What: Human Centered Design Toolkit

For years, organizations have used Human-Centered Design (HCD) to arrive at innovative business solutions. In collaboration with the Gates Foundation and non-profit groups IDE, ICRW, and Heifer International, IDEO has specially adapted this process for NGOs and social enterprises that work with impoverished communities around the world. The resulting HCD Toolkit helps organizations understand people’s needs in new ways, find innovative solutions to meet these needs, and deliver solutions with financial sustainability in mind.

So What:

This tool kit can serve me as an example in how the “How to Eco-Design” project could evolve into a more concrete artifact with more case studies. The guide is also a step-by-step guide going from general to specific parameters that can be combined with different design methodologies and creative processes. I think it is important that this type of tools are flexible enough so any designer can combine the with their preferred methodology and creative process.

Source: http://www.ideo.com/work/featured/human-centered-design-toolkit/

What: Opportunity Green

Opportunity Green inspires a collaborative culture of new thinking and unconventional ideas that pushes change in unexpected ways.

We're not about business as usual. We facilitate the movement to transform business for good, through advancing change and market transformation by providing open-minded professionals unprecedented approaches to sustainability that are bankable and exciting. In everything we do, we seek to balance the triple bottom line: people, planet and profit.

Our purpose is to fill your head with knowledge you can use: ideas, new trends, amazing ingenuity. We seek to create forums diverse in content that generate dialogue and create valuable connections between individuals. This revolves around helping transform business as usual by partnering with extraordinary visionaries, forward thinkers, creative industry leaders and companies committed to building profitable + sustainable enterprises while solving some of the world's toughest problems.

We believe in collaboration with individuals and organizations that look to push the envelope by creating a mutually supportive community that is invested in the future of our society and acts as a catalyst for positive change

So What:

I have not made my mind about what is the best approach to advocate for sustainability and get more people involved. Although ideally, people should care about sustainability because it is “the right thing to do” and our current way of life will reach a limit, it seems like if it doesn’t do well in the economic bottom line, the efforts are not going to be as strong. So maybe this is the way to go, proving that eco-friendly doesn’t mean loosing profits. However, I would like to go further and be able to say that eco-friendly doesn’t mean expensive either since sometimes companies take advantage of the fact that they can put an eco-label and charge more for something, and this discourages the average consumer to make better choices for the environment when it comes to buying products. I think the idea of Opportunity Green is good to make companies to want to get involved and also promote seeking balance in the triple economic bottom line of People, environment and profit.

Source:

http://www.opportunitygreen.com/about.php

What: Article “Why Choose Compostable If It's Still Going in a Landfill?”

These days everything says eco-friendly, natural, biodegradable, and compostable (not to mention a myriad of other mysterious environmental words. Sounds good, right? But is it worth spending the extra couple of bucks if the item won't actually make it to its eco-grave? I've often wondered that as I wander the supermarket - big deal if this corn-container is compostable, its still going in the garbage can. Then when it makes it to the landfill, it won't break down any better than the plastic clam-shell sitting right next to it. So, is it still worth purchasing the compostable item in hopes that somehow, someway it will breathe its last breath in a compost bin instead of a landfill?

COOL 2012 is out to make sure that items that can be composted, are composted, and to show you how to do it. According to a recent TreeHugger article, nearly 25% of all materials going into landfills today could be composted instead. The goal of COOL 2012 is to get everyone to not just purchase the "better" items, but then to make sure that they are used properly and get that 25% number down to zero over the next 3 years.

COOL 2012 gives you benchmarks and tips on exactly what to compost - for example telling you to recycle 75% of all your paper and then compost the remaining 25% (thus keeping all waste paper out of landfills). While many landfills are capturing and reusing methane produced, the folks at COOL 2012 want you to keep items out of landfills to reduce methane produced (methane being more potent and destructive than carbon dioxide in the atmosphere).

Can't wait to get started? The site has tons of resources for communities and state regulations and policies, how to compost (and what to compost) as well as upcoming workshops and conferences. Want to get involved and host a composting event in your community? They can help.

So What:

This is very relevant to my research since it refers to the gap between the design intention (making things compostable) and what actually happens to a product after its use. When we buy something that is recyclable or compostable, we assume that is going to be recycled or composted. However, not all cities have a recycling or composting program, therefore the lifecycle for which the designer planned for, doesn’t occur.

Source:

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/04/why-choose-compostable-if-its-still-g...

What:

The Automatic Composter by NatureMill recycles its weight in waste every 10 days, diverting more than two tons of waste from landfills over its lifetime. Using just 10W of power, the odor-free unit is made from recycled and recyclable materials. So in short, the Automatic Composter by NatureMill helps the environment by reducing national waste going into landfills [or New Jersey. I can say that cause i have a lot of family from there]. So for all you green-thumbs out there, go get one [or three, save some money] and help save the rest of us from future-living-earth stink pile.

So What:

I’m looking at different composing bin alternatives for future projects. I particularly like this one because it solves two of the main problems with composting bins: time and odors. It has a air filter that prevents odors to come out of the bin and in it has a mechanism that reduces the time required to produce the compost.

Source:

http://architecture.myninjaplease.com/?s=naturemill

What: Waste = Food, the documentary

An inspiring documentary on the Cradle to Cradle design concept of the chemist Michael Braungart and the architect William McDonough. Winner of the Silver Dragon at the Beijing International Science Film Festival 2006.

Here’s an interesting + informative documentary on McDonough + Braungart’s Cradle to Cradle concept in action – in essence showing us that waste is unnecessary, and that with smart design we can basically eliminate it. Of particular interest is that they’ve been pretty successful in convincing corporations of their cradle to cradle theory, because these businesses want to get the most for the money. Funny that being environmentally friendly is, in the end, economically friendly as well – we seem to have fought nature for so long to get ahead, and we’re now finally at a point where working with it is the next step in our development. Should be great. 

So What:

This is a nice video explaining the waste=food concept. If someone didn’t read the “cradle to cradle” book, this video should give you a good idea of what this concept is all about. It’s nice to see the efforts companies are doing in this subject, and although they are driven by economic reasons, it proves that environmentally conscious can also be economically feasible. 

Source:

http://architecture.myninjaplease.com/?p=2986

What: Understanding How consumers Think about the environment - Study
Sustainable, green, biodegradable, recyclable – what does it all mean? How do people make sense of it all? How do they think about their impact on the environment? And when are they choosing to make a difference?

So What:
I found this research made by Continuum, an innovation and design consultancy. I found the results very interesting since some of the things I'm working on for my research (like making people aware of the Life Cycle of products) were some of the important things mentioned in this report. It is was also interesting to see the difference between the perceived impact of actions vs the real impact (see page 5) and the tools they use to measure their results.

Source:
http://www.dcontinuum.com/Colorblind/

What: Climate Change Map

So What:

This map is an interesting form of data visualization. Usually when we hear climate change we tend to associate with global warming, and although in most of the climate change areas are getting warmer than they used to be, this map also shows how in some areas it is actually getting colder and in some it has not change at all.

Source:

The Game Plan. A solution framework for the climate challenge. By Saul Griffifth. March 13, 2008.