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Articles 1 - 6 of 6
Full-Text Articles in Environmental Sciences
University Sustainability: Assessing College Sustainability Rating Systems, James M. Albis
University Sustainability: Assessing College Sustainability Rating Systems, James M. Albis
Journal of Environmental Sustainability
This paper seeks to assess the three major university sustainability rating systems in the United States on their ability to drive positive sustainability outcomes. Since the mid-2000s the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, the Princeton Review, and the Sierra Club have attempted to rate universities on their sustainability policies and practices. A wide range of actions are rated by these organizations, from energy usage to transportation to procurement to academic offerings in the field of sustainability. This analysis shows that each organization values sustainability in different ways – for example, academics/co-curricular activities accounted for anywhere from 16%-49% …
Redefining Sustainable Potential In Product Design, Alex Lobos
Redefining Sustainable Potential In Product Design, Alex Lobos
Presentations and other scholarship
Sustainability in product design is not determined only at the creation of an object; it can be acquired over time, just like a product that was designed with sustainability in mind is misused and underappreciated. Designers need to redefine how products and systems are created, and users need to reevaluate their relationship with them by engaging in sustainable behaviors at multiple points of their lifecycle. This paper introduces a categorization of products based on their ability to solve user’s needs and to minimize environmental impact across the lifecycle. Categories range from sub and ephemeral products, which don’t even serve relevant …
Nitrogen Sustainability: Impediments To Action And Communication, Eric E. Jorgensen
Nitrogen Sustainability: Impediments To Action And Communication, Eric E. Jorgensen
Journal of Environmental Sustainability
“Sustainability” is widely used to imply the presence of explicit consideration of environmentally friendly needs and that high societal-value is placed on those needs. However, it is abundantly clear after 30 years that talking about sustainability and achieving it are two entirely different things. The core concept underlying sustainability is that current human practices and activities be conducted so as to not degrade prospects for future generations. With nitrogen, conflicts about sustainability in-theory and sustainability in-practice are close to the surface because of nitrogen’s central role in food production and economic activity. Measures of nitrogen inputs commonly range as high …
Beyond Death: Using Design To Transcend Life, Memories And Traditions, Alex Lobos
Beyond Death: Using Design To Transcend Life, Memories And Traditions, Alex Lobos
Presentations and other scholarship
Sustainable design provides benefits across a product’s lifecycle, particularly for end of life. Designers and end users are aware that as much as product lifetime can be extended, no artifact can last forever. But when looking at end of life in human beings, most people are not comfortable with dealing with death whether is their own or of someone else’s. Sustainability can provide initial strategies for designing for human death but in order to make a significant contribution to this area, designers need to address a wider set of needs that also include social, emotional and psychological issues. Models such …
Timelessness In Sustainable Product Design, Alex Lobos
Timelessness In Sustainable Product Design, Alex Lobos
Presentations and other scholarship
Shorter product lifespan driven by reduced durability and planned obsolescence is causing severe environmental issues and diminishing user experience. Sustainable Design is addressing this problem with strategies that improve a product’s lifecycle and address important areas of impact in manufacturing, use, and end of life. This article explores how the concept of ‘timelessness’ can be used as an effective strategy for creating products that are cherished and enjoyed by their users, last longer, are easier to repair and have better options for end-of-life. A series of case studies found in commercial products as well as in student projects illustrate how …
Integrating Emotional Attachment And Sustainability In Electronic Product Design, Alex Lobos, Callie W. Babbitt
Integrating Emotional Attachment And Sustainability In Electronic Product Design, Alex Lobos, Callie W. Babbitt
Articles
Current models for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) products encourage frequent product replacement with newer versions that offer only minor incremental improvements. This pattern, named planned obsolescence, diminishes user experience and shortens product lifespan. This paper presents the conceptual basis for a two-part integrated approach to combating planned obsolescence in ICT devices. First, design for emotional attachment, which creates products that users enjoy, value, and use for longer. Second, technological adaptability, which anticipates product upgrades and repairs as new technologies emerge. A model interdisciplinary design course in industrial design and sustainability, also described herein, trains students to apply this approach …