Phase 1: If Products Could Tell Their Stories, To Whom Would They Speak? 1. Intro: Towards a Sustainable Model of Product Design Discussion: Intro to Life Cycle Awareness and Life Cycle Assessment Tools, and intro to sustainable product/service development Readings: The Okala Guide, Modules 9, 10, 11, pp. 28-37. Shaping Things, Chapters 1-6, pp. 1-54.
I’ll be teaching a class as an adjunct professor on my favorite subject at NYU’s ITP school this winter term: If Products Could Tell Their Stories – Towards a Model of Sustainable Design. Thanks to Tom Igoe, at ITP, for his encouragement. And precedent – his book: Making Things Talk Practical Methods for Connecting Physical
It’s about binkies. I’ll take the risk of being a mom blogger, now that I am a new mom, for this post alone. As much as I’ve been aware of the difficulties required in finding out the truth about products, their materials, manufacturing methods, and backstories, there’s nothing like the experience of new motherhood to
Imagine a system of commerce in which you knew the people who made your things, and were assured that the making and delivering of these objects harmed no animals, preserved the environment, and empowered humanity. eBay has tried to turn this vision into a Paypal-funded experiment through World of Good. In the spirit of launch and
I want to give products a voice. When I look at a pencil, a mop, or a smart phone, I most likely don’t know where in the world these objects came from, what they are made out of, who created them, nor do I know who or what was affected in the making of these
Christien Meindertsma shows how a student can better illuminate life cycle thinking and product transparency in a creative way. While she was still in design school, Meindertsma launched a the project These Flocks. She purchased a flock of sheep, and then created sweaters, hats, and a “pouf” footstool using the wool from this flock. Each product
At Inhabitat: The Consumer Electronics Show is all about the sizzle of shiny and new, but what happens to your old gadgets when you are ready for an upgrade? This week, the EPA announced an easy cellphone recycling program partnership with key phone device makers and service providers. The goal: redirect the 130 million cellphones that will be retired
Inhabitat: The tale of what happens to your old, forgotten television sets is sad, shocking, and may even turn you off from the very idea of recycling your gadgets. So before we begin, let’s start out by noting that there are responsible ways to recycle or decommission your old TVs and other electronics waste that
At Inhabitat: November 15th is America Recycles Day! Time for New Yorkers to celebrate by finding a home for that used cellphone collection you’re storing somewhere. Nokia recently announced a recycling campaign to collect 100,000 unwanted mobile devices between now and November 15th, and has made it even easier by allowing drop of at their flagship store in Manhattan
At Inhabitat: Overall, coffee machines and espresso makers are not the greatest energy drains on our monthly electric bill, so the green options are more subtle and complex than choosing a washer/dryer or refrigerator. For larger, energy-consuming devices, the EPA provides the Energy Star system and manufacturers themselves provide detailed specifications and product back-story to explain efficiency