Without Nature, We are NOTHING.

Our world has taken over by materialistic possessions. Our views of our wants and needs are completely distorted. We have gotten so caught up in what is the latest and greatest thing out there and rather it is sustainable or not, or even something we particularly like, we want it. But do we need it? Most of the time the answer is going to be no. This is meaningful to me because this is something I can control and I can change. In life we have many basic needs, but there are four main keys to satisfying these needs: Time, artifacts, communication and nature.

Time consists of the pace that we are living our life. Our consumption rate is so high that the production has to follow and that just equals a lot of waste. We are constantly wanting something new and fresh in our lives and therefore we are constantly getting rid of the old. Artifacts is our treasured possessions. In history, we had several important things that symbolized our movement in freedom, technology, etc. Now, we are filling our lives with useless possessions and the meaning of our artifacts is decreasing. Communication is always important because as humans, we have a need of participation, we like to feel involved, and to be a part of something. Relationships are important to have because it fills our need of feeling wanted and needed. Last but certainly not least is nature. Having a connection with nature is one of our most important basic needs. The stronger connection we have with nature, the more we will cherish it and treasure it for what it’s worth.

In our measuring system for economic growth, nature is seen as having zero worth because it has no assigned monetary value. So as we are damaging and destroying our ecosystem with purchasing unsustainable products, according to our current system, that is positive economic growth. But in reality, that is not growth at all. Without nature, we are nothing. Nature was meant to have an infinite life span, but at the rate we are going, that will be almost impossible.

As for me, I am now going to work on not caring about the label on my shirt, but more about the label I am valuing nature. Just by spending more time outdoors and less time shopping, we can make a difference.

As designers, we have to acknowledge the fact that we have been designing for the materialistic consumers for years, but now it’s time to design for the environment. We can make sustainability a trend, I know it. All we have to do is find a way for our product to be the latest and greatest!

One thing I read this week that I remember was not shocking but definitely eye-opening was in Thorpe’s Design Atlas about how people in the United States can recognize more logos and labels than the plants, flowers and other parts of nature. The challenge I’m taking is to appreciate nature more and labels less. How about you?

If it Makes You Happy, then Why Are You So Sad?

Money, money, money. What does money mean to you? Is it the medium of exchange, is the sign of success, is it the symbol of worth? Too the majority of the world, it is all of the above. Our world has gotten so wrapped up in materialism that we are compromising our future. When calculating our economic growth, any monetary transaction is perceived as a positive growth, even if it’s medical bills because of pollution. How is pollution in our environment that is harming many people a positive economic growth? It’s not, it’s just money. What really matters is value, or worth. How much does your future mean to you? What is it worth?

Can you put a price on our impeccable ecosystem and natural resources? No, but it is definitely worth something, it has value. Nature is something we can’t live without. It provides us with the oxygen we breathe, the food that we eat, and the water that we drink, three of our basic needs that we need to survive. To me, it’s worth a million bucks.

Our culture today has completely changed our lives. We have so many wants and desires that we easily get wrapped up trying to satisfy ourselves and forget our needs. Beyond the needs of survival, we also have emotional needs. In Ann Thorpe’s Designer Atlas of Sustainability, she discusses how as human beings we are very hard to please because of all of our demanding wants and needs. “Although we are all different, human beings have a common set of needs that we must meet to achieve well-being” (Thorpe, 2007). Among all of our many desires, a list of our needs includes subsistence, protection, affection, understanding, participation, leisure, creation, identity and freedom. Looking in all the wrong places to fulfill our needs, we seek satisfaction externally through money, material goods, and the approval of others to get the feeling that we are “worth” something, or have good value. There are four main themes to meeting our needs—communication, artifacts, time and nature. Through communication, we are able to build relationships and understanding by interacting with people and having a sense of meaning in someone’s life.  Secondly, artifacts have really started to play a bigger role in our time period because we tend to satisfy our desires rather than our needs. We fill our lives with materialistic possessions because we think they are worth something, rather than filling our lives with artifacts that are a necessity or have personal meaning. The third theme is time because our culture has become so impatient and fast-paced that we want everything now, and we expect results now. We want everything to happen immediately because we are so stuck in the mindset of short-term. We are no longer thinking about the long-term. Lastly, we have lost our connection with nature. “By the end of the twentieth century, more people lived in urban areas than rural ones for the first time in history” (Thorpe, 2007). According to our lifestyles, nature has lost its value and we have to rebuild the connection because it is a central part of our well-being.

