I believe the most important thing I have learned this week is that money is not everything. There is too much importance placed on profit and people are willing to destroy our ecosphere to achieve as much profit as possible. What they do not realize is that being a sustainable company could actually save them money and attract more buyers because they are taking pride in our foundation for living. As a designer, learning to focus more on sustainable design, rather than just profit is crucial, because in order to keep designing we are going to need our foundation which comes from our natural resources. Sustainable design approaches will be a lot of work because most designers were not initially taught to consider the life cycles in the design process, but designers will definitely see the benefits once they find their own sustainable approach. In my research this week I have learned that the sustainable design approaches are most effective in the big corporations. Maybe if every big corporation like Wal-Mart strives to make a change, then many other corporations will follow in their footsteps in order to stay competitive. After having this class, I know that as a consumer, I will be more apt to buy products that are sustainable or at least shop at a store that is making efforts to become sustaibable.
When shopping at Wal-Mart yesterday I ran into a guy who had a basket full of the reusable shopping bags instead of the plastic. It made me realize that there actually are people trying to do their part and setting a good example for others, so of course I ran up to the guy and asked him if I could take a picture of his basket for my sustainability blog, and told him how happy I was to see that he was making a change and setting a good example!
What does
success mean to you? What does it take to be successful? If your initial
thought consists of wealth and money, do not feel bad because you are not
alone. In today’s society money is the
key to a successful life. In the current
market system a monetary value is placed on everything contributing to success,
except for our ecosystem and natural life cycles. What is wrong with this picture? All forms of
wealth relate back to the foundation of our ecosphere, so shouldn’t it have a
higher monetary value? This is a major reason why we as designers are unable to
mimic nature’s designs in order to remain sustainable.
In today’s
economy, businesses are primarily focused on profit. They want to create as
much profit as possible even if it requires them to cut costs by laying off
employees or reducing quality by cutting out materials. As stated in The Designer’s Atlas of Sustainability, “we need a balanced economy
that allows us not only to capture a wide range of human values such as clean
air or healthy families, which cannot be easily expressed in monetary terms,
but also to trade the goods and services that can be more easily measured by
the money (Thorpe 61).” If more value was placed on our ecosphere and how we
preserve it, our economy could remain prosperous and sustainable at the same
time. Sounds like a win win situation, but it’s a lot more complicated than it
seems.
There are many different solutions to fix the
lack of value on our ecosphere. The
government has tried to put a limit on the amount of air pollution you can
produce, and the polluters who reduce their pollution are granted credits that
they can sell to businesses that need to pollute more. Sounds kind of crazy, but you have to start
somewhere. There has also been the idea
of placing a monetary value on nature, but prices tend to be inadequate and
unreasonable. Our economy is a key
component in achieving sustainability. We just have to find an effective way to
contribute to our economic conditions while achieving full sustainability.
In today’s
economy coroporations hold a tremendous amount of power and freedom because of
their wealth. So why can’t sustainable practices start here? Many big
corporations are already beginning to participate in sustainability. In the
article Wal-Mart Highlights
Sustainability Efforts, John Kalkowski talks about the annoying wire ties
on toy packaging, and how Wal-Mart has made an effort to eliminate these ties
in a sustainable way. Wal-Mart now uses
ties that are made of natural fibers and much easier to remove. In the article Kalkowski states, “By using a
more sustainable material and reducing the number of ties used to keep toys in
their packaging, the initiative eliminated 1.6 billion feet of wire from
Wal-Mart products alone (Kalkowski 2012).”
Wal-Mart was also able to change their shoe boxes, so that they would
use 43 percent less paper. By doing this Wal-Mart was able to save 28 percent
in costs and saved 692 tons of paper.
This is about 2,500 trees. This
shows that minor changes from big corporations can make a big step in the
efforts toward sustainability.
Another way
to pursue sustainability is through the nonprofit organizations. In today’s economy a lot of people are more
apt to make a change for a good cause, rather than for profit. By using a nonprofit organization to promote
sustainability, people will have the opportunity to learn more about
sustainability and even get training for their own sustainable designs. As
stated in the article Sustainability of
nonprofit organizations, “Nonprofit organizations pursue missions to serve
needs that the business sector does not serve, presumably because it cannot do
so profitably (Weerawardena 2010).” Since
the business sector is only concerned with making money, nonprofit organizations
are a good alternative. What people do
not realize is that nonprofit organizations can make money, as odd as it
seems. These profits are gained from
fundraisers and grants, and then used to fund the organizations cause instead
of distributing them back to the shareholders.
This is just another simple way our economy can pursue
sustainability.
In our
culture people look to find satisfaction in emotional and practical needs. As stated in The Designer’s Atlas of Sustainability, “human beings have a common
set of needs that we must meet to achieve well-being (Thorpe 114).” Above all
humans want a good well being that meets their needs. When I say needs, I do not mean a new outfit
for Thursday night; I’m talking about protection, affection, subsistence and
freedom. In today’s culture our needs
are more external and materialistic instead of being within oneself to develop
relationships and personal growth. Maybe we as designers can cause a shift in
today’s culture to meet more internal needs rather than external. In the book The Designer’s Atlas of
Sustainability, it talks about four main themes that contribute to our cultures
needs. These themes consist of..
1.Communication
·Affection,
understanding, and participation
2.Artifacts
·We
are very materialistic and focused on individual wants instead of needs.
3.Time
·We
are very impatient.
·We
want quicker and easier ways out, and for our individual needs to be met
instantly.
4.Nature
·We
have disconnected ourselves from nature and become obsessed with the city life.
·We
only consider nature when we are building bridges for transportation.
Here are
some sustainable efforts related to our culture
The true key
to beginning a sustainable economy starts with the design process. We have to learn to design with the
environment in mind. We have to find the
patience to break through the sustainable design barriers and not give up. Most of all we have to realize the value of
nature and the importance to sustain it for our future success. Money is of no importance without our
ecological foundation.
After participating in all the readings for this week and interacting with my blog buddies I have come to realize that in order to achieve full sustainability, you have to do some thorough research. Many people think that just because they recycle, they are completely sustainable, but they do not think about the chemicals being used to break down these items which are emitted into the air. Even the Patagonia retail store has not thoroughly researched their efforts toward sustainability by using recycled water bottles for sweaters that can be harmful to the skin. Everyone must consider the life cycles and how they are effected in every aspect of design and production.
Being informed about how production effects our ecosphere is very important in order to achieve full sustainability. I believe this is something that should be taught to children at an early age when they learn about the different life cycles, because then they will be able to carry the importance of sustainability throughout their daily life and future careers.
After learning the importance of up cycling, down cycling, and the effects of contaminants, I hope to find my own way to design things in interiors that will mimic the earths lifecycles from beginning to end. I also hope that I will be able to make minor changes in my everyday life that will make a difference.
I remember being in elementary school and learning about the
different life cycles in my science class.
I remember learning about the water cycle, and how precipitation
eventually turns into evaporation. I
also remember learning about photosynthesis and how plants need sunlight and
carbon dioxide in order to grow and give off oxygen. Who would have known there would be so much
importance placed on this later in life, and that it should be considered in
designing all things? It is the basic knowledge we learn when we are younger
that most people forget to apply later in life.
A little science review
Nature is something that is meant to last for millions of
years because it is always evolving into new forms. Our ecosphere consists of four layers, the atmospphere,
biosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere.
We as consumers use these spheres to produce all materials. As stated in The Designer’s Atlas of Sustainability by Anna Thorpe, “ Estimates
are that it takes one-third of a pound of lithosphere chemicals to produce a
cotton shirt (Thorpe 24).” This is just
to make the shirt. This does not include the chemicals used to grow the cotton
or the amount of times you wash the shirt after you purchase it. An ecosystem maintains a balanced cycle by
using a metabolism, or life maintaining process. This goes back to the basic science life
cycles such as the carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle, and water cycle, which we were all taught in elementary school.
Consumer Destruction
We as consumers are destroying the natural lifecycles by
creating materials, which do not apply to the same concept as nature, of
evolving into newer forms. As stated in The
Designer’s Atlas of Sustainability by Ann Thorpe, “We would need three or
four planet Earths to sustain the world’s population at the current lifestyles
of Western countries (Thorpe 29).” We
are disrupting the nature’s cycles by using materials too quickly, discarding
large amounts of materials, and taking more material from the lithosphere and
putting it back into other spheres where they do not belong. As stated in The Designer’s Atlas of Sustainability,
“One thousand new chemicals are introduced each year. Most of these chemicals have not been tested
on human health, but like other processed lithosphere materials, they will end
up somewhere in our biosphere (Thorpe 31).”
In the video, Case study of C2C
and Roehner Textiles, the chemicals used to die their fabrics were tested
only to determine they caused cancer, birth defects, immune system disruption,
soil and water toxicity, and they found that of the 1600 dies sold, only
sixteen of them were not harmful. Out of
these sixteen dies they were able to make virtually any color and still remain
competitive. This only proves that it is
possible to make a change and still maintain a good business.
