Creating value through sustainability in design

We underline it every opportunity we get: Design is problem-solving. However, designing is no longer sufficient to solve the problems we face in this world. Our growing needs, complex systems that are attempting to meet these needs, and the limited resources these systems need, requires the design to produce not instantaneous, but long-term and continuous solutions. Therefore, it is necessary to focus on sustainable design to create new values.

Almost everything in the golden age of mass production and consumption has an alternative: You can put on a clean shirt when yours gets dirty, get a new cup of coffee when you spill yours, and you can get another computer if yours breaks; however, we have absolutely no consideration for the one thing that we have no other replacement: our home, the world. And indeed, we will not, and cannot be going anywhere, anytime soon.

As children of the technology age, we can identify almost all of the problems we face and offer solutions to many of them. Thanks to science, technology, and design, we can eliminate constraints, create unexpected shortcuts, and make the unknown known.

Although scientific discoveries in recent years give us good news about new habitable planets, the bad news is that the idea of ​​reaching these new worlds seems unrealistic. Especially if you think that our motivation to go to other planets is the probability of the destruction of our world earlier than we expected.

Yeah, we’re here right now, and we’re going to be here for a while. Therefore, there is no point in making more efforts to bring the end of the world earlier. With fewer resources, to live a better life, we need design and what makes design long-lasting is the concept of sustainable design.

What is sustainable design?

In its simplest definition, sustainable design is the philosophy of designing social, economic, and ecological sustainable objects, spaces, and services. In this context, focusing on sustainability in design means targeting long-term continuity, absolute self-sufficiency, and not producing waste. So, why is it so hard for many of us to achieve this goal? (Although it is not that hard.)

To put forward sustainable solutions with design means creating value not only for today but also for tomorrow, and a great future is worth spending a little more time thinking. Dieter Rams, the master of modern design, clearly states the sustainable design principles’ basic rules which are considered to be sacred by designers today.

“Good design is environmentally friendly: Design makes an important contribution to the preservation of the environment. It conserves resources and minimises physical and visual pollution throughout the lifecycle of the product.”

From this point of view, it is possible to talk about certain principles of sustainable design, even if they are not yet standardized:

• Design standards should be set by considering sustainability, and project design guidelines should be prepared and implemented sustainably.
• The products and their production processes should be designed in such a way that they require less energy, usage of high energy should be avoided at every stage of production.
• In design and production phases materials, which are not harmful and are produced in a sustainable manner or ones that require little energy to be processed, should be preferred.
• Materials to be used in production should be supplied from renewable and local sources and should be able to be recycled at the end of product life.
• Products and processes should be designed and manufactured, taking into account long-term benefits, reuse, and recycling.
• Products should be designed to establish strong emotional connections with their users, thus reducing the need for consumption and waste of resources.
• Design impact measurements should be made on the carbon footprint and the life cycle evaluations of all sources used in production.

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• The new production systems should be designed to mimic nature (biomimetic) based on continuous use of closed circuit, and the existing systems should be redesigned in the same way.
• The use of existing products and services from single-use to multi-use; it should evolve, for example, from the use of individual means of transport to vehicle sharing.

How to defend the rights of our Planet?

To understand the reasoning behind these principles and to determine new design principles for sustainable design in our particular fields, it is beneficial to become familiar with The Hannover Principles: Design for Sustainability commonly referred to as The Bill of Rights for the Planet. William McDonough Architects and Dr. Michael Braungart announced these principles of design at the Expo 2000 World Fair in Hannover, Germany in 1992:

1. Insist on the rights of humanity and nature to co-exist in a healthy, supportive, diverse, and sustainable condition.
2. Recognize interdependence. The elements of human design interact with and depend upon the natural world, with broad and diverse implications at every scale. Expand design considerations for recognizing even indirect effects.
3. Respect relationships between spirit and matter. Consider all aspects of human settlement, including community, dwelling, industry, and trade in terms of existing and evolving connections between spiritual and material consciousness.
4. Accept responsibility for the consequences of design decisions upon human well-being, the viability of natural systems, and their right to co-exist.
5. Create safe objects of long-term value. Do not burden future generations with requirements for maintenance or vigilant administration of potential danger due to the careless creation of products, processes, or standards.
6. Eliminate the concept of waste. Evaluate and optimize the full lifecycle of products and processes, to approach the state of natural systems, in which there is no waste.
7. Rely on natural energy flows. Human designs should, like the living world, derive their creative forces from perpetual solar income. Incorporate this energy efficiently and safely for responsible use.
8. Understand the limitations of design. No human creation lasts forever, and designing does not solve all problems. Those who create and plan should practice humility in the face of nature. Treat nature as a model and mentor, not as an inconvenience to be evaded or controlled.
9. Seek constant improvement through the sharing of knowledge. Encourage direct and open communication between colleagues, patrons, manufacturers, and users to link long term sustainable considerations with ethical responsibility, and re-establish the integral relationship between natural processes and human activity.

Choose the side of the good

At the focal point of all these ideas, you must have realized that man and nature have the will and the obligation to live together in harmony. No, especially in today’s conditions, designing won’t save the world, but it is a great thought that sustainable design can give us the chance to spend many enjoyable days on our old Planet.

Evaluating your design and production processes from a sustainable point of view adds value to our work, our civilization, and our Planet. Being on the right side is enough to give you three times the happiness. What do you think?