Sustainability, People and Ethical Design
New technologies affect the planet and the people who make and use products. Explore finite and non-finite resources, the six Rs, fair and inclusive design, and the ethics of how long a product is built to last.
Justify the choices, the way you are assessed
Free interactive practice on the decisions the assessment actually asks you to justify.
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Designing for a crowded planet
New technologies can make products cheaper, cleaner and cleverer, but they also use up resources and affect the people who make and use them. A good designer weighs three things: is the design sustainable, is it fair and usable for people, and is it ethical. This module looks at all three.
Finite resource words
Four ideas run through this module. Learn them first.
Will it run out?
Which of these is a finite resource that will eventually run out?
- Crude oil
- Wind
- Sunlight
- Timber from replanted forests
Push or pull?
New products reach the market in two ways. Knowing the difference helps you explain why a product exists.
Which force?
A company invents a brand new material, then looks for products it could be used to make. Which force is driving this?
- Technology push
- Market pull
- Fair trade
- Planned obsolescence
The six Rs
To design more sustainably, work through the six Rs: Refuse what you do not need, Rethink the design, Reduce the material and energy used, Reuse parts or products, Repair rather than replace, and Recycle materials into something new.
Match the R
- Reduce
- Reuse
- Recycle
- Repair
- Use less material or energy in the first place
- Use a product again instead of throwing it away
- Process a used material to make something new
- Fix a product so it lasts longer instead of replacing it
Best to last resort
Put these options in order from the most preferable way to deal with materials to the least preferable.
- Refuse: do not take what is not needed
- Reduce: use less in the design
- Reuse: use the product or part again
- Repair: fix it so it lasts
- Recycle: process the material into something new
Finite against non-finite
A _____ resource such as oil will run out, but a _____ resource such as wind will not. Choosing to use less material is to _____. Fixing a broken product instead of binning it is to _____. The total impact of a product on the environment is its ecological _____.
Design it better
Which of these help make a product more sustainable or ethical? Choose all that apply.
- Designing it to be easy to repair and maintain
- Making it from recycled materials
- Reducing the amount of packaging
- Designing it to break after a short time
- Using more finite resources to make it cheaper
True or false
Tap the two statements that are true.
- A non-finite resource can be replaced or renewed.
- Designing for maintenance helps a product last longer.
- Planned obsolescence is a way to reduce waste.
- Crude oil is a non-finite resource.
Match the idea
- Planned obsolescence
- Design for maintenance
- Fair trade
- Inclusive design
- Designing a product with a deliberately short life so it needs replacing
- Designing a product to be easy to repair and service
- Making sure producers get a fair price and fair working conditions
- Designing so as many people as possible can use a product, including disabled and elderly users
Judge the design
Decide what each design decision shows.
- A phone is built so the battery cannot be removed, so the whole phone is thrown away once the battery wears out.
- A kettle is designed so a worn heating part can be unscrewed and swapped for a new one.
- A cooker is redesigned with large, clear dials and raised markings so blind and elderly people can use it.
Reduce the impact
Explain how a designer could reduce the environmental impact of a product. Use at least two of the six Rs and explain what each one does.
- Name two of the six Rs, such as reduce or recycle
- Explain what each one does to help the environment
- Give one example of a design choice that would help