Sustainability

What is Sustainability?

Recycle Reduce Reuse Restore

Design is in great transition, thankfully. Traditionally, design has been practiced with a focus on appearance, whether it is represented in graphic, interior, industrial, fashion, furniture, automotive, marine, or any other kind of design. In truth, design has never been merely about appearance, although that's been the most prominent phenomenon throughout its history. In addition, other disciplines use the word "design" to describe other functions, such as structuring databases, systems, services, or organizations (further confusing its use and meaning). But there have been moments in design's past where truly great designers showed us that design was also concerned with performance, understanding, communication, emotion, desire, meaning, and humanity itself, even though these haven't been the most lasting movements.

Vampire Power - The Unnecessary Thirst for Electrons

We have become a wasteful society--not necessarily purposely but more out of ignorance and carelessness. We can argue over some of our waste but it's almost universally clear and agreed that electricity burning through power adapters and appliances not attached to anything is just a shame. Read more and try our experiment!

Design and Usability

There's a lot to keep in mind when developing new products and services sustainably. In the beginning, it's difficult to consider every strategy or principle or balance every aspect of impact. So, as you gain more and more experience designing sustainably, here is a checklists to use. It is very reduced but helpful since it encompases the most important concepts to consider:

Create More (value, meaning, and performance) with Less (materials, energy, and virgin materials).
Focus on efficient and healthy alternatives.
Use and promote local energy, resources, and labor wherever possible (reducing transportation).
Don't use PVC at all (or wherever there's an alternative).
Design solutions to be savored.

Questions to ask when referring to sustainability:

How can usability and design impact our world in a sustainable way?
What does sustainability have to do with usability?
What are you doing to help sustain our world?
Are there some activities that encourage us to make better use of our resources?

Start sharing your Designing for a Sustainable World experiences today! Take photos and videos in your community showcasing the innovative and challenging aspects of transportation as well as people interacting with different modes, signs and accessibility features.

Send your photos to: www.flickr.com and tag them WUD2009 and you will see them rotating on our site , send your videos www.youtube.com and WUD2009.

Enhance our blogs below with YOUR stories from around the world or interesting newspaper and journal articles around Designing for a Sustainable World.

Topics of interest include: