Two Borders of Sustainable Design

Sustainable design requires both different products – and new working processes, both between professionals, and more user participation. I have worked with integrated processes both in NABU and internationally, including 10 years in Bhutan. My presentation will give examples.

The first kind of border involves a broad solidarity in space and time; it crosses geographical borders, and it takes into account future generations. It involves both ethics and even self-interest; for actions that harm other parts of the world will eventually harm us.

The second kind of border involves people; it implies bridging the gaps between experts, as well as between design experts and others in the value chain.

Some brief historical notes will be useful, including early pioneers (1850-1930) for integrated thinking in the natural sciences (sosiolog Le Play, biolog Geddes, planlegger Mumford). More recent keywords include industrial ecology and ecodesign. Lifecycle design requires “seamless” processes. Seamless processes must integrate not only the designers but also the other actors in the production cycle (kretsløp), from raw materials to craftspersons and builders.

Environmental design itself, such as zero energy buildings or recyclable furniture, is not the biggest challenge; the big challenge lies in new ways of working with design, across the borders of the professions. Another challenge is to incorporate the new thinking into our legal systems. All our politicians, for example, encourage sustainable design, but no concrete connection or obligation whatever is made to ethics or transboundary environment. Legislation regarding consumer products and building codes, for example, only poses specific requirements (ytelseskrav) to the finished product. What these may have done upstream, during the extraction of raw materials, or what they do to future generations, is not addressed – there is no requirement. Today’s laws, therefore, fail to effectively cross those borders.

I aim to give a few concrete examples showing the clear future trend, including from small scale – individual products and objects such as computers and fridges – to buildings – to the design of large scale urban systems – in Europe and in developing countries such as Taiwan and Bhutan. The three pillars of sustainability are ecology, economy and community. In these contexts, cultural sustainability is a major issue in design tasks, not only ecological sustainability.