Ecodesign webinar for UNIDO-CEU

guest webinar on ecodesign at a summer course on Green Industry by Central European University, in partnership with UNIDO  

July  2012  

ecodesign  is  a  key  strategy  in  achieving  a  resource  efficient  global  economy  

 Dr  Frank  O’Connor  Director  @ecodesigncentre    @frank_oconnor   !

to  believe  in  something,  and  not  to  live  it,    is  dishonest.  

 Mahatma  Gandhi  

can  design  be  good?    if  it  does  not  consider  all  of  the  key  environmental,  social  and  economic  impacts  throughout  the  life  cycle?  

!

 we  have  to  change  

Is this the end user?

   98%  of  products  are        thrown  away  within        6  months  

image  source:    Chris  Jordan  

source:    Edwin  Datschefski  &  United  NaOons  University  

why  are  so  many  products  disposable?    why  do  we  choose  to  purchase  them?  

!

social  crimes      

!

air  pollu)on  kills  3  million  people  each  year,  mostly  in  poor  countries    

source: WHO / BBC

 responsibility  

   polluOon  

between  100  and  1000  species  become  ex)nct  each  year,  because  their  habitats  are  changing  or  being  destroyed.      

source: UK Government

 responsibility  

   degradaOon  

Image www.castlereagh.gov.uk

 responsibility  

 so  much  waste  

we  live  in  a  throwaway  society.                    …………  but  there  is  no  ‘away’!      

!

         illustration:  Nathan  Hallett  

 illustraOon:  Nathan  HalleT  

!

 society  has  to  change  

!

over  1  billion  people  do  not  have  access  to  clean  drinking  water    

source: UNDP

80%  of  all  disease  in  developing  countries  is  caused  by  consump)on  of  contaminated  water    

source: WHO

3800 children die each day

from diseases associated with lack of access to safe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene

water access

 source: UN / flickr

population growth

source: engine group and UNFPA source: engine group and UK statistics

ageing population

emerging economies

1 billion of these people are living in slums, squats & unofficial settlements

 source: UNHABITAT

 we  have  to  change  

!

 responsibility  

   health  

 responsibility  

   polluOon  

 we  over  consume  

44  million    cups  per    day  in  US  source: Chris Jordan

 unnecessary  choices  

 unnecessary    packaging  

…  If  everyone  in  the  world  were  to  consume  natural  resources  and  generate  carbon  dioxide  (CO2)  at  the  rate  we  do  in  the  UK,  we‘d  need  three  planets  to  support  us.      source:  WWF  UK,  DEFRA  

 three  planet  living!  

..  collecOve  unconscious  behaviour  …..  with  catastrophic  unintended  consequences!  

!

 source: ads-ngo.com

design  has  to  change  

!

why  design?  

!

sustainability  is  a  strategic  design  issue  

!

it  affects  how  we  design  

!

it  affects  why  we  design  

!

designers interact between industry, users and other actors

industry

consumers

design

designers can influence how people consume, use, behave … industry

consumers

design

source: adapted from Danish Design Council

ecodesign

80% of environmental impacts

can be locked-in at the design stage (5% of product cost)

ecodesign  thinking  considers  the  materials,  processes  &  pracOces  of  a  company.  It  can  idenOfy  layers  of  waste  but  also  layers  of  value  

!

effecOve  ecodesign  thinking  is  open,  process-­‐oriented,  mulOdisciplinary  and  cross-­‐funcOonal,  involving  ‘people’  as  well  as  ‘stuff’  

!

ecodesign requires life cycle thinking

take make waste buy/use

re-use re--manufacture recycle

most designers are concerned with these stages

every  product  tells  a  story  

!

source: Nathan Hallett

!

"Sonicare Elite 7000“ produced at 11 locations and in five time zones, comprised of 38 components, parts supplied by Japan, France, China and Malaysia, materials and production in Austria, Sweden, assembly in Philippines and United States, when fully assembled and packaged in Seattle the components have travelled a full 27,880 kilometres, two thirds of the Earth's circumference.

source: SPIEGEL Magazine

design for…. full life cycles life cycles, nutrient cycles, material selection, cradle to cradle

image source: mc donagh / braungart

NO MAGIC MATERIALS

!

design for…. fair & just production health and safety, employees

rights, unions, forced labour, child

labour, discrimination,

source: martin charter / CFSD

 …...individuals  act  primarily  on  issues  that  impact  their  personal  well-­‐being,  their  family,  and  their  immediate  community.    Unless  those  needs  are  tended  to,  most  individuals  won't  commit  to  causes  that  promise  to  benefit  the  world  at  large.      Catherine  Greener  

source: WHO / BBC

!

