Sustainable: Design's Role In Shaping Solutions
Over the past fifty years the role of graphic design in society has changed. No longer is the designer known as the producer of just packaging, posters and generalized visuals for the masses. Rather graphic design has evolved into the role of shaping trends and styles for popular culture. Graphic design has made parallels to such applied arts as architecture and industrial design. In doing so, the graphic design process has taken on more responsibilities that the design community has failed to collectively make sense of and accept universally.1 The factors of sustainability now also need to be addressed in design development. The industrial systems in place today will leave the Earth ravaged in less then one hundred years.2 Design plays a key role in the development and use of new habits within popular culture. “Designers role in relation to corporations has shifted, they are becoming increasingly responsible for the overall design of a product,” says IDEO founder David Kelley.3 Through concepts such as cradle-to-cradle have evolved, designers now need to question what they are doing and why they are doing it more then ever. An honest look at engineering, production, manufacturing and purpose are needed for success in the future. These questions may, however, change the ways that proven methods are done. A state of reverse engineering is underway and needs to be universally accepted by the design community. Through the angle of the consumer, the designer and the corporate heads, this paper will demonstrate how designers have not pushed their work far enough to meet the principles of cradle-to-cradle, how they have failed to understand the principles of sustainability, why corporations are not yet commissioning this type of work, how the public perceives sustainable design and what needs to be done differently to make the necessary changes.1
Design Editor at The Herald Tribune, Alice Rawsthorn states that “although a lot of designers believe emotionally and intellectually in sustainability, they and the manufacturers they work for are finding it very difficult to come to terms with. Because sustainability is not just a sort of pretty and glamorous process using recycled materials to design something, that may or may not be in the color green. It’s about redesigning every single aspect, from sourcing materials, to designing, to production, to shipping, and then eventually designing a way that those products can be disposed responsibly. That is a mammoth task. So it is no wonder that designers and manufacturers are finding it so difficult.”3 William McDonaugh and Michael Braungart developed a system in the early 1970s known today as cradle-to-cradle. This system develops a continuous life cycle loop where waste becomes a resource. The basis of this system is that the industrial worlds waste can become a resource and in doing so has the ability to serve pourpose for something else. Cradle-to-cradle challenges why human activity is inherently wasteful and deconstructive.4 Rather then a product getting to the stage of recycling, cradle-to-cradle proposes that at this stage waste becomes a resource for something else in nature, or made from infinitely recyclable materials that never end up in landfills. In today’s cycle we have established a habit of recycling as an environmentally friendly and green practice. But this system is not efficient enough because as a material becomes reused over and over the product becomes downcycled to a lower quality substance until all that remains is useless material, which ends up in landfills. 5 In a cradle-to-cradle system however, the industrial process which focuses on the post consumer reuse of product, with eventual waste produced, is turned into a resource that can provide nourishment for something new at the end of their consumer interaction.4 This system would eliminate the concept of waste in the society. Similar to how a tree works, the product could potentially produce more energy then is consumed in its production and use.5
The cradle-to-cradle system has begun to be adapted to the conceptual production of architecture as well as civil engineering. Many proposals have been made to revitalize how a city or building operates, converting waste like sewage and trash into vital resources in a cities infrastructure.4 Though these plans may seem like a science fiction novel, the technology has long since been developed to produce these structures. Widespread acceptance of a system such as cradle-to-cradle has yet to be accomplished. It may because of the experimental nature of cradle-to-cradle, or it maybe because of the associated risk involved in building such a structure. But because such a large investment is needed to start benefiting from cradle-to-cradle ideals, corporations have resisted developing such constructions.5 There is a certain hesitant answer received when corporations are asked why their constructions are not on a higher level of sustainability. The cradle-to-cradle system is yet to be proven over a long-term scale test and because of this there is a lack of confidence behind it. In industries where brand image and public perception of a company are very crucial, larger companies do not see a need to run the risk of sustainable design backfiring.6 Their proven methods of operation currently work and there is a resist to fix something that is not broken.
