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.
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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.
Words to know
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
An interactive activity.
Complete the sentence
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
An interactive activity.
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
An interactive activity.
Reduce the impact
An interactive activity.