and quantification of the total inputs and outputs that occur during the life cycle of the product and package; LCI forms the basis of any LCA study.
are more likely to form lasting, loyal relationships with the organizations and brands that provide these solutions. It is also likely they may also be more satisfied while consuming less.
MON S TROU S H Y BRID A term coined by Michael Braungart and William McDonough for a product, component, or material that combines both technical and organic nutrients (such as recyclable paper and poly-vinyl-chloride) in a way that cannot be easily separated, thereby rendering it unable to be recycled or reused be either system. Most monstrous hybrids can only
be thrown out and contribute to the
NEG AWAT T
OZONE - DEPLE TING SUB S TANC E
waste stream and cannot be reused.
The saving of a megawatt of
(ODS)
power by reducing consumption or
A family of man-made compounds
increasing efficiency.
that includes, but is not limited
MUDA A Japanese word for waste especially through poorly organized systems.
NON - RENE WABLE
Organizations seeking economic,
Resources that exist in a fixed
manufacturing, and human efficiency
amount and cannot be replenished
seek to design and/or replace
on a human time scale. Non-
systems to eliminate muda.
renewable sources of energy are
NAT UR AL The FDA describes natural ingredients as those that are
Investment strategies that provide social and environmental returns
being produced synthetically.” The
efficiency. For example: 1) Designing
Natural Products Association (NPA)
a product or package to f it the most
is working to address the use of
possible units per case or carton;
the word for personal care products
2) Calculating the best possible
through its certification program.
load balance and number of case units carried by a shipping pallet;
an emphasis on returns over the long-term. While a longer investment horizon and/or a smaller financial return may be inherent in individual patient capital investments, neither of these conditions are required of patient capital investments. PERMAC ULT URE
materials use per press sheet
A contraction of “permanent
ORG ANIC
build and maintain their livelihoods.
In regards to food (both plant and
Natural Capital includes all forms
animal) and other agricultural
of resources from the environment,
products (such as cotton), a
including minerals, water, air,
term describing the absence of
sunlight, heat, plants, animals, and
pesticides, hormones, synthetic
other organic matter. Sustainable
fertilizers and other toxic materials
organizations seek to maximize their
in cultivation. In some countries,
effectiveness and efficiency in using
“organic” has a legal definition. For
natural capital as well as practice
example, in the USA, it is defined
policies that sustain the quality and
in the Organic Food Production Act
quantity of natural capital sources
of 1990 and refers to food and
in the future.
products that are at least 95% free
framework to help organizations
in addition to financial returns with
3) Planning for the best possible
corporations, and governments, to
A trademarked, science-based
hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs).
and nuclear fuels (uranium)
To maximize resource and material
NAT UR AL S TEP ™
tetrachloride; methyl bromide; and
fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, coal)
animal products as opposed to
used by people, organizations,
methyl chloroform; carbon
PATIENT CAPITAL
OP TIMIZ ATION
One of at least four forms of capital
bromofluorocarbons (halons);
typically divided into two types:
“extracted directly from plants or
NAT UR AL CAPITAL
to: chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs);
of toxic and synthetic materials as described in the USDA National Organic Program.
agriculture,” coined in 1978 by Australian ecologists Bill Mollison and David Holmgren. Permaculture is an approach to developing ecological human habitats and food production systems that use land sustainable and build communities that harmonious integrate dwellings and agriculture in regard to climate, annual and perennial plants, animals, soils, and water use. Permaculture focuses not on the separate elements, but on their relationships and how they are placed in the landscape. PHOTODEGR ADABLE Characteristic of a material that will
and communities understand and
ORG ANIC C LOTHING
become more sustainable. It is also
Clothing made from materials that
an international organization that
are grown or raised without the use
provides consulting and education
of harmful pesticides, herbicides or
POS T- CON SUMER WA S TE (PCW )
services around this framework.
other synthetic chemicals.
Materials or finished products,
break down into small pieces if left uncovered in sunlight.
particularly paper and plastic,
63 that have served their intended
reclaiming materials from used
are inexhaustible, unlike fossil
use and have been diverted or
products or materials from their
fuels which are finite. Renewable
recovered from the waste stream.
manufacturing and using them in
energy sources include: biomass,
Post-consumer fiber materials
the manufacturing of new products.
geothermal, wind, photovoltaic and
include recyclables collected in
It is different from Reuse, where
solar thermal energy.
commercial and residential recycling
products are not destroyed and
programs, such as office paper,
remanufactured but cleaned and
cardboard, newsprint and packaging
repaired to be used again, also
materials. Recovered office paper
known as remanufacturing. Another
waste makes up the majority of
strategy to use resources more
postconsumer fiber content used
efficiently includes reducing the use
in recycled copy and printing
of materials needed for product and
papers. See recycledproducts.org |
process manufacturing, also known
mohawkpaper.com | fscus.org
as dematerialization.