These risks could become less elevated through the use of these principles at a smaller scale. The graphic design community has yet to universally understand the concept of sustainability in their professional practice. This may come from the misinformation that is associated with producing sustainable designs, often confusing it with the term recyclable or reusable. Many designers believe that the use of new production methods may cost more money and earn them less.6 But on the contrary to this argument, sustainable solutions often cost much less then current production methods because of their reduced used of resources such as fossil fuels, water and electric. Though an initial investment is needed to investigate possibilities, cradle-to-cradle changes the production methods just as much as it changes the materials being used, because of this the possibilities for large financial gains over a long term can be expected. Simple changes such as a moving of resources so that they are closer to a manufacturing location would save on fossil fuels, also changing the trucks that move this raw material to one with lower emissions and better gas mileage would create savings over the long-term production of a product. By constructing a new manufacturing facility using sustainable solutions a corporation can save millions on energy and emissions over the life of the structure.1 Further, by making products using sustainable materials that can be upcycled, a corporation can largely increase savings by reusing raw materials as opposed to the associated costs of making or gathering raw materials from nature. Sustainability relates more to the decisions that a designer makes in the design and manufacturing process then the overall recycle ability of a product.2
Waste can be applied to many more things then just the physical item in production. Things like the energy and chemicals needed during production, the fossil fuels needed in transportation and the overall purpose of a product need to be address in the developmental stages of design to make it adapt as a more sustainable solution.2 In an industry where time equals money, designers struggle with this decision to go back to square one and reengineer time tested solutions. Because graphic design often works directly with the consumers it is important to understand the social impact that design has in shaping trends and methods. An acceptance of sustainable principles throughout the design community could excel the use of cradle-to-cradle in other disciplines.
Author Phillip Megs philosophy on the duty of a graphic design states that, “the need for clear and imaginative visual communications to relate people to their culture, economic, and social lives has never been greater. As shapers of messages and images, graphic designers have an obligation to contribute meaningfully to a public understanding of environmental and social issues. Graphic designers have a responsibility to adapt new technology and to express their zeitgeist by inventing new forms and new ways of expressing ideas.” 7 Because of these responsibilities it becomes important for the graphic designer to present culture with more sustainable solutions to their products. I propose that designers should only present end users of products with sustainable solutions. If it is no longer the responsibility of a consumer to recycle, reduce, or reuse products the impact of the item shifts to the decisions being made in the design and production processes. It is now time for the design community to push towards healthier design not just for the ecological impact, but also for the potential social impact. Instead of persuading culture, concerning the need for recycling, why can they just not be taken out of the equation?
Designers have an open possibility to become the culture generators of the world. Because the state of design has shifted to a more digital realm it is important for designers to realize that there is no longer a need to revisit the archetype in design.3 Objects such as the digital camera no longer need to resemble a traditional 35mm film camera. Originally cameras had a rectangle shape because of the placement of the lens and the relationship to the shape of conventional film, but today there is no longer film, so why do we still have the long rectangle shape of cameras? Further industrial designer Karim Rashid questions, “if the shelf life of a technological object is less then eleven months, then why is my laptop not one hundred percent recyclable, maybe made out of cardboard or sugarcane. Why does anything anymore have to be built to be permanent?”3
A recent example of graphic design’s shortcomings comes at the expense of reputable Adidas graphic designer Stella McCartney. McCartney, who is avidly a vegetarian and activist towards the ethical treatment of animals, is know for her refusal to use animal products in her product design and production solutions. On a recent project to redesign the shoebox packaging for Adidas McCartney developed an aesthetically pleasing design, that avoided the use of animal fat, but ignored her ecological responsibility as a designer, crafting the box from non-recycled cardboard and using traditional chemical based inks.4 (fig. 1) This example works to illustrate the disconnect that is taking place between graphic design and sustainability issues. McCartney may not have been able to persuade Adidas to use a more sustainable solution, but perhaps the times allotted to the design and produce the packaging were the core issue as to why the design was not reengineered to be more sustainable. Much like McCartney stressed the avoidance of animal fats, it is also her responsibility as the designer to stress the purpose of sustainable solutions in her work. Though the production time of this particular product may have been pushed back it would have saved Adidas money over the long term. As designers are faced with the challenges of establishing an aesthetic, but often ignore the materials they use and personal integrity invested in a product.4
Freitag is another example of designers struggle to completely understand the concept of sustainability as an overarching process. Feritag markets themselves as green company whose product comes from 100% repurposed billboards, bicycle inter tubes, airbags and seatbelts.8 (Fig. 2) Though the reuse of these products does make an economic impact (bags sell from $200 up to well over $500) they fall short of helping an ecological system. The bags, though repurposed, just delay the overall impact on landfills because of the non-recyclable materials used to produce them. Implementing cradle-to-cradle principles into the world of advertising would automatically repurpose everything without the landfill impact. Products would fall into a reoccurring cycle where old advertisements could be turned into new advertisements, over and over again infinitely. Again the question needs to be asked that, why do advertisements need to be engineered to be permanent? 3 Because billboards are constantly being replaced by a new ad over and over again, why can an ad not be made from perhaps sugarcane? Instead of removing the old billboard advertisement and replacing it with a new one, why does the ad not just dissolve away into the ecosystem in which it lives? Such a solution could put a company like Freitag out of business, but the idea of repurposing advertisements, a useless item, needs to be rethought for it’s impact on the environment. The service that Freitag is currently providing is a great way to deal with items in their current state, though this just extends the life of a product consistently still allowing them to end up in a landfill.
Perhaps the inability of designers to understand the complexities of sustainable design comes from a lack of standardization within the community. The use of an industry wide set of guidelines could shape the way designers approach global ethics. In architecture, where sustainable principles are much more widely accepted, a certification system known as LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) has been accepted as a standard for green building practices.4 (Fig. 3) The LEED grading system gives an architect guidelines for what standards need to be met to constitute a sustainable solution. These standards are accompanied by a grading system, Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum, stating the levels of participation in these practices.9 This system was developed to raise awareness to sustainable building practices as well as standardize what is expected of architects in their design process. Bringing this concept to graphic design could aid in the awareness of green practices to the general public. Because more people interact with graphic design in the tactile experience of a package or a magazine, a certified system could potentially raise awareness about the cause, in much the same way that the use of the recycling logo has aided towards the current green efforts.
Eric Benson, assistant professor at the University of Illinois and founder of re-nourish.com, an organization dedicated to the advancement and awareness of sustainable graphic design, has set a basis of questions that a designer needs to ask of themselves when taking on a new project in a sustainable manner. He states that, “creating sustainable pieces should begin at the start of the design process.” 4 This process needs to be followed by a set of questions that help in the elementary development of a design. Instead of design solutions coming from a predetermined set of standards, designers should question if their solution even requires a tangible object. Is the typical method of production the best way to communicate your message? What is the impact of making this piece? How can we lessen the impact if we print the piece?10 With digital design becoming increasingly prevalent, a move towards production on the web may be a necessary path to take. Perhaps a new form needs to be developed to deliver this message properly. In many cases the media used to deliver a message is out of date or thrown away shortly after its use.
Sun Chips a subdivision of Frito-Lay recently released a100% sustainable packing for their product.11 Pepsi Company, the owner of Frito-Lay spent nearly ten million dollars and over seventy years developing increasingly sustainable solutions for their production and products. During this journey Sun Chips have evolved as a corporation as well as a brand that embraced these ideas. For Sun Chips a waste issue related to two things. Firstly, when Frito-Lay launched Sun Chips, they had struggles keeping it in business because the brand was not immediately well received. The high costs of operation and low revenue gave Pepsi Company few options, to invest in the brand by completely restructure the production of their chips, or to shut down that division and seize production all together. Secondly Frito-Lay was uncomfortable with the idea of their product packaging turning into litter and ending up in landfills.11 Though there was a high investment needed to get this technology working, by developing more sustainable solutions Frito-Lay will be able to adapt this technology across their product line, increasing profit margins greatly.12
The Sun Chips brand began their efforts firstly by taking on the production process. They started by reusing shipping cartons, a seemingly simple task, that now has saved nearly five million trees over the life of the brand. 11 New production plants were built in 1999 that use solar energy and biomass to power themselves, making such locations some of the less then 50 factories to achieve a gold LEED certification.9 The plants also recollect and reuse water, reducing usage by nearly 80% saving upwards of 3 billion gallons of water usage annually. The solar collector fields associated with these plants have cut co2 emissions by nearly 1.7 million lbs every year. Every chip made in a Sun Chip plant is made completely by solar energy.11
The capstone of this project was the development of a 100% compostable chip bag. Not only has thins bag reduced it’s own overall impact in landfills, but it has also been developed to increase shelf life of the product, reducing the amount of shipping runs.11 By creating a bag that is fully compostable Frito-Lay has effetely taken the consumer out of the recycling equation. Now no longer is the end user responsible for the recycling or the proper disposal of their product. The chip bag is designed to completely compost within 16 weeks of disposal, regenerating soil and energy for the ecosystem. Though consumers may become educated on recycling and reuse of their waste, it does not matter if they are not because the Sun Chip package will compost in 8 months even if it is disposed into a landfill. In the event that irresponsible consumers throw their used chip bag out their car window, the process will still take place, reducing landfill impact and waste. If similar principles were adapted across the design community the impact on landfill waste would be astronomically reduced. Designing solutions that have a direct connection with their disposal.13 By presenting culture with a product that will recycle itself, the ideals of cradle-to-cradle are embraced, possibly even without the consumer’s knowledge.
In a recent project I personally dealt with the state of music packaging in our wasteful society. Because there is an overwhelming availability of music in today’s technology based society, the need for a more unique and environmentally friendly way of receiving music is needed. Graphic design has an opportunity to reshape the way we look at music packaging and the ways we are encouraged to listen to music. Design has began to take the initial steps in foreword thinking packaging that will reduce the waste produced in compact disk packaging, such as moving away from plastic jewel cases to recycled paper constructions. But this concept can be taken further then it currently has. Most music listeners keep digital files on a computer hard drive with little use for a physical compact disk, after it has been copied to your music library. A main reason that consumers have continued to buy conventional compact disks is because of the additional content that is included in this style of packaging. There is a physicality and security to compact disk packaging that also may push a consumer to continually buy compact disks in the traditional manner. In a new approach to music packaging I melded these two ideas together so that a consumer would be able to have the conventional content of compact disk packaging without actually including wasteful plastic packaging or unused compact disk media, while still having the security of the traditional package. (Fig. 4)
For this project I produced a compact disk style packaging that was eco friendly with an underlying concept of conservation applied throughout. I saw an overall waste in many of the compact disk releases today. A rerelease of an entire album because of an extra song or a remastering of the recording is not a justifiable enough reason to create the waste associated with making an album. For my project I created a packaging in the style of a book, which had additional content, focusing on the process of recording the current album, almost like a journal or wrap-up. Again with conservation in mind, producing a physical compact disk would be wasteful, so included in this book was a link to the iTunes store and promotion numbers for a gift card with enough credit to buy the album. Doing this eliminated the step of receiving the compact disk and copying it to your hard drive, hence eliminating waste. Within this book I also included three posters with a focus on the main members of the band.
As designers we are encouraged to be more conscious in our design decisions and consider longevity in all of our solutions. Designers must design cyclically, not latterly, making sure to choose recycled or nontoxic materials to minimize waste. It is the designer’s responsibility to educate corporations about lifecycle issues through messaging and marketing as well as encourage others within the community to design sustainably.14 Donald Benson, designer at IDEO states that, “because designers are both makers and consumers, our power to incite charge is compelling. If we help to change the way our world is designed, it will allow for a better quality of life and a continuing viable economic future.”15 The role of design has shifted where now, designers are responsible for critical thinking. A solution needs to not only reach its target market and be accessible, but now the wider view on that solutions impact also needs to be address. The responsibility of the designer to create sustainable solutions that may take the consumer’s responsibility of recycling or reusing the product out of the equation may be necessary. Consumers are at a disadvantage to the designers because they need to accept what is presented to them in popular culture. If products that embrace cradle-to-cradle are the only things for sale then consumers do not have a choice of whether or not they want to recycle their post consumer waste because that decision has already been made for them.
