Consideration of sustainability in product and industrial design courses is becoming more common and relevant within higher education in the UK. However little is known about how widespread the teaching is and what is actually understood as sustainable design with discrepancies in the definitions used in different institutions. Literature highlights that many universities now engage with the tangible environmental aspects of sustainable design, whilst the intangible social aspects are left unaddressed. This thesis explores methods for encouraging and enabling students to address the social aspects within sustainable product design (SPD) education. The first research stage presents the results of a nationwide survey, which investigated how widely SPD is taught, which social aspects are addressed, how SPD is taught and assessed and the attitudes and awareness of it amongst academics. The second research stage presents further research into best practice in SPD through detailed interviews with leading academics in the field. A third research stage built upon the findings from both these studies, and sought to address a perceived weakness in SPD education; the lack of understanding and consideration of the social aspects in sustainable product design in teaching and project outcomes. Three Rethinking Design workshops were developed and tested at five universities in the UK and Ireland. These workshops were designed to introduce students to the wider social aspects of SPD, through the use of audio visual group based workshops. The design of the workshops enabled a learning environment where a deep understanding of the social aspects of Sustainable Product Design could be developed through; group work, discussion and critical reflection, which led to students exploring design thinking responses, suggesting that deep learning, had occurred.

The UK government, under the Primary Capital Programme, is planning to rebuild or refurbish approximately half of all primary schools by 2022/23. The aim is to create primary schools that are equipped for 21st century teaching and learning. Around £7 billion will be invested in the scheme with £1.9 billion of the budget being spent 2008-11, £650 million for all local authorities in 2009-10 and £1.1 billion in 2010-11. However, this substantial investment will only meet the target of providing a 21st century educational environment, with opportunities for exemplary teaching and learning, if the design of new and refurbished schools is fit for this purpose. The research set out to answer the question ‘How can all user groups be involved in the evaluation of newly built primary schools?’ This question was addressed by achieving the aim of developing a post-occupancy evaluation toolkit specifically for primary schools which accounted for the views of all stakeholders. The research focussed on primary schools in the city of Coventry in the UK West Midlands and was conducted in two phases: an examination of schools built before the introduction of a model brief in 1996 and an evaluation of schools that were built using its guidance. The findings from the initial case studies indicated issues to be addressed in the design of the toolkit. Following the initial case studies in pre-1996 schools, the research focussed on five recently built primary schools that were constructed according to the guidelines contained in Coventry’s model brief. At the time of commencing the research, six primary schools had been built using this framework. However, there had been no attempt to evaluate the schools to establish whether they met the needs of all stakeholders. The post-occupancy evaluation toolkit that was developed took a multi-stakeholder perspective on primary school builds and resulted in findings which indicate the variability in responses between different stakeholder groups and schools. The research concluded that the post-occupancy toolkit can provide information on school buildings, from a multi-stakeholder perspective, which may be useful architects and designers. It also proposes an approach to primary school design which accounts for the variability in the needs of diverse stakeholder groups and the individuality of each school, including their geographical location.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Design educators are expected to demonstrate a high level of confidence in the industry for which they are preparing students. When I reflected upon my own design industry and higher education experience while engaging with critical citizenship and globalization discourse, my confidence in and perceived authority of the design industry became challenged. I came to the realization that it could be useful to view the demands from the neoliberal design industry on design education through the lenses of critical citizenship and globalization. The insights gained from such an investigation could assist design educators involved in developing new design programmes to conscientize the expectations set by the design industry. It is argued that the conscientizing of expectations set by the design industry could be achieved by focusing on conscientizing design graduates that may in turn influence the design industry at large. The main aim of the study is to create a conceptual framework that supports theoretical concepts that could conscientize industry expectations of design education. The main research question thus questioned how critical citizenship and globalization discourse could be used to conscientize industry expectations of design education at Universities of Technology (UoTs). The objectives of the study are twofold: to identify, firstly, current industry expectations of design graduates from a University of