PROC E S S C HLORINE FREE (PC F )
RECYC LED CONTENT
C ER TIFIED
The proportion, by mass, of
In addition to being made without
pre- and post-consumer recycled
chlorine compounds, PCF Certified
material in a product or packaging.
paper products must contain at least
Some companies count only post-
30% post-consumer content, and the
consumer content as recycled.
mill must detail all post-consumer content sources. Certified by the Chlorine Free Products Association.
RECYC LING , C LOSING THE LOOP The remanufacturing of a material into a product of similar type and
PRODUC T DE SIGN
value, without significant loss of
A sub-field of Industrial Design,
performance. For example: cereal
Product Design is a field that uses
boxes being repulped and made into
various processes to develop
100% PCW cereal boxes.
physical solutions to specific needs. Products might make use of electronics but are not required to. They may be mass produced, custom-made, or customized. Production Artist
REDUC E One of the most sustainable strategies is simply to reduce the amount of energy and materials we use and, thus, are required to be manufactured. This reduction has
RECYC L ABLE
an exponential effect as it further
As defined by the EPA, a product
reduces packaging, recycling,
or package that can be collected,
transportation, cleaning, disposal,
separated or otherwise recovered
and a host of other costs.
from the solid waste stream for reuse. ‘Recyclable’ is one of the few sustainability terms formally enforced by the FTC on product packaging and advertising. RECYC LE Recycling is the process of
RENE WABLE Any material or energy that can be replenished in full without loss or degradation in quality.
RENE WABLE RE SOURC E S A resource that can be replenished at a rate equal to or greater than its rate of depletion. Examples of renewable resources include trees, crops, and vegetable-based products. REU SABLE The ability of a product or packaging to accomplish multiple trips, rotations, or uses within its life cycle. REU SE Often, the most sustainable option is to reuse materials and objects already manufactured, either for their original or new purposes, rather than recycle them into other products. This decreases further energy and materials use in recreating them into a new form. SEN SORIAL DE SIGN Sensorial Design is a term used to include the presentation of an experience in all senses. For example, Visual Design only covers visual expression and presentation to the visual sense. Audio Design includes the creation of music, sound effects, and vocals to communicate and entertain in the aural sense (hearing). Likewise, all of the other human senses (touch, smell, taste, etc.) are elements of an experience that can be designed. SERVIC E DE SIGN Service Design is the field concerned with the development of
RENE WABLE ENERGY
services to meet specific needs.
Energy obtained from sources that
These services may make use of
different communication media
illusion of having a meaningful
S TAKEHOLDER
(including online, telephone, in-
impact on the world without
Any person or group who has an
person, etc.), may or may not be
demanding anything more than
interest (a stake) in an organization,
automated, and may or may not
joining a Facebook group.
a community, or design project.
SLOW MONE Y
SUPPLY C HAIN
A concept under development
A network of individuals or
by Woody Tasch, Chairman of
organizations that performs the
Investors’ Circle. Inspired by the
functions of procurement of
SERVIC E ECOLOGY
mission of the Slow Food Movement,
materials; transformation of these
A Service Ecology is a system
Tasch considers that “fast” money
material into intermediate and
of interactions and actors that,
investments (such as venture
finished products; and distribution of
together, create a sustainable
capital) is expected to return a
these finished products to customers.
and successful service. Service
profit quickly but is rarely invested
Ecologies often include several
long enough to create sustainable
companies or organizations that
ventures. This is especially true
specialize in delivering one part
of early-stage companies in some
of the total service. These may or
industries such as biotech, high
may not be distinct to the user of
tech, and food development which
the service. Successful Service
often require longer time frames
Ecologies must realistically allow
to generate competitive returns.
each company or organization to
Slow money is invested with an
create and realize value for their
understanding of the natural
part in the service in order for the
dynamics of these businesses
Ecology to be both successful (from
and as a result, investors set their
a user perspective) and sustainable
expectations of financial return
(from a system perspective).
around these processes.
