GD Capstone 09

MARCH 24, 2009 | ART ACADEMY OF CINCINNATI
Resource fair 5-7 pm, Event begins at 7 pm
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The Salon will address concerns about how to be greener on print jobs. Attendees will get chance to look at new printing technology and join the green conversation with printers and paper companies in order to get some great ideas on how they might change their processes with printing to be more sustainable.
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“Greener by Design” is the only two—day conference focusing on the greening of mainstream products. Executives from Wal–Mart, Clorox, Nike, GE, and Procter & Gamble are among the leading companies sharing their knowledge and expertise at ”Greener by Design:Strategies, Tools, and Markets for Product Innovation”, June 12 and 13 in Alexandria, Virginia.
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What started as a way to continue the sustainability conversation that began at the AIGA Design Conference 2003 in Vancouver has now become a world-class event and a reference point for the design profession. “Compostmodern ’08,” an interdisciplinary, biennial design conference dedicated to design solutions, was presented by AIGA SF and the Center for Sustainable Design on January 19 at the Academy of Art University in Downtown San Francisco.
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AIGA has elected to endorse the Designers Accord, a nonprofit coalition of design and innovation firms focused on creating positive environmental and social impacts.
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In a world that needs one brilliant idea after another, it’s good to be surrounded by genius. Biomimicry—the process of finding sustainable ideas by echoing nature—is finding a home in commercial innovation labs throughout the world. Janine Benyus will describe how companies like GE, DaimlerChrysler, Qualcomm and Lucent are developing bio-inspired innovations, including a wind turbine that pirouettes like a whale, a low-MPEG Mercedes that flows like a fish, a sunlight-readable display that bends light like a butterfly and a fern-inspired capsule that stores vaccines without refrigeration. Our ability to borrow nature’s blueprints and recipes is on the rise, says Benyus, and so is the need for more energy-sipping, nontoxic designs. It’s no wonder that companies are “inviting biologists to the design table,” and biomimicry studios in universities are giving the next generation of designers and engineers a new place to look for answers. The breathtaking beauty and diversity of life on earth arose from a simple and consistent set of biological design rules. Benyus will explore with us how these very same rules could spark a no-excuses design revolution. Comments (2) (Sep 27)

As social beings the need to share is inherent to our human existence. One might say we share information, tasks, ideas and experiences with others in an effort to create a harmonious existence with our surroundings. In my lifetime the human population has doubled from 3 billion to over 6 billion. That’s less than 40 years. With the convergence of information, communication and technology there are endless of ways of sharing knowledge, often resulting in a blurring of information and disinformation. Designers are the creators of experiences. Design decisions are increasingly being influenced by potential impacts beyond the moment-of-use “consumer” experience. Historically the challenge for the designer has been to envision the future as if it were the present. With a greater appreciation of design decisions and the resulting impact on the planet, can the designer challenge the present to see the future by looking at the past? Comments (0) (Sep 25)

Panel: Lewis Fix, senior director, business development, Domtar EarthChoice; David Ford, president and chief executive officer, Metafore; and Tom Pollock, project manager, Metafore

Your paper’s footprint extends far beyond the forest. How it is made, what it is used for, and where it goes after it is used also determine the environmental impacts of paper. This session will explore what these impacts are, as well as key questions graphic designers are asking about the papers they choose. It will profile several labels and tools in the marketplace for evaluating your paper choices, including the Environmental Paper Assessment Tool®. The EPAT® was developed by 11 corporations and Metafore with a common interest in making environmentally preferable papers more widely available and affordable. Comments (0) (Sep 24)

Now that we can do anything, what will we do? This provocative question is at the heart of Bruce Mau’s Massive Change presentation. Drawing on the ideas and images from his acclaimed exhibition of the same name, Mau looks to the future of human civilization, and explores the ways in which design is improving the quality of life for millions of people around the world, and the possibilities that exist to extend this revolution to the entire human race. He begins this presentation with a simple, yet profound proposition: we are now at a point in history where the welfare of all life on the planet is a practical objective. Big, bold, and inspiring, this presentation offers listeners examples of the many positive changes taking place around the world, as well as groundbreaking ideas for new projects to broaden and extend these exciting developments. Comments (0) (Sep 21)