Watching and owning has become a big part of our lifestyle. Visuality can play a positive role in meeting our needs because it helps us understand and see things from our past and history. But, it also has a negative impact as well because it fills our minds with artificial images that then create superficial desires. The media plays a big part in this for many reasons. All girls do not look like Barbie dolls and all boys do not drive Lamborghinis. Media has embedded this artificial image into our society of what an ideal lifestyle looks like, but the reality is that “the majority of real people—racially diverse, relatively poor, more than 50% female, and in industrialized countries, older than thirty-five” (Thorpe, 2007). We live in such a materialistic world that we define ourselves by what we own and how much money we have. Our materialism is what is driving the issue of unsustainability because we are living so fast-paced and using things at the speed of lightning because we can’t wait to get the newest and the coolest. Why does our possessions and the amount of money we have matter? Why do we think that if we fill our lives with money and expensive things we will be happy? We will never be truly satisfied. In the famous words of Sheryl Crow…

If it makes you happy, then why are you so sad?

The truth is that nobody on the planet has enough money to make them happy, yes it might help, but it is internally that we find our happiness. “The world’s richest 1% of people receive as much income as the poorest 57%” (Thorpe, 2007). The concentration of the world’s wealth is only dispersed between 25 million people of a world filled with 6 billion people. And you know what they say, the rich get richer… In Edward N. Wolff’s article “How the Pie is Sliced; America’s Growing Concentration of Wealth,” he states that in the 80s decade the top 20% of wealth holders received 99% of the marketable growth that decade and the poorer only received the bottom 1%. America is much more unequal than all of the other countries but concentration of wealth is an issue everywhere, even in the business world. Some corporations are top heavy as well. Because corporations are so powerful and control so much of the wealth, their focus is very narrowed and limits design’s ability to pursue sustainability.

But because they have so much power and because we live in such a materialistic world, why don’t we put these huge corporations to work?

Some are already trying to pursue sustainability and designer’s can start engaging as well. Several companies either have foundations to help out charities, some provide money and some choose to donate money through tithing, which is a form of providing support proportional to their own financial success. “For the past fifteen years Patagonia itself has tithed 1% of annual sales or 10% of profits, whichever is larger, to grassroots environmental groups” (Thorpe, 2007). Many companies don’t necessarily know the damage they are making through things such as waste disposal or energy costs because the costs are included just as part of the budget. As more and more become more informed, they are making changes. Like McDonalds and Starbucks have designed environmentally friendly packaging and Nike is supporting the use of organic cotton. The demand for “green” goods is increasing and the fact that these companies are taking steps is giving them a competitive advantage. So how can designers get involved with these?

Well there is this idea called “shareholder activism” and this states that people who own shares in a company have a role in influencing what the company does. There is a second idea known as “responsible investing” and this idea reflects that the investors like to know that what they are putting their money into is socially and environmentally responsible. This is where we, as designers, come in to play. If we can create sustainable products for these companies to buy, not only will their investment rate increase, the investors will be happy and the company will still be making its profit.

As designers we face many obstacles. We face the challenge of satisfying people’s wants and needs. We face the challenge of producing the better product using the natural resources. We face the challenge of informing people of the superior item and persuading them that this item is “worth” the cost. We face the challenge of making things to stand the test of time in this forever evolving world.

But nature is a classic, and it is infinite. It can stand the test of time. Its value is far more than the latest Gucci handbag, but if we keep living like we are today our future, our children’s future, our grandkid’s future and the future of many more will be compromised. We have to start thinking long-term! Don’t get caught up in the materialism of it all, it will never make you happy. The only way to truly be satisfied is to fulfill the needs of your well-being. Reconnect with nature, admire its beauty and let’s live sustainably… It’ll make you happy!

There is No Such Thing as Waste

There is no such thing as waste. After doing all the readings for the week and after interacting with my blog buddies, the main concept that I learned this week is that there is no such thing as waste, there is no end. The chapter “Waste Equals Food” discussed how everything should be designed with the idea that it will be reused or recycled when it’s first consumer usage has expired. It should be designed so that it will give back to the environment instead of harming it as waste or landfill. If every product designed was designed with the intentions of infinite uses, then waste would cease to exist. There would never be anything to discard, the products would either break down and serve as food to the environment or the other option would be to upcycle the product. There is no end, and there is no such thing as waste.

