Household waste and recycling 1983/4 to 2005/6
kilograms per person per year
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
1983/84 1985/86 1987/88 1989/90 1991/92 1993/94 1995/96 1997/98 1999/00 2001/02 2003/04 2005/06
Source: Defra
“designers have the opportunity to lead the way in delivering sustainable
products that provide steps forward not back. the removal of the “stand by”
button is only the first very small step”
The challenge for the designer For the generation that is retiring now, the obsession with using
resources to the best of their ability was driven by a chronic shortage
Significantly, creative minds are required to solve these brought on by war. The threat may not seem as immediate now
complex issues. It is not enough to simply warn people of but, if anything, it is more serious.
the consequences of their actions. To do so is a worthy, but
ultimately pointless exercise because people will not be led by This is the first challenge to the design community. Designers need
guilt and shame alone. to start reversing a trend and building product that last. Clever
minds need to consider which aspects of products will wear out
Furthermore, smart solutions are required; ones that deliver first and make these replaceable. Designers have the opportunity
success in a myriad of ways. It is not about simply requiring a to lead the way in delivering sustainable products that provide
better solution. What are required are solutions that maximise the steps forward not back. The removal of the “stand by” button is
benefit to the user and at the same time minimise the impact on only the first very small step.
natural resources.
John Maynard Keynes had the following to say on reframing a
So change really does need to be embraced across the board. problem: “The difficulty lies, not in the new ideas, but in escaping
There is little to no benefit in creating a breakthrough product if it the old ones, which ramify, for those brought up as most of us
is packaged poorly. This is something that designers understand have been, into every corner of our minds.”
when giving consideration to the complete user experience in
engaging with a product, from purchase to usage to end of life. The challenges are almost mind boggling, but change only takes
place step by step and the bigger picture, whilst critically important,
Today far too many products are designed to fail after a certain is only a reflection of millions and millions of day to day issues.
amount of time. Gone are the days when products were built
to last and bought because of this. Indeed possibly the most The design community can not only actively play its role, but also
shocking cultural change of the last fifty years has been the proactively lead this debate. As the creators of a next generation of
increase in disposability of products. Nappies and razors are only products and services, designers have in their grasp the chance
two examples of products that were not disposable fifty years ago to achieve a significant and sustainable difference. It is there for
yet are now. the taking. n
95 | ecoexecutive
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