SERVIC E ECONOM Y
SMUG ALER T
An economy which places increased
The alert issued when the cloud
A product made of highly stable
value on delivery and receipt of
of arrogance emitted by affluent,
materials which can be used again
services for economic benefit
environmentally conscious
and again, technical nutrients are
and growth than the acquisition
populations (particularly those with
designed to be retrieved and reused
and consumption of products and
a high concentration of hybrid car
within the closed-loop cycle of
materials. This shift away from an
drivers) threatens to eclipse their
sustainable manufacturing.
economy of products can place
well-meaning efforts.
use products as part of the service experience. It usually includes a Service Ecology that allows the service operate successfully.
greater emphasis on relationships
SU S TAINABILIT Y Meeting the economic, ecological and social needs of the day without impairing the chances or development of future generations. (UNConference, Rio de Janeiro, 1992) TAKE - BAC K Take-back is part of extended producer responsibility, a pledge by manufacturers to accept responsibility for a product’s life cycle, including “end-of-life” management schemes. TEC HNICAL NU TRIENT
THERMOHALINE CONVE YOR SROI (SOC IAL RE T URN ON
A global water circulation system
INVE S TMENT )
driven by water temperature and
SROI is an approach to
salt-density that distributes water
understanding and managing the
between the Earth’s oceans.
impacts of a project, organisation or
Warmer water closer to the ocean’s
SL AC K TIVI SM
policy. It is based on stakeholders
surface travels from the northern
A form of activism focused on
and puts financial value on the
Pacific Ocean, south through the
delivering the highest satisfaction
important impacts identified by
Indian Ocean (where it is joined
from the least amount of effort,
stakeholders that do not have
by more warm water), around the
giving those who participate the
market values.
southern tip of Africa, and up to
and can promote resource productivity (if the service provider maintains responsibility for the means of providing that service).
65 the northern Atlantic Ocean. At this
and the common good, based
performance, adding social and
point, the water cools and sinks
on the assumption that when
environmental dimensions to the
toward the bottom of the ocean
individuals use a public good, they
traditional monetary benchmark.
and travels back via the same
do not consider the impact – or
Triple bottom line, or TBL, is often
path. The thermohaline conveyor is
externalities – of their use on the
expressed through examples:
repsonsibile for bringing warmer,
good itself; as a result, public
People Planet, Profit; or Ecology,
more temperate climate to most of
resources become overexploited.
Economy, Equality.
Europe and has a profound effect
The term was popularized by Garrett
on global climate. Also called
Hardin in his 1968 Science article
thermohaline circulation
“The Tragedy of the Commons,”
TIPPING POINT A way of looking at the way change happens in the world, put forth by Malcolm Gladwell in his bestselling book, The Tipping Point. The book contends that ideas, behaviors, messages, and products spread through society similar to disease, and that societal changes are like epidemics: a tiny force can cause enormous shifts. The “tipping point”
which used a hypothetical example of English Commons, shared plots of grassland used by all livestock farmers in a village. In this hypothetical, each farmer keeps adding more livestock to graze on the Commons, because it costs him nothing to do so. In a few years, the soil is depleted by overgrazing, the Commons becomes unusable, and the village perishes.
is the moment in an epidemic when
TR AN SMATERIALIZ ATION
a virus reaches “critical mass.”
The process of satisfying the
TOTALLY C HLORINE FREE ( TC F ) The label used for pulps or papers that have been bleached without the use of chlorine or chlorine compounds. TCF refers only to paper with 100% virgin content.
benefits of a product with a service. Often, services can offer the same activities to customers as some products. Transmaterialization requires the rethinking of business goals and objectives in order to envision new market opportunities.
TOTALLY C HLORINE FREE ( TC F )
However, some customer sectors
C ER TIFIED
may not be ready or willing to accept
The label used for 100% virgin paper
new solutions (such as services
that has been made without the use
where they once bought products).
of chlorine compounds. TCF Certified products must produce a chain of custody for all virgin fiber, the mill must have no current or pending violations, and the mill cannot use old-growth forest for any of their virgin pulp. Certified by the Chlorine Free Products Association. TR AGEDY OF THE COMMON S A term used to illustrate the conflict between individual interests
TR AN SPARENCY An organization’s disclosure of their environmental, economic, and social impacts in an effort to assure all players are working toward longterm sustainability goals. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reports are often the delivery mechanism. TRIPLE BOT TOM LINE An expanded baseline for measuring
UPCYC LING The remanufacturing of a material into a different product with a different material-use cycle. For example: a PET bottle made into fibers for high performance polyester clothing, which itself can be recycled. U SER E XPERIENC E The overall experience, in general or specifics, a user, customer, or audience member has with a product, service, or event. In the Usability field, this experience is usually defined in terms of easeof-use. However, the experience encompasses more than merely function and flow, but the understanding compiled through all of the senses. VALUE S These are the significant beliefs we hold about how ourselves and others should behave in the world. They govern our judgements and understandings about our own and others’ identities. They are one point on the spectrum of meaning. VEGE TABLE -/SOY- BA SED INK Ink that contains varying amounts of oil from annual crops, such as soy and citrus, to replace petroleum, making it lower in volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The American Soybean Association has developed standards for soybean content in soy inks and the appropriate use of
the Soy Seal or “Printed with Soy
community, or business. The water
Ink� logo.