Our ecosystem has been designed to grow, collapse, reassemble and renew itself. It is a masterpiece. Humans are ruining this intricate creation with our waste. The environment is able to live indefinitely because of the cradle-to-cradle concept. Right now most things are living cradle-to-grave because we are living in the “throwaway” norm. After we use a product, we have come to the conclusion that we will just throw it away and buy a new one to replace it. But what I found out this week, is that almost everything can be reused or recycled, maybe not the entire piece but definitely parts. For example, when a family has decided to buy a new television, they usually get rid of it. Well usually they get rid of it because they just want the new one, they want the new thing and many of the parts inside that could last forever go to waste. Somehow we need to get out of the “throwaway” norm. We need to get in the mindset that there is no such thing as waste, waste equals food, cradle to cradle.


As a consumer, I now will be more cautious of my waste but as a designer, what is the next step?

Because our ecosystem is so flawless, why would we not try to mimic it in the textile world? In Thorpe’s Designer Atlas, it discusses the concept of biomimicry which involves taking inspiration from nature to solve design problems. If we could get in the sustainable mindset of waste equals food, just like the environment we could solve the problem. We must mimic our ecosystem. But how do we do this? This is what I seek to find...

Mimicking our intrinsic ecosystem could be the solution to our problem. As designers we must adopt this concept in order to make steps towards a sustainable world. If everything was created with the ability to grow, collapse, reassemble and renew itself, there would be no such thing as waste.

One Man's Trash is Another Man's Treasure

We are living in a masterpiece. We are living in a world that was made to live indefinitely. An ecosystem can grow, collapse, reassemble and renew all on its own and us has humans are ruining its adaptability. “Nature has an intrinsic design” (Thorpe, 2007). According to Ann Thorpe’s Design Atlas of Sustainability, human beings have single handedly caused this decline. Human designs are causing the ecosystem and wildlife to deteriorate and are not allowing it to recreate itself. What I don’t understand is why. Why are we allowing this flawless creation to fail? Why would we want to live in a finite world when we know there are things we can do to change the outcome? You may think negligence is the answer, or maybe even ignorance. I believe that as a world, we are simply under informed.

Our ecosystem was designed to live off of a cradle-to-cradle principle. This biological system “has nourished a planet of thriving, diverse abundance for millions of years” (McDonough & Braungart, 2002). After reading “Waste Equals Food” from the book Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough and Michael Braungart, I have learned so much about how amazing our ecosystem is. Our world was made to replenish itself by using waste. Hence, “waste equals food.” I had always heard the phrase one man’s trash is another man’s treasure and now I am realizing that this phrase is in fact the key to our system. The Earth is capable of cycling and recycling it’s own major nutrients such as carbon and hydrogen, etc. Our existence has completely changed the world. We have molded into an industrial infrastructure that is filled of over-populated cities. We have essentially overcrowded the Earth. After doing all the math of dividing the amount of bioproductive land by the number of people on Earth, there is only 1.9 hectares of biproductive space per human. That is “not very much considering that lifestyles in the Western world are currently estimated to require 10 hectares per person” (Thorpe, 2007). Each person is taking up 5 times the amount of space that we essentially have. The Earth is overcrowded. With people so crowded and packed in, sanitation has become a major problem and people are just finding other ways to get rid of their waste. We live in such a crazy world where everything is practically given to us on a silver platter that we are pretty much given the right to be spoiled and lazy. Little do we know that our trash is someone’s treasure.

Back in the days of the Great Depression, people were so scared of scarcity and were so cautious of wasting anything. They were reusing jars, jugs and aluminum foil and they were saving small things like rubber bands. Now “throwaway products have become the norm” (McDonough & Braungart, 2002). Since our society’s waste problem is so out of control, we must come up with a new solution and that is using safer materials so that way our waste can once again become the food. There are two kinds of material flows on the planet known as biological nutrients, which are used in the biosphere, and technical nutrients, which are used in the technosphere. The problem is once these two nutrients are used together they become almost unsalvageable and become known as “monstrous hybrids” which is what fills our world today and then is taken off to landfill as waste (McDonough & Braungart, 2002). If we could use these nutrients properly, then after the product was used it would eventually either break down and replenish the soil or we could separate it and reuse them in the industry. Essentially, after the consumer was done with their product they could throw it out in their yard and it would break down and act as food to the soil or wildlife and then the cycle would begin again. Not that I would want to live in place that everyone’s trash was displayed on their front yard, but you get the point that these nutrients and materials could be serving another purpose towards our ecosystem!