Solutions to Sustainability
There are many different directions
designers can choose to take, in efforts to save the ecosphere, but who is to say
what is the best solution? Many people think that just by recycling, they will
save the environment. Little do they
know, that recycling actually degrades the material quality which results in
down-cycling. Even though we sort things
to be recycled, almost every product has some sort of contaminant, which can be
hazardous when the recycled material begins its new life. The book The Designer’s Atlas of
Sustainability describes a contaminant by stating, “ clothing might be 100% cotton,
except for the button, zipper, and thread (Thorpe 42).” Contaminants can cause
danger cycling , which is when one material is recycled into another product,
in which it was never intended to be.
The retail store Patagonia creates their clothing from recycled soda
bottles. The book The Designer’s Atlas of Sustainability explains, “Polyethylene
terephthalate (PET) soda bottles are being recycled into fleece sweaters. Yet the material composition of a soda bottle
is not necessarily suitable for prolonged contact with the human skin. The Bottles contain the toxic chemical
antimony, potentially harmful plasticizers, ultra violet (UV) stabilizers, and
other chemicals (Thorpe 42).” Even though they are making an effort to turn
the bottles into a new life, they might be harming their consumers.
An alternative to down-cycling in
order to save our ecosystem is up-cycling.
Up-cycling is when materials are remade into a high-quality material.
Most of these materials would be made from a pure substance so that they could
be easily sorted and up-cycled. This
method eliminates the dangers of contaminants.
The retail store Patagonia is making an effort toward Up-cycling by
providing a place where customers can bring their old apparel into their store
to be recycled into new clothes with the same value. Below is a video of a creative way to up-cycle.
Designers
today find a tremendous amount of inspiration for their designs from nature. Why can’t we include nature from the
beginning of our designs life, to the end? If we as designers consider our
designs like the basic life cycles we were taught in elementary school, we
would be able to make a difference and change the decline in our
ecosphere.
A few Restricted Substance
·AAFA
oArylamines-
Often used in hair dyes, sunscreen, photographic additives, and temporary
tattoos.
§Cause allergic contact dermatitis to people
oAsbestos-
found in manufactured goods such as shingles, ceiling and floor tiles, paper
and cement products, textiles and coatings,
and friction products such as automobile clutch, brake and transmission
parts.
§Risk of developing lung disease, asbestosis, and
mesothelioma.
oDioxins
and Furans- created when products like herbicides are made
§Can cause cancer, changes in hormone levels, and
decreased ability to reproduce
·GOTS
oAromatic
Solvents- used in commercial applications such as industrial solvents and
chemical intermediates.
§Can cause depressant effects to the central
nervous system, irritation, nausea, and unconsciousness.
oChlorophenols-
very low levels in drinking water.
§In large amounts can cause cancer, skin
irritation such as swelling scabbing and scar formation.
Industry Efforts Toward Sustainability
·Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
(LEED) and Center on Ecotourism and Sustainable Development (CESD)
To be honest, I was terrified when beginning my first blog post. I was so worried that I was doing it all wrong, but once I started typing as if I was just telling someone a story about what I learned in class today, I felt a sudden relief. I believe the most important thing I have learned this week is that taking time to reflect on what you have researched is very important. During this course there is a lot of different readings, and you can not just read them all and expect to be able to blog about them in your own words. I found it very beneficial to read all the assigned readings and then do research on a topic that ties them all together and relates to me in someway. Reflecting on my readings and researching a topic in which I was some what familiar with allowed me to write in a way in which I could tie all the articles together and still address my argument. In my future blog posts, I will allow plenty of time to read each article thoroughly, reflect on what I have read, and how it affects me. I will then start my own research in order to incorporate all the articles in my blog. Now that I feel more comfortable blogging, I would like to learn more about different companies and their efforts toward a sustainable design. I would also like to learn more minor changes that every person can do to help in the efforts toward sustainability. I enjoy doing the research and being able to inform others through blogging. Hopefully someday we will make a difference!
Who would have
known that my favorite past time is a step toward sustainable design? As I
mentioned in the introduction to my blog, I love refurbishing and repurposing
furniture!! I absolutely love going to consignment furniture stores, auctions,
garage sales, and even searching Craig’s List to find my next big project.It’s a wonderful feeling to find an old piece
of furniture and then transform it into something extraordinary!
