| How to deal with sustainability information overload and start improving your design? In this blog article I am going give you some tips on how to deal with it, hoping you feel you can make a change and start with it today. A few years ago circular economy was a new concept, just like Cradle-to-cradle before that, now I believe we have the knowledge and tools available to make a circular economy happen. But why didn’t it happen yet? It is important that enough people start to understand the concept, find it important and act upon it. Knowing is a totally different concept than doing. |  |
Information overload
There is so much information already out there. We have the knowledge to change. Take for example the website close-the-loop.be. It is a great website, they collected so much information on so many topics. But it can be a bit overwhelming. Even when I click on this website (and I have read a lot of information on sustainability and design), I think: WOW I cannot read all of this, remind it and use it.
There is so much information already out there. We have the knowledge to change. Take for example the website close-the-loop.be. It is a great website, they collected so much information on so many topics. But it can be a bit overwhelming. Even when I click on this website (and I have read a lot of information on sustainability and design), I think: WOW I cannot read all of this, remind it and use it.
Step-by-step with Kaizen
Therefore I think it is important for you, the designer, to digest the information bit by bit and improve step by step, while you are continuing your daily work. A small choice each day might hardly be noticed, but it also takes you no effort and that might be the trick to keep improving. Just like they do in the Kaizen method.
Therefore I think it is important for you, the designer, to digest the information bit by bit and improve step by step, while you are continuing your daily work. A small choice each day might hardly be noticed, but it also takes you no effort and that might be the trick to keep improving. Just like they do in the Kaizen method.
“Make it small and within your direct influence: change the design.”
Choose one area to improve your design for this year:
Try to find an hour each week just to look up some information that can help you a little step further and try to make a different choice the next time you are confronted with an option.
Two questions that help me a lot while making decisions:
Which one of the ideas will bring the most impact?
Which one is the easiest, fastest or cheapest?
And don’t wait for the idea with the most impact to come by, choose from what you already have.
- Pattern - reduce (cutting) waste
- Material - consider the impact of the chosen material and change the material
- Technique - how are the materials connected?
- Use - how can you change the use of your design to make it more sustainable
- End of life - what happens with the design after use?
Try to find an hour each week just to look up some information that can help you a little step further and try to make a different choice the next time you are confronted with an option.
Two questions that help me a lot while making decisions:
Which one of the ideas will bring the most impact?
Which one is the easiest, fastest or cheapest?
And don’t wait for the idea with the most impact to come by, choose from what you already have.
“Yesterday a word, tomorrow a sentence” - Jesse van Schaik
RSS Feed