common  ecodesign  strategies  /  approaches  /  tools  

!

invesOgate  the    internal  and  external  drivers  for  packaging,  product  or  service  (re)design.    these  drivers  could  include  legislaOon,  customers,  new  technology,  compeOOon.    

assess  the  environmental  impacts  of  the  packaging  and  product.      map  the  life  cycle  so  you  understand  where  these  impacts  occur.  idenOfy  where  materials  and  energy  is  used  and  where  waste  is  produced.  

select  ecodesign  strategies  that  will  allow  designers  to  tackle  the  main  environmental  impacts.    explore  the  compromises  and  trade-­‐offs.  involve  others  from  markeOng,  sales,  producOon,  purchasing.  

develop  a  clear  brand  and  markeOng  strategy  to  reflect  and  communicate  the  environmental  improvements.    consider  how  the  packaging  will  impact  upon  the  brand.  

rethink   assess   communicate  design  

1.   2.   3.   4.  

ecodesign tools qualitative quantitative

ana

lysi

s/st

rate

gy

de

taile

d d

esi

gn

/ la

unc

h

stakeholder assessment

rules of thumb

market

analysis

ECO-Indicator

applied

ethnography

material

selection

benchmarking

carbon

footprint Life Cycle

Assessment

checklists /

LiDS Wheel

MET Matrix

guidelines /

standards

Life Cycle

Costing

strategy

tools

driver

analysis

design for…. low impact materials recycled, recyclable, bio materials, compatibility, compostable,

renewable, sustainable

image source: inhabitat, Worn Again, Moscardino, Remarkable, Sony

design for…. eco-packaging natural, returnable, reusable, multifunction, biodegradable

design for…. renewable power human powered, solar, wind, bio, re-chargeable

image source: Philips, Freeplay, Solio

image source: Panasonic

design for…. disassembly recycling, servicing, end-of-

life, upgrade, lean

manufacturing, cleaner

production, down-cycling,

material segregation,

design for…. durability longevity, durability, desire

image source: dualit, kitchenaid

design for…. product systems returnable, remanufacture,

re-use, closed-loop, end-of-life,

product-service-system

image source: RSA

a  marketable  set  of  products  and  services  capable  of  fulfilling  a  user’s  need        (Goedkoop  et  al.)  

product  service    systems  

!

…  also  known  as  a  funcOon  oriented  business  model  (e.g.  Xerox)      

product  service    systems  

!

 consider  what  products  lend  themselves  to  product  service  systems?  

!

hire   lease  /  service  

consumer  goods  

cooperaOve  

full  ownership  

shared  

(adapted  from  Cooper  et  al.)  

individual  

no  ownership  

product  service    systems  

!

source: ser_is_snarkish

product  service    systems  

choose  a  product  to  ecodesign?      explain  your  choice  (of  product)  and  approach  (i.e.  key  strategies).  

!

disconnect  between  people  and  between  planet  and  people  

!

source:  Banksy  

source: wiki.umd.edu / getty images source: Chris Jordan

design

 car  components  

source: WHO / BBC source: Harman  speakers  

 neodymium  

source: Harman & wiki

 source: hybridcars.com

 polluOon  

 source: dailymail.co.uk

 toxicity,  health  

source: mywindpowersystem.com

low  carbon  /  high  on    criOcal  materials  

more  industry  case  examples  

!

source: design21, Lifestraw

lifestraw  

howies  

choose  an  item  of  clothing  and  map  out  its  story  /  life  cycle?    how  would  you  re-­‐ecodesign?    explain  your  decision  making.  

!

SILVER

Orangebox

Cradle to Cradle

10

“remake the way wemake things” thinking about the materials we use, howour products are designed and assembled, and their cyclesof use with our customers.

No matter how good your products are, there comes a timewhen their first useful life comes to an end. In considering product life cycles Cradle to Cradle asks us to re-think thecommonplace approach of “take, make & waste” and thisprompted us to act.

During the early stages of the design of Ara we established arelationship with one of Cradle to Cradle’s authors, renowned industrial chemist Micheal Braungart. Throughout the development we have been working with EPEA, Micheal’s C2C organisation based in Hamburg.

We’ve always very carefully considered the materials that we usein our products but our aim in working with EPEA is to ensurethat what we’re using is truly safe, for humans and the environment alike, and successful in technical cycles of reuse.This means looking in much more detail at every chemical ingredient in the materials we use; to determine which inhibitthis aim and need to be substituted or remove as a result.