For those of you
who are uncertain what sustainable design consists of, here is a little
overview.Before starting my
sustainability course, I assumed sustainability could only be practiced on a
large scale, starting with the major industries.I was completely wrong.As
mentioned in Fashioning SustainabilityForum for the Future, contributing to sustainability can be as small as
washing your clothes in cold water and using an energy efficient machine, or as
big as substituting hemp for cotton in the production process. Did you know hemp has superior qualities to cotton, such
as it is four times stronger, twice as resistant to abrasion, less resistant to
mildew, soiling, shrinkage, and fading?Unlike cotton, which requires ample amounts of water and pesticides,
hemp requires a tremendously smaller amount of water and pesticides, which can
be harmful to the worker harvesting the crop.After reading many articles on sustainability I have come to realize
there are many different definitions for sustainable development.From what I have gathered, sustainable design
consist of developing a long lasting product while considering all
environmental and economic conditions, that will satisfy current and future
generations.I highly agree with the
book, The Designer’s Atlas of Sustainability by Ann Thorpe, which states, “The
individual choices we make about how to pursue sustainable design will be based
on personal situation, skill, and temperament (Thorpe 17).”People of all ages and different career
fields can achieve sustainability.
My focus is going
to be more driven toward the current initiatives of sustainable interior
design.After reading the journal
article Sustainable Solution by Tara Mastrelli, I have come to realize that
sustainable design can solve more than one environmental issue.The article addresses the issue that over
70,000 square miles of forest in the Rocky Mountains have been deteriorating
for the past ten years due to infestation of the Mountain Pine Beetle.The beetles are causing a major problem, because trees are falling in the middle of roads, and utility lines are being
damaged.A man by the name of Lary
Lipson, managing director of Greeno, (a sustainable building products company)
noticed these trees had a very unique blue-silver coloring, and did not want to
see the trees destroyed.He researched
the trees, and found the blue-silver wood was just as strong as traditional
lumber. He later marketed the wood as bluestain lumber, and produced flooring,
wainscoting, and decorative trim.Lary
Lipson also employed many local residents to make this possible, which helped
out the community.His current initiative
is to incorporate the bluestain pine in all the resorts located in the Rocky
Mountains.Lipson stated that a new line
of bluestain furniture and accessories might be in his future.This one initiative toward sustainability
helped in many different aspects, by improving the habitats for both plants and
wildlife, bettering the community by producing more jobs, and decreasing the
use of man made materials for building.The
Designer’s Atlas of Sustainability states that a purist strives for 100%
sustainability, and I believe Lary Lipson’s efforts could be classified as
purely sustainable.
The article
Sustainable Design, by Alan Liddle, mentions a few more ways to achieve a
sustainable interior design, such as Faux-linoleum floor made from sawdust,
linseed oil, rosin, jute fiber and limestone.It also talks about a wood substitute made from coconut shells and resin
panels embedded with banana fibers for added texture and color.There is an unlimited amount of options
when it comes to choosing sustainable interior aesthetics.
Sustainable design is not only used in interior design. It can be used in many other fields as well. People just have to find their own personal way to incorporate to sustainability. As mentioned in Shifting the New Dominant Social Paradigm in the Apparel Industry: Acknowledging the Pink Elephant by Cosette M. Armstrong, there are specific sustainable design approaches that industries can participate in and here are a few examples and descriptions.
Posts
I remember being in elementary school and learning about the
different life cycles in my science class.
I remember learning about the water cycle, and how precipitation
eventually turns into evaporation. I
also remember learning about photosynthesis and how plants need sunlight and
carbon dioxide in order to grow and give off oxygen. Who would have known there would be so much
importance placed on this later in life, and that it should be considered in
designing all things? It is the basic knowledge we learn when we are younger
that most people forget to apply later in life.
There are many different directions
designers can choose to take, in efforts to save the ecosphere, but who is to say
what is the best solution? Many people think that just by recycling, they will
save the environment. Little do they
know, that recycling actually degrades the material quality which results in
down-cycling. Even though we sort things
to be recycled, almost every product has some sort of contaminant, which can be
hazardous when the recycled material begins its new life. The book The Designer’s Atlas of
Sustainability describes a contaminant by stating, “ clothing might be 100% cotton,
except for the button, zipper, and thread (Thorpe 42).” Contaminants can cause
danger cycling , which is when one material is recycled into another product,
in which it was never intended to be.
The retail store Patagonia creates their clothing from recycled soda
bottles. The book The Designer’s Atlas of Sustainability explains, “Polyethylene
terephthalate (PET) soda bottles are being recycled into fleece sweaters. Yet the material composition of a soda bottle
is not necessarily suitable for prolonged contact with the human skin. The Bottles contain the toxic chemical
antimony, potentially harmful plasticizers, ultra violet (UV) stabilizers, and
other chemicals (Thorpe 42).” Even though they are making an effort to turn
the bottles into a new life, they might be harming their consumers. 
