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!