Cradle to Cradle is an approach to design which looks to makeus truly environmentally effective, by developing products forclosed loop systems in which all the materials used are safe andbeneficial - either to biodegrade naturally or to be fully recycledinto high quality materials for subsequent product generations,again and again. In order for us to maximise the value of the materials used in your chair we’d like to get them back onceyou’ve finished with them. It’s pretty simple, all you need to dois visit our website at www.orangebox.com/endoflife.htm

Returning your ARA at ‘End of Life’

Desig

n En

gin

eering

4

Arm

support that’s there only when you need it.

Our goal w

as to design a new arm

pad that was m

ore comfortable

than ever, using materials that could be segregated easily and recycled

more effectively. The traditional PU

is replaced by a flexible polymer

with a separate insert m

ade from recycled foam

. The result is an arm

rest that’s robust, easy to use and probably the most com

fortablew

e’ve ever made.

Do som

ething really simple; m

ake the chair base 100%

r ecyclable.N

ot the most com

plicated part on a task chair, granted, but we asked

ourselves the question - some look m

uch better than others but allplastic chair bases are pretty m

uch the same, aren’t they? W

ell in onesense they are, and w

ith very few exceptions they all have a m

etal collar m

oulded into the plastic to stop the gas lift creeping throughthe base. G

reat for not dragging your chair across the carpet butnot so great w

hen you come to recycle it, as the collar can be very

difficult to remove.

Smart design and careful m

aterial selection has enabled us to createa base w

ithout a collar insert. A sim

ple point but unlike almost all

other plastic bases ours is 100% recyclable. A

nd rest assured we’ve

tested it like mad.

The Mechanism

Ara’s

synchronous m

echanism

delivers a

smooth,

balanced m

ovement

from

impressively

refined engineering.

Why

synchronous? Quite sim

ply, we’ve alw

ays felt that the action ofseat and back m

oving together in this way provides a natural,

intuitive ride. Proven ergonomic research also tells us that regular

changes in posture improves our w

ell being when sitting at w

ork.W

e know that people com

e in all shapes and sizes. That’s why

smart engineering inside the m

echanism m

eans the ride can betuned and balanced to your precise needs, using adjustm

ent controls that are easy to operate and labelled clearly.

ecodesign  is  good  design  

designed,  made,  remade  in  Wales.  zero  waste.  only  resource  

!

Orangebox

 other  examples  

!

source: inhabitat, Droog, Jens Praet

source: Droog, Tejo Remy

source: Droog, “Do Hit”

sustainability is not ‘a problem’ waiting for ‘a solution’

it  is  an  environmental,  cultural  and  poliOcal  phenomenon  

it requires us to re-shape the way we think

source: Pierre Vivant 

it requires collaboration and co-development

it requires a heavy dose of creativity

         illustration:  Nathan  Hallett  

!

what  is  the  one  thing  you  would  do  to  make  ecodesign  happen?    

!

generic  first  steps    decide  not  to  stay  where  you  are    find  something  that  you  love  to  do,  believe  in,  are  passionate  about    take  responsibility,  lead    don’t  accept  ‘that’s  the  way  it  is’    don’t  be  afraid  to  fail    learn  from  your  mistakes  

!

generic  first  steps    clearly  define  your  values    set  a  clear  vision,  mission    seek  to  understand,  empathise,  trust    focus  on  building  capacity    ‘walk  the  talk’    keep  it  simple,  do  it  now                              

!

ecodesign  steps    think  ‘resource’  instead  of  ‘waste’    think  ‘use’  instead  of  ‘consume’    transform  ‘stuff’,  don’t  destroy  it    think  system,  people  &  true  cost    understand  your  own  role    ensure  you  are  contribuOng,  relevant                      

!

our  responsibility  is  no  longer  to  acquire,  but  to  be        Rabindranath  Tagore      

to  be…  We  cannot  just  be  by  ourselves  alone.  We  have  to  inter-­‐be  with  every  other  thing.        Thich  Nhat  Hanh  

consider  the  role  of:  § government?  § industry?  § educaOon?  

in  an  world  where  ecodesign  is  the  norm.      

!

a  journey  of  a  thousand  miles  must  begin  with  a  single  step.        Lao  Tzu  

!

today  is  one  step  ………..                  good  luck!  

!

 Dr  Frank  O’Connor  Director  @ecodesigncentre    @frank_oconnor  frank@edcw.org    www.ecodesigncentre.org  www.ecodesignnetwork.org    www.edcshare.org    

!