Designing sustainability : making radical changes in a material world
- Submitting institution
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The University of Lancaster
- Unit of assessment
- 32 - Art and Design: History, Practice and Theory
- Output identifier
- 231718195
- Type
- A - Authored book
- DOI
-
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- Publisher
- Routledge
- ISBN
- 0415744121
- Open access status
- -
- Month of publication
- May
- Year of publication
- 2014
- URL
-
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- Supplementary information
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- Request cross-referral to
- -
- Output has been delayed by COVID-19
- No
- COVID-19 affected output statement
- -
- Forensic science
- No
- Criminology
- No
- Interdisciplinary
- Yes
- Number of additional authors
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0
- Research group(s)
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- Proposed double-weighted
- No
- Reserve for an output with double weighting
- No
- Additional information
- This book examines the relationship between design, sustainability, values and spirituality. It explores the relationship between design for sustainability, inner values and spirituality. It asks how we can create a material culture that provides a convincing alternative to unsustainable interpretations of progress, growth, consumerism and commercialism. Drawing on wide-ranging sources, the author develops arguments around the themes of beliefs, values, and the nature of practical actions. This generates a set of characteristics for design decision-making that are both ethical and meaningful. These are developed further by examining the relationships to product value, symbolism, endurance etc., through both desk-based research and the creation of propositional objects through design engagement. The innovative ‘Quadruple Bottom Line of Sustainability’ is described and applied via the development of contemplative and practical objects, resulting in a set of imperatives for pursuing design for sustainability.
In The Design Journal’s review of the book, Micklethwaite commented: ‘As with all of his writings, including the two notable previous collections Sustainable by Design: Explorations in Theory and Practice (2006) and The Spirit of Design: Objects, Environment and Meaning (2011), the work here is extremely thoughtful and well-referenced. One of the things that makes Walker such a compelling voice is the fact that he has a wider frame of reference than many authors seeking to advance our understanding of the potential role of design in pursuing the ideal of sustainability.’
Through introducing approaches to design that draw inspiration from nature, summon the human imagination and create conceptual outcomes which are environmentally responsible and socially just, as well as meaningful and enriching, this book brings a practice-based and accessible platform for design practitioners looking for a deeper, more meaningful basis for their work.
- Author contribution statement
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- Non-English
- No
- English abstract
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