Re-thinking student design projects for sustainable consumption.

Abstract

Sustainability has become a core constituent of most undergraduate Product Design courses. However, many students continue to struggle to put theory into practice when undertaking design projects, often due to their complex nature and conflicting priorities. Considerations regarding sustainability may be limited to the recyclability and reusability of parts and materials, along with attempts to reduce raw material and energy consumption. While their intentions may be admirable, they do little to address the problems associated with human behaviour that are largely responsible for creating most of the global pollution and waste. In recent years, level 5 students on the Product Design course at Bournemouth University have undertaken live projects in conjunction with the BroomeJenkins Product Design Consultancy. The design brief set by the industrial partner has required students to reappraise the nature of consumption, placing emphasis on alternative modes of acquisition within circular economies. The aim being to challenge students to identify opportunities to innovate beyond the traditional boundaries associated with design and manufacturing. One obstacle this presents is: how to tackle conventional modes of thinking that support economic and societal barriers to change? Something which requires students to reflect critically on their own paradigms and preconceptions. This paper discusses some of the difficulties encountered when attempting to encourage undergraduate design students to adopt more effective sustainable design practices. It discusses the experiences of those involved in the project and appraises its effectiveness as a means of embedding sustainability in student work more successfully.