Technology in South Africa and, secondly, to identify theoretical concepts in critical citizenship and globalization discourse that could be used to conscientize industry expectations of design education at UoTs in South Africa. Theoretical concepts in critical citizenship and globalization discourse were identified through a literature review; the identified concepts were used to develop a conceptual framework. The empirical section of the research design consisted of a case study that included industry interviews, alumni surveys and my own experience as the main sources of data. The theoretical concepts identified in the literature review of critical citizenship and globalization discourse were used to structure an inductive content analysis of empirical data collected to identify possible theoretical concepts that can be used to conscientize industry expectations of design education. The picture that emerges from this study creates a worrying image of a profession in crisis. I identified the urgent need to instil compassion into design education so that our alumni can intuitively act against situations where their dignity is under threat. This can be done by means of inclusion of critical citizenship and globalization discourse in curriculums of design programmes at UoTs. The theoretical concepts in critical citizenship and globalization discourse that can possibly be used to conscientize industry expectations of design education at UoTs are identified as: transformation, diversity, racism, social disparity, visual culture, civic identity, civic engagement, ethical relationships, shared participation, problemsolving, critical thinking, and imagination skills. I also conclude that the debate regarding the conscientizing of the design industry is of such importance that it should not be limited to only critical citizenship and globalization discourse ‒ the debate must go further and deeper. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Daar word van ontwerp-dosente verwag om 'n hoë vlak van vertroue te toon in die industrie waarvoor hul hul studente oplei. Terwyl ek sou meedoen aan die diskoers rondom kritiese burgerskap en globalisering, het ek besin oor my eie ervaringe rakende die ontwerp-industrie en hoër opvoeding en sou uiteindelik my vertroue in en vermeende inspraak sover dit die ontwerp-industrie aangaan, bevraagteken. Daar is tot die besef gekom dat dit voordelig kan wees om die eise wat die neoliberale ontwerp-industrie aan ontwerp-onderrig stel, te beskou vanuit die hoek van kritiese burgerskap en globalisering. Die insigte verwerf deur middel van so 'n ondersoek kan ontwerp-opvoedkundiges betrokke by die ontwikkeling van nuwe ontwerp-programme van diens wees in hul poging om die verwagtinge gestel deur die ontwerp-industrie sensitief te verskerp. Daar word aan die hand gedoen dat so 'n sensibilisering betreffende die verwagtinge gestel deur die ontwerp-industrie haalbaar is deur te fokus daarop om ontwerp-graduandi insgelyks te sensibiliseer en wat op sy beurt die ontwerp-industrie breedvoerig sal raak. Die hoofoogmerk van die studie is om 'n konsepsuele raamwerk daar te stel welke teoretiese konsepte ondersteun wat 'n sensitiewe bewussyn kan kweek sover dit industrie-verwagtinge rakende ontwerp-onderrig aangaan. As sodanig het die hoofnavorsingsprobleem dus gevra na hoe die diskoers rondom kritiese burgerskap en globalisering aangewend kan word om industrie-verwagtinge insake ontwerponderrig by Universiteite vir Tegnologie (UvT's) te sensibiliseer. Die oogmerk van hierdie studie is tweevoudig: om, eerstens, huidige industrie-verwagtinge rakende ontwerp-graduandi van 'n UvT in Suid-Afrika te identifiseer en, tweedens, om teoretiese konsepte rakende die diskoers rondom kritiese burgerskap en globalisering te identifiseer wat aangewend kan word om industrie-verwagtinge rakende ontwerp-onderrig by UvT's in Suid-Afrika sensitief te verskerp. Teoretiese konsepte in die diskoers rondom kritiese burgerskap en globalisering is geïdentifiseer deur middel van 'n literatuuroorsig; die geïdentifiseerde konsepte is naamlik aangewend om 'n konsepsuele raamwerk te ontwikkel. Die empiriese afdeling van die navorsingsontwerp het bestaan uit 'n gevallestudie wat onderhoude in die industrie, opnames onder alumni asook my eie ervaringe rakende die ontwerp-industrie as hoofbronne van data ingesluit het. Die teoretiese konsepte geïdentifiseer as deel van die literatuuroorsig rakende die diskoers rondom kritiese burgerskap en globalisering is aangewend om struktuur te verleen aan 'n induktiewe inhoudsanalise van empiriese data versamel om moontlike teoretiese konsepte te identifiseer wat aangewend kan word om industrie-verwagtinge rakende ontwerponderrig te sensibiliseer. Die beeld wat deur hierdie navorsing geskets is, skep 'n onrusbarende beeld van 'n professie wat 'n krisis deurmaak. Ek het die dringende behoefte geïdentifiseer om toegeneentheid en deernis by te bring in ontwerp-onderrig sodat ons alumni intuïtief kan optree in gevalle waar hul menswaardigheid in die gedrang sou kom. Dit kan bereik word deur die insluiting van kritiese burgerskaps- en globaliseringsdiskoerse in die kurrikulums van ontwerp-programme by UvT's. Die teoretiese konsepte in die diskoers rondom kritiese burgerskap en globalisering wat moontlik aangewend kan word om industrie-verwagtinge rakende ontwerponderrig by UvT's te sensibiliseer, is geïdentifiseer as: transformasie, diversiteit, rasisme, sosiale ongelykheid, visuele kultuur, burgerlike identiteit, burgerlike verpligtinge, etiese verbintenisse, deelgenootskap, probleemoplossing, kritiese denke asook vaardighede met betrekking tot die inspan van die verbeelding. Daar is voorts tot die slotsom geraak dat die debat rondom