Entries categorized as ‘Sustainability’
Let’s face it, green design, sustainable design, ecological conscious innovations all of these concepts are highly politicized ideas. It’s inevitable. Every time you have innovative ideas they must enter into the arena to compete with the ideas of folks who’d like to see more of the same.
The main reasons? The usual suspects: money and power. Every time a product saves you electricity that means less money for electric companies. Every time a car saves you gas that means less money for the gas companies.
I remember not too long ago “experts” (being funded by gas companies) denied the risk of global climate change. Right around the same time, our very own president, (an oil businessman), denied the risks also.
So, as you read about sustainable design, I ask you to remain skeptical of the agenda behind “reports”, “news” the words of “experts” and the words of your “leaders”. Remember that in the end, money and politics play a big role on how “truth” is shaped in our societies.
Manufactured truth, in the space of politics, and economics could not be more relative and insignificant as it stands next to the lager realities of global climate change. Our planet, adjusting its climate for its own survival, will continue on its path, regardless of our political and economic games.
The need
There is a need for green businesses, not for profit organizations, and government agencies to publish and speak up about the ecological, financial potential and multi-layered benefits of green and sustainable design.
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- Daniel Montano
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Categories: Alternative Energies · Design · Design ethics · Design thinking · Ecosophy · Multivalue · Politics · Sustainability · Sustainable design · Sustainable societies · green design
“…the most interesting aspect of the new constitution is that it grants inalienable rights to nature.
The Pennsylvania based Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) assisted in drafting the “Rights of Nature” chapter in the new constitution. Language in the document assures nature the “right to exist, persist, maintain and regenerate its vital cycles, structure, functions and its processes in evolution” and obligates the government to take “precaution and restriction measures in all the activities that can lead to the extinction of species, the destruction of the ecosystems or the permanent alteration of the natural cycles.”
Source: Sustainable Design Update
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-Daniel Montano
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Categories: Deep ecology · Permaculture · Social sculpture · Sustainability · Sustainable societies
Quoting from the Buckminster Fuller Institute website:
The Buckminster Fuller Challenge seeks submissions of design science solutions within a broad range of human endeavor that exemplify the trimtab principle 
. Trimtabs demonstrate how small amounts of energy and resources precisely applied at the right time and place can produce maximum advantageous change.
Solutions should be:
- Comprehensive — a clear demonstration of holistic systems thinking.
- Anticipatory — projectively tracking critical trends and needs; identifying and assessing long term consequences of proposed solutions.
- Ecologically responsible — reflective and supportive of nature’s underlying processes, patterns and principles.
- Verifiable — able to withstand rigorous empirical testing.
- Replicable — capable of being readily undertaken by others
- Achievable — likely to be implemented successfully and broadly adopted.
References:
Buckminster Fuller Institute: www.bfi.org
Buckminster Fuller Challenge website: http://challenge.bfi.org/
The Buckminster Fuller Challenge movie
Related:
Videos by Edie Weiner – Creating the New Future
Other blogs:
Visit my user experience blog (User Experience + Innovation)
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-Daniel Montano
Categories: Design · Innovation · Sustainability
Festivals, whether they are based around art, music, food or any other commonality are great opportunities to showcase new discoveries, inventions, ideas, projects and proposals for sustainability.
The brains behind CO2penhagen figured out just that.
“In conjunction with next year’s UN Climate Conference to be held in Copenhagen, an initiative called Co2penhagen will host a carbon neutral festival, supposedly the first of its kind.
The festival will be comprised of events ranging from concerts, installations and exhibitions and the idea is not just to let festival goers have fun with a clear conscience but, more importantly, to use the festival as an experiential showcase of local know-how, imagination and innovation within the field of sustainable energy.”
Original Posting
Related:
Harvesting the Energy of Crowd Movement
Energy-Generating Dance Floor
Club4Climate
keyword: Dan Montano, user experience design, information architect
Categories: Sustainability
An interesting blog posting by a civil engineer (Dana Breig Probert), dealing with the hurdles of developers and other stakeholders in an effort to move towards sustainable design. It’s written for the civil engineering audience but it is still an interesting and relevant posting. This may be a good example of sustainable design beyond products and into the larger scope of architecture. It may also be a good example of how business and sustainability issues can work hand in hand.
Here is a copy of the headings for each of his five points:
1. Get inspired and get involved
2. Realize that everyone is a salesperson and learn to sell your ideas
3. Focus on real value and real issues
4. Find ways to learn and leverage everything you can
5. Make a few simple changes in your site plan
Civil3D Rocks – Five Simple Things You Can Do To Make Sustainable Design a Reality in Your Lifetime
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-Daniel Montano
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Keyword: Daniel Montano, Dan Montano, user experience design, information architect
Categories: Sustainability · Sustainable design · Sustainable societies
Tagged: Sustainability, Sustainable design
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) and its Committee on the Environment (COTE) have selected the top ten examples of sustainable architecture and green design solutions that protect and enhance the environment. The projects will be honored at the AIA 2008 National Convention and Design Exposition in Boston.
The goals and criteria for evaluation are presented for each project along with the philosophy behind the project.
The top ten projects are:
- Yale University Sculpture Building and Gallery (KieranTimberlake Associates, LLP) New Haven, CT
- Queens Botanical Garden Visitor & Administration Center (BKSK Architects) Flushing, NY
- Pocono Environmental Education Center (Bohlin Cywinski Jackson) Dingmans Ferry, PA
- Nueva School Hillside Learning Complex (Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects) Hillsborough, CA
- Macallen Building Condominiums (Burt Hill with Office dA) Boston, MA
- Lavin-Bernick Center (VJAA) New Orleans, LA
- Garthwaite Center for Science and Arts, Cambridge School of Weston (Architerra, Inc.) Weston, MA
- Discovery Center at South Lake Union (The Miller|Hull Partnership) Seattle, WA
- Cesar Chavez Library (Line and Space, LLC) Laveen, AZ
- Aldo Leopold Legacy Center (The Kubala Washatko Architects, Inc.) Baraboo, WI
Link to Original Article:
American Institute of Architects: Top Ten Green Projects >>
Related Posting in this blog:
Some of Zaha Hadid’s amazing architecture
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-Daniel Montano
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Keyword: Daniel Montano, Dan Montano, user experience design, information architect
Categories: Sustainability · architecture
Tagged: architecture, green design, Sustainability
The Economist Intelligence Unit has a briefing paper online reporting findings from a global survey of more than 300 CEOs on the topic of sustainability.
“Other key findings from the research include:
- Business leaders are open to more regulation on social and environmental issues.
- Communication, then the environment, are top corporate priorities on sustainability.
- The supply chain is the weakest link.
- Sustainability reporting needs more work.
- Sustainability does pay.
Most executives (57%) say that the benefits of pursuing sustainable practices outweigh the costs, although eight out of 10 expect any boost to profits to be small. Specifically, sustainable practices can help reduce costs (particularly energy expenditure), open up new markets and improve the company’s reputation. Part of this involves a shift away from defensive behaviour towards more active exploration of the opportunities sustainability can present…”
You can download the entire briefing paper (free): “Doing good: Business and the sustainability challenge” in the Economist Intelligence Unit website – EUI.com”
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-Daniel Montano
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Keyword: Daniel Montano, Dan Montano, user experience design, information architect
Categories: Sustainability
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