Representing Limited Brands (Victoria’s Secret) and ForestEthics respectively, Greg Cunningham and Lafcadio Cortesi will discuss how their institutions have transcended from being fierce adversaries to strong allies, the ins and outs of sourcing environmentally-preferable paper, and what the resulting key impacts and reactions have been on employees, suppliers and others. They will also share lessons learned from this experience to benefit designers, suppliers and end users. Comments (0) (Sep 11)

ReadyMade is a magazine about making stuff. The do-it-yourself projects—of which most are contributed by readers—found on its pages, reinvent the cast-offs of consumer culture, turning them into bold new design. Join cofounders Shoshana Berger and Grace Hawthorne to discuss the origins of the readymade as art object and how they are evolving the idea into a broad manifesto for 21st century living. For a new generation of producers and consumers concerned with both the ethics and aesthetics of domesticity, ReadyMade is the field guide for sustainable design. Comments (0) (Sep 10)

Panel: Chip Stine, Sandy Alexander, Inc.; Laura Latham, Gensler Design; Lewis Fix, Domtar EarthChoice

How can you be sure that your paper choices are truly sustainable? Does the paper you use for your daily designs come from responsibly managed forests? This session will provide concrete answers to these questions. You will learn about the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), recognized as the benchmark in environmental and social responsibility for forest management practices, and its chain-of-custody which provides the assurance that you need to ensure the materials you use are socially and environmentally sustainable. Plus, you will learn about the path a printed piece travels from the mill to the printer to end user.

Comments (0) (Sep 07)

Why has traditional product design failed to substantively advance the green movement? While green products have influenced market and consumer behavior, the impact has been less than we might have hoped. Methods of green adaptation have some benefits, but designers must move beyond object-based solutions to affect real change.
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To learn more about the conference and to register click here.
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The August 9^th screening, the day following the Hollywood premier, was organized on behalf of ForestEthics and 11thhouraction.com with an after party at Cisco Home, one of AIGA|LA’s Fellow Partners.
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Mohawk Fine Papers has purchased one hundred million kWh of renewable energy certificates (RECs), offsetting one hundred percent of the annual electric power consumption across all its operations in New York and Ohio. A member of the EPA Green Power Partnership, Mohawk now manufactures its entire range of premium printing, writing and imaging papers, including Strathmore, Beckett, Mohawk Superfine, Mohawk Options and Navajo, Via, BriteHue and Mohawk Color Copy with wind energy.
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One of the inspirations for this article came from the lively 2006 AIGA Grow conference, chaired by Marc Alt. This is the first time I’d heard a Wal-Mart executive, live and in person, announce the retail giant’s groundbreaking environmental initiatives. The Grow conference was a transformative experience for Willoughby Design and led to our commitment to sustainable design.
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On April 19, AIGA Los Angeles presented COL[LA]BORATE: SEEing Green, a sold-out evening to address design and our environmental future. Held at Cisco Home’s La Brea showroom, the event was free and open to the general public, and offered an opportunity for designers and other creatives to learn about new products, tools and services that are sustainable, environmental and ecological (SEE). Taking into account the potential carbon footprint required to host and execute such an event, the organization purchased offsets from Carbonfund to make the day carbon-free.
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By Eric Benson.On April 21, I attended the Green Festival in Chicago to see first-hand how design is stimulating the sustainable revolution. Initially, the 130-mile drive from my home in Champaign seemed like a counterproductive way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions on Earth Day 2007. However, what was billed as “the world’s largest eco-mall” tempted me too much. When I discovered that the festival’s carbon footprint was completely offset and the convention would also feature speakers such as Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley and Democracy Now’s Amy Goodman, I knew that the ends would justify the means of getting there. Finally, the lecture entitled “Drink Beer and Save the World” was the clincher. Saving the world through drinking beer sounded like a wonderful idea.
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As we extend our mission to inspire sustainable business practices in the design profession, we are actively encouraging AIGA Chapters across the country to organize “Green Design Salons” in their own communities. This flexible low-key format can be scaled to match individual chapter level interest and participation — it can be as informal as a few like-minded designers gathering at a cafe. The objective is to establish dialogue that addresses the needs and professional interests of the AIGA membership on a regional level.