footprint is a geographically explicit
VI SUAL DE SIGN Visual Design is the field of developing visual materials to
indicator, not only showing volumes of water use and pollution, but also the locations.
create an experience. Visual Design
ZERO WA S TE
spans the fields of Graphic Design,
The goal of developing products
Illustration, Typography, Layout,
and services, managing their use
Color Theory, Iconography, Signage,
and deployment, and creating
Photography, etc. and any medium,
recycling systems and markets in
including online, broadcast, print,
order to eliminate the volume and
outdoor, etc. Visual Design is
toxicity of waste and materials and
concerned with the elements of
conserve and recover all resources.
visual expression and style. It is
Implementing zero waste eliminates
often an integral step in Information
all discharges to land, water, or air
Design and other communication
that may be a threat to planetary,
design disciplines.
human, animal or plant health. Many
VOL ATILE ORG ANIC COMPOUND ( VOC) Carbon-containing compounds that evaporate into the air (with a few exceptions). VOCs contribute to the formation of smog and/or may themselves be toxic. VOCs often have an odor. Typical liquids that release VOCs include gasoline, diesel, pesticides, cleaning supplies, glues, and solvents used in paints. WA S TE = FOOD A principle of natural systems that eliminates the concept of waste. In this design strategy, all materials are viewed as continuously valuable, circulating in closed loops of production, use, and recycling. WA S TE -TO - ENERGY The practice of processing waste products to generate steam, heat, or electricity. See also Energy Recovery. WATER FOOTPRINT The total volume of freshwater used to produce the goods and services consumed by an individual,
cities and states already have set zero-waste goals. For example, San Francisco and other cities have set a goal to create zero waste by 2020.
67
ARCHITECTS & AUTHORS
Contribute
The Living Principles’ Contributors Gaby Brink, Co-chair
Nathalie Destandau
Phil Hamlett, Co-chair
AIGA Center for Sustainable Design
Strategy Committee Chair
AIGA Center for Sustainable Design
www.sustainability.aiga.org
AIGA Center for Sustainable Design
www.sustainability.aiga.org
Executive Creative Director |
www.sustainability.aiga.org
Graduate Director, Graphic Design
Founder
Director of Business Strategy
Academy of Art University
Tomorrow Partners
Tomorrow Partners
415 618 6321
510 644 2332 x201
510 644 2332 x209
phamlett@academy
gbrink@tomorrowpartners.com
ndestandau@tomorrowpartners.
www.tomorrowpartners.com
com
www.tomorrowpartners.com
ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTORS The seeds of the Living
SF SUMMIT AT TENDEES
SPECIAL THANKS
Principles prouted in February
Allison Arieff
Nathan Shedroff
2009, at the Compostmodern
Gaby Brink
conference, and were cultivated
Valerie Casey
Marc Alt
at other events like Adobe
Nathalie Destandau
Kathleen Byrnes
Systems’ Sustainability
Brian Dougherty
Emily Carr
Roundtable in the spring.
Valerie Elliot
Jeremy Faludi
Genesis of this specific
Ric Grefé
approach began at the AIGA
Lynda Grose
Leadership Retreat in Portland in
Phil Hamlett
June 2009. The core architects
Jamie Koval
emerged from that event,
Clement Mok
Dan Kohan
pulled together the Geneaology
Susana Rodriguez
Michelle Mullineaux
research document, and invited
Laura Shore
Emily Pilloton
an inter-disciplinary advisory board to a strategy summit in San Francisco in August. The harvest of that day’s activities found its way into the Living Principles, which were vetted across a wide review board.
Editorial Reviewers
Cheryl Heller
James Hobbs Terry Irwin
Sheri Koetting
Barbara Sudick Adam Werbach Pam Williams
Ann Willoughby
Join our feedback loop on Facebook at facebook.com/The-Living-Principles
and help us create and share tried-and-true best practices, guidelines, tools, case studies, and general support for a broad range of design disciplines.
68
One serious problem for designers is that even with a systems approach, there are few tools in existence that wrap these issues together. Instead, designers must learn to match together a series of disparate approaches, understandings, and frameworks in order to build a complete solution.
— Nathan Shedroff Design Is the Problem: The Future of Design Must be Sustainable 2009