Rules and regulations are everywhere regarding what materials to use and when to use them and even more importantly which ones not to use. According to the “Manual for the implementation of the Global Organic Textile Standard,” There are several materials that are prohibited for the safety of the environment. I researched a few of them to see exactly what is they are used for and why we shouldn’t use them as textiles. One of the substances mentioned in the GOTS Manual was aromatic solvents. I found on the “Kandla Energy and Chemicals Ltd.” website that these solvents are commonly used in agrochemicals or pesticides, in paint and coatings, and in industrial wash oil, etc. Why would we want something like this to be used in the making of textiles that we wear, sit on, and even sleep on? I know that I wouldn’t want anything of that sort near contact with my face or my body. I also researched the use of chlorophenols and in the article “Use of clorophenols as fungicides in sawmills” by Jan-Olof Levin, Ph.D., I found that they are used to kill fungus. Once again, nothing I would want to come close to. These fungicides were found to have many impurities and to be much more toxic than the main product (Olof). So I agree with the GOTS Manual that these should be prohibited and I agree with these regulations. Without any regulations, who knows what our furniture and clothes would be made of. I think that just from the little research we have done, we can tell that there should be many more rules and regulations for there is no way every harmful material has been covered. So what do we do now?

Some companies are already taking initiative! 

Several companies are choosing to use natural resources and nutrients, therefore their products will be recyclable and reusable. Many have also created a “blacklist” which is a list of materials that they don’t use in their products because they are proven to be harmful even though there is no policy against it (Thorpe, 2007). The carpet industry has really taken off and has started a policy called “product of service.” Many products now-a-days are even created with a consumer expiration date in mind. They know that everyone likes to get new things and therefore they make the product to only last so long due to this every so often change. So many carpet companies have started this idea that once the consumer is done with their carpet and want to exchange for new, the company will come and pick up their old carpet and replace with the new. Then the company is taking the old carpet (preventing waste) and recycling it for reuse (McDonough & Braungart, 2002). Genius. Therefore, we as consumers are essentially “renting” their products for service and can renew it whenever we so please. Some interior design organizations are making moves as well. Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) is also pushing the recycling carpet and reusing it. Many companies are melting down the backing and reusing it or coming up with the idea of carpet squares that have a permanent backing and then the covering can be replaced whenever the consumer is looking for something new.  In 2011 in California, 385 million lbs of carpet were discarded. But “of the 385 million lbs of carpet discards, 60 million lbs were diverted from the landfill, and 36 million lbs were recycled” (CARE, 2011). This statistic may seem insane, but that is a huge change compared to 2010 which consisted of 25 million more pounds of discarded carpet. Change can happen.

Many other companies are trying to come up with ways of recycling and reusing as well such as reclaimed wood. Many places will come and collect old wood or brick and re-sell it to someone else for reuse and this has become a trend. Slowly but surely we can make anything a trend.

By using the proper materials, we are using the proper nutrients, and we can recapture the idea of our ecosystem. Our ecosystem can adapt to change, so why can’t we? As humans, we must learn to adapt to this change because this change is can bring our world back to life.

One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. 

We are the Game-Changer.

We are the game-changer. We can essentially change the game. What I learned this week that really stood out to me was that WE can cause a change in this unsustainable world. I didn’t realize how severe the issue is and to be honest I never really realized what was causing this madness. We are. We are the ones causing the madness and WE are the ones who can make a difference. Before I had no idea about all the little things that are making this world a finite place to live, such as running the washer and the dryer, or simply just disposing our clothes and our furniture when we are done with them when we could be recycling them instead. I think that the Forum of the Future article is what stood out to me the most because it pointed out all the things that we can change as consumers. Then in Professor Armstrong’s article, I realized that we are the problem and then in Thorpe’s Designer Atlas, I realized the impact that we as designers can make to fix the problem. The world is putty in our hands. We’ve got the whole sustainable world in our hands.

As the new and upcoming designer generation, we can make a difference if we can conquer the challenge of making successful and sustainable products. I never had thought of the sustainability issue as my issue until this week and it feels great to think that I could be a part of something big, something great. In our future careers, we will face many challenges like incorporating raw materials into our products, using sustainable production methods, making sustainable products and still maintaining a high performance in aesthetics and somehow managing to find a way to make our products the trend.

If we could make a trend of sustainable products, the world will take a complete 180 because consumer after consumer will be investing in these products and these products could completely change our society. So how do we do this?

