Green Options » industrial design

How to Have a Truly Sustainable Cup of Coffee

Paul Smith — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 11:00:51 +0000

You drink coffee. Tea. When it’s at home, it’s organic, and when you’re out, you do your best. In so many ways, you live a green lifestyle. And yet, there’s one sticky point: the cup.

You know about bringing your own mug, but it’s just so…clumsy. And it’s not the right size for the machines your barista uses, so they have to use a different cup when making it, defeating the purpose of you bringing a mug.

Yes, their cups are made from recycled paper, but they’re coated to make them waterproof, heat resistant, etc. Which means they aren’t getting recycled a second time. Compostable? Biodegradable? Possibly, but still, some materials had to be used to make that single use cup. Often more than twice the weight of the resulting cup. And for many, unless you have a professional grade facility at home, composting or biodegrading isn’t going to happen any time soon.

What to do? KeepCup has what may be just the thing:

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Go Go Boots out of Recycled Plastic Bags? Go from Rags to Riches, and Be Hot to Trot in these Sexy Shoes.

Lucille Chi — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 23:23:53 +0000

Botas Dacca Boots made out of recycled plastic bags, are hot to trot.

They are made exclusively by a noted Chilean industrial design student named Camila Labra. The interiors are constructed to be comfortable and soft with a natural piqué and the green highlight is that the exteriors are made mostly of recycled plastic bags.

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Lessons from Little House on the Prairie

Aaron Szymanski — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 14:41:27 +0000

I’m reading a book about wood. The title is “Wood,” by Harvey Green. It’s written a bit like the slightly more popular and accessible books by a different author titled “Salt” and “Cod” by Mark Kurlansky. But “Wood” is about our use of wood in home construction, furniture, machinery, packaging, religion—everything. In this book, the author makes many interesting observations, like the fact that although the saw was developed independently in many parts of the world and they are strikingly similar, some cultures designed saws to cut on the push stroke (Western) and others to cut on the pull stroke (Eastern). I think this is fascinating.

He also writes about a time in our past when almost everyone had some knowledge of working with wood because everyday activities like farming, cooking, cleaning traveling, required implements that needed to be made out of wood.

Now that I have read it, this seems so obvious. Back in Laura Ingalls’ time, you couldn’t just go to the store and buy everything you needed like we can today (alas, Mr. Oleson’s store was well stocked but not like what you can find at Wal-Mart). Still, what a cool common bond they all had. I feel a little envious of what seems like a really artistic skill, but then I think that this is sort of how computers are for us today. Almost everyone has to have some knowledge of a computer interface in order to help get our jobs done (supposedly) faster and more efficiently.

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Why Can’t Every Product be Sustainable?

Aaron Szymanski — Mon, 12 May 2008 13:39:44 +0000

If you go to the mass retailers today, it’s likely that you’re going to pay more for sustainably designed, developed, manufactured and shipped products. In some cases, like my Timberland boots, the products will be superior in all ways that matter and the sustainable attributes will be an added-value. But in most cases the product will either be harder to find, quicker to wear-out or less aesthetically pleasing than the less-sustainable competition.

It’s tempting to point out the many examples beyond my Timberlands, which are sustainable without the sacrifice or the bloated price tag. Sure, they exist but they are the minority–a miniscule struggling minority. If we all start to question why, we can shift every product manufactured towards a more sustainable approach. Every product.

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Essential Resources for a Changing Design Industry

Megan Prusynski — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 18:25:10 +0000

Sustainability is gaining popularity among every industry, and the graphic design community is no exception.

When I was writing my thesis on sustainable and socially-conscious graphic design just a few years ago in college, good resources on the subject were hard to come by. Now it seems that discussion sustainability in design is cropping up everywhere, and design organizations and studios are jumping on the green bandwagon. All I can say is, it's about time!

So, why should designers and communications professionals be concerned about sustainability? First of all, because everyone should. Second, designers are responsible for a hell of a lot of paper and resource use, as many designers create printed materials every day. Third, designers are in a unique position: we are communicators, capable of informing, educating, persuading, enlightening, facilitating, and of course, selling. We have the ability to incite action, change minds, and open eyes. I couldn't think of a better group for leading the green revolution than the design community.

As designers have become more aware of environmental issues and sustainability, some great resources on green design have been developed. Sustainability is not only a popular buzzword, but a marketable selling point in a competitive marketplace. This makes a sustainable mindset even more important for designers to develop. I have gathered a few of my favorite resources on sustainable graphic design and the greening of the design industry. This is just the tip of the iceberg though, so please feel free to add your favorite green design resources!

Renourish: this beautifully designed resource for the design community, aimed at fostering discussion of green design and educating designers. "It exists to provide the graphic designer and their clients a host of resources to practice more sustainably in their craft. It helps you understand the importance of sustainability and how practical and invigorating it can be for the creative process and, in turn, our lives." The site contains a Sustainability Toolkit, a basic introduction to sustainability and why it's important, and many case studies about sustainable design projects and green design firms.
AIGA Center for Sustainable Design: the AIGA is one of the largest design organizations in the United States. If they're concerened about sustainability, it must be a big deal to the design industry. The new Center for Sustainable Design includes resources and discussion on design issues surrounding sustainability, as well as information on what AIGA is doing to green their organization (like installing a green roof, going carbon-neutral and conserving energy, water, and paper). The site is still growing, and so is the community discussing sustainability on it.
Design Can Change: this site is just awesome. Chock-full of beautifully presented information on climate change, its effects, and what designer can do about it, Design Can Change strives to get designers thinking about sustainability and then acting on it. Sign the Design Can Change Pledge to get started in greening your design practice, or if you need a designer, find one who has signed the pledge and made a commitment to sustainability.
Institute for Sustainable Communication: the ISC focuses on sustainability in communication and provides tools for designers, media professionals, and communicators. Their goal is to promote "awareness and widespread adoption of economically, socially, and environmentally sound sustainable development practices in the use of communication media." Check out their Responsible Enterprise Print program and Design for Sustainability tool.
GreenBlue: this non-profit institute aims to transform the design of human industry, making economics sustainable and incorporating sustainable thinking into how our world is designed. It began as a nexus of projects at McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC), the private sustainable product and process design consultancy co-founded by William McDonough and Michael Braungart in 1995, who wrote Cradle to Cradle (a highly recommended read). GreenBlue is a little broader than graphic design, but the bigger picture thinking they exemplify is beneficial for anyone.
Design By Nature: this is a resource forum for environmentally sustainable design, based in Australia. The site includes a thorough guide on green design practices, many examples of eco-friendly projects, and a community of designers concerned with sustainability.
Celery's Ecological Guide to Paper: Celery, a green design firm based in Berkeley, offers sage advice on choosing sustainable paper. This guide offers definitions on paper and printing terms, a look at different green paper options, and specs on various green papers.
The Centre for Sustainable Design: this UK-based group facilitates discussion and research on eco-design and broader sustainability considerations in product and service development.
The Metropolitan Group's Tips on Sustainable Graphic Design: this list of sustainable design tips and questions to ask is offered by the Metropolitan Group's design studio.

There are many more resources where these came from, but if I listed them all, this post would end up being a novel (if it isn't already). So, please add to this list by sharing your favorite sustainable design resources!