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Works Cited
Alt, Marc. AIGI Center For Sustainable Design. September 2005. http://sustainability.aiga.org/
Carey, Al. Frito-Lay. December 2009. http://www.fritolay.com/index.html
Hamlett, Phil. Are We Sustainable Yet? Communication Arts. October2007. http://www.commarts.com/
Hamlett, Phil. Everything You Know Is Wrong: Communication Arts. December 2009. http://www.commarts.com/
Hustwit, Gary. Objectified. A Gary Hustwit Film, 2009.
Lehrer, Jeremy. "Care Packaging." Print, July/August 2006, 26-28.
Madge, Pauline. "Design, Ecology, Technology: A Historiographical Review." Journal of Design History 6, no. 3 (1993): 149-166.
Madge, Pauline. "Ecological Design: A New Critique." Design Issues 13, no. 2 (1997): 44-54.
Matthews, Kristine. "Saving The Planet: Open 24 Hours." Creative Review 27, no. 4 (2007): 28-30.
McCarron Sienicki, Carolyn. Inch By Inch: Making Sustainable Changes In Design: Communication Arts." April 2008. http://www.commarts.com/
McDonough, William. TED: Ideas Worth Spreading. December 15, 2009. http://www.ted.com/talks/
Meggs, Philip B.. Meggs' History of Graphic Design. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2006.
Sherin, Aaris. SustainAble. Beverly, Massachusetts: Rockport Publishers Press, 2008.
Szaky, Tom. Terracycle. July 2008.http://www.terracycle.net/
Vittori, Gail. U.S Green Building Council. January 2010. http://www.usgbc.org/Default.aspx
Walker, Alissaq. The Problem Is Not Packaging Design, It's Systems Design: Fast Company. December 14, 2009. http://www.fastcompany.com/
Wright, Bruce N. "The Very Fabric." Print, July/August 2005, 48-55.
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Notes
1 Madge, Pauline. "Ecological Design: A New Critique." Design Issues 13, no. 2 (1997): 44-54.
2 Matthews, Kristine. "Saving The Planet: Open 24 Hours." Creative Review 27, no. 4 (2007): 28-30.
3 Hustwit, Gary. Objectified. A Gary Hustwit Film, 2009.
4 Sherin, Aaris. SustainAble. Beverly, Massachusetts: Rockport Publishers Press, 2008.
5 McDonough, William. TED: Ideas Worth Spreading. December 15, 2009.http://www.ted.com/talks/
6 Hamlett, Phil. Are We Sustainable Yet? Communication Arts. October 2007.http://www.commarts.com/
7 Philip B. Meggs. Meggs' History of Graphic Design. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2006.
8 Lehrer, Jeremy. "Care Packaging." Print, July/August 2006, 26-28.
9 Vittori, Gail. U.S Green Building Council. January 2010. http://www.usgbc.org/Default.aspx
10 Alt, Marc. AIGI Center For Sustainable Design. September 2005.http://sustainability.aiga.org/
11 Carey, Al. Frito-Lay. December 2009. http://www.fritolay.com/index.html
12 Szaky, Tom. Terracycle. July 2008.http://www.terracycle.net/
13 McCarron Sienicki, Carolyn. Inch By Inch: Making Sustainable Changes In Design: Communication Arts." April 2008. http://www.commarts.com/
14 Madge, Pauline. "Design, Ecology, Technology: A Historiographical Review." Journal of Design History 6, no. 3 (1993): 149-166.
15Wright, Bruce N. "The Very Fabric." Print, July/August 2005, 48-55.
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