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AIGA, the professional association for design, is now an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Green Power Partner. This honor signifies that AIGA has purchased nearly one hundred percent of its annual headquarter electricity use from a Green-E certified wind power provider to minimize its reliance on fossil fuels. AIGA recognizes the importance of buying green power whenever possible to promote new technologies, encourage investments in renewable power, grow the environmentally-responsible power market and reduce the negative impacts of its operations.

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Appleton Coated has added FSC-certified Utopia One Sheets and Web and Utopia Two Sheets to their Appleton Green line. These grades use 10 percent recycled materials in their stock versions, but can be ordered with 20 to 30 percent recycled content and with green power offsets. For more information email utopiagreen@appletoncoated.com or call 1-800-663-1813. Comments (1) (Mar 09)

By Eric Benson.

“ Perhaps no industry has forced more species into extinction, destroyed more habitats, and polluted as many streams, rivers, and lakes. It is a tragic irony of commerce that paper, perhaps the most ubiquitous and ephemeral of all consumer products, is manufactured by destroying timber forests, one of nature’s most durable and biologically essential organisms. ”
–Allen Hershowitz, NRDC

Graphic designers have made some fairly amazing and powerful work. They have changed public opinion on wars and politics (through posters/digital media) as well as influenced new consumer behaviors that dramatically increased the world’s economic output (advertising/packaging). They’ve made life simpler (at times), faster and easier to navigate. However, as much progress as the design profession has made for society, they’ve also been responsible for helping to create an over-consumptive population and an ecosystem teetering on disaster. With every new print piece they produce or every brand they promote, they also affect the general health of our planet through the method and materials they choose to use.
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By Phil Hamlett.
An instructor walked into my office the other day, took one look at the new 600-page Worldchanging book and said “So there’s an oxymoron if ever I’ve seen one: a 30-pound book about how to save the environment.” He’s got a point; perhaps more so than any other communications challenge, one must be sensitive to the actual form that sustainable messages take.

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Sustainability is a growing concern that affects many facets of our personal and professional lives. If you aren’t clear on what “sustainability” actually means, there are several formal definitions to which we can refer. Sustainability is a big subject, and even a quick glance will reveal a wide range of perspectives. Perhaps one of the most widely recognized definition of sustainability was provided by Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland in her 1987 report, Our Common Future:

“Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”

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The Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA is hosting what looks to be the first outstanding design for sustainability conference of 2007. The two part conference titled “Designing Sustainable Mobility” is divided into a Pre-Summit on February 6th and the main Summit on February 7th and 8th.

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AIGA Center for Sustainable Design is pleased to welcome Domtar EarthChoice as our inaugural partner and presenting sponsor. We look forward to working with them in our mission to connect design professionals with timely and useful information about sustainable paper and printing options, in addition to providing in depth knowledge about forest management, FSC certification and other production considerations that affect the overall life-cycle and environmental footprint of paper products.

Domtar EarthChoice papers are certified to the rigorous standards of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and supported by Rainforest Alliance and WWF-Canada. Most of the offerings in the line contain post-consumer recycled content and all of them are sourced from managed forests that support a program of re-growth and the protection of ecological systems.

To learn more about Domtar’s commitment to sustainability and the environmental benefits of the Domtar EarthChoice line, please visit their Environmental Sustainability pages here and here. Comments (0) (Dec 15)

Sustainability is a growing concern for designers everywhere. Over the last year, the urgency attached to this issue has been elevated by several high-profile books, movies, business initiatives and general press coverage. Renewable energy sources are touted in ads, and alternative fuel sources are appearing on ballot initiatives. In the world of design communications, postconsumer content is a given and it’s becoming increasingly difficult to remember a time when paper (and even printers) were not FSC certified.

Sustainability’s move towards the mainstream is a very positive thing. In order for sustainable thinking (and practice) to have the desired effect, it must be embraced as a way of life by individuals, businesses and governments alike. However, sustainability is a complex issue, and in order to better serve the companies for whom they work—or in order to help determine what those companies are doing in this regard—designers need to become more knowledgeable.
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