I already know as a consumer that I can start looking at labels and researching products before I commit to purchase them. I can take better care of them while I use them and make them last longer while not polluting them with more chemicals than they have already come in contact with. I also will think twice about disposing of them. Recently I have been really interested in bringing old furniture back to life. I think that this is a great alternative among many others as to throwing them in the trash or a drop-off site. But what can I do as a designer?

Some companies are already trying to find ways to go the sustainable route, by starting a labeling system on the tags to provide background information of the product, or by starting to recycle carpets and provide sustainable carpets as a new product. What I want to research more into is the recycling of furniture and textiles that most people simply throw away. What if we could make a company that is a collection site of furniture, etc. and then recycles their materials and renovates them into a new and sustainable product? Or as I was saying before what if as a designer I personally collected old furniture from client’s houses and then renovated them rather than investing in new furniture? I think that recycling and renovating could be a big part of the future of a sustainable world and I look forward to seeing what I find next!

WE are the game-changers! Let’s make a play!

GUILTY AS CHARGED

Have you ever actually heard what the monotone voice is saying to you at a rapid pace before or after a prescription commercial with all the warnings and side effects of the product? No. The world is simply hiding from us all of the side effects and bad consequences we are experiencing from use of certain products. Well, it goes the same way for sustainability. Where is the information? Where are the labels telling us what happened before the shirt was put on the hanger or before that leather couch was made? Who is telling us that our actions as consumers are failing the sustainability of our world? The answer is nowhere, nowhere to be found. As consumers, we are failing. We are failing because we are not informed. I believe that if the world was informed of the consequences of our actions and of simple changes towards a more sustainable world, we would be willing to live a life towards sustainability.

Here’s a little background:

A product goes through so many steps in its short-term life cycle.

1.) Materials

2.) Production

3.)Retail

4.)Usage

5.) Disposal

(Forum of the Future, 2007)

As consumers, we are the culprit of this madness and we are constantly shortening the life cycle. Steps 4 and 5 are completely tossed out the window. I know that myself as a consumer I am guilty of making awful decisions. I’m the girl that if I leave a garment on the floor because I’m too lazy to hang it up or if it is too wrinkly, I will re-wash it. Who knew that this small action is actually a big sustainability no-no? “Washing, drying and ironing often accounts for the most significant use of energy in the clothing lifecycle” (Forum for the Future, 2007). I knew that it was a waste of water, but had no idea the amount of energy that was being used or shall I say wasted? Secondly, the disposal. We have already started recycling paper and plastic but why not take it another step further and start recycling textiles as well? What if there was a company that you could return your clothes to and they would recycle them for you? That would be so great! We could even make it like Plato’s closet and get a percent of your money back! There are so many opportunities out there to make this an infinite world, but people are ignorant to them because nobody is there to tell them. Just like the prescription commercials, why must you hide the consequences from us?

Sustainability is such a great challenge that is difficult to pin point which part of the process to focus on in order to make the biggest difference. The good thing is, as designers we have two opportunities to make this happen: Once as the designer and secondly as the consumer.  According to Janis Birkeland's book Design for Sustainability, designers “readily use design to influence consumption.” What we do can have a huge impact on the largest culprit of the issue. As designers we are faced with a great challenge because we have the potential to make something great happen. Our biggest issue is that we must keep the aesthetic value while increasing the sustainability. “Products that rely heavily on the concept of fashion” such as apparel or interiors are facing a huge battle versus sustainability “because choices made early in the design process, such as materials selection and production method” can indefinitely impact the life cycle of a product (Armstrong and LeHew, 2011). This is where steps 1 and 2 come into play. Choosing the correct materials and a safe production method would be a great asset towards a sustainable product. If we could come up with a way to keep the attractiveness of a product, along with making it in the eyes of sustainability, users would be falling for this product left and right. The only thing is that the raw materials drive the price up.

As a shopper, I know that usually if I see a rather larger number on the price tag, I set it down. I don’t know about you all but I generally do. There is an exception though… if I seem to think that this item is a “must have” item, I automatically assume that it’s WORTH the cost. But who am I to give this item a value?

Here’s the deal… what if we could train ourselves to see the sustainable things as the “highest value” and all of the sudden we just can’t put those items down? The world would be well on its way to a long and infinitely lasting place.

Sustainability is the highest valued from here on out because it is well worth it!

So what can WE do to make this change? (Besides not running the washer/dryer as often)

“Successful design here enables users” (Thorpe, 2007). I believe this statement is one hundred percent absolutely true! As designers, we must conquer the challenge of balancing aesthetics and sustainability and as consumers we must follow the trend like we always do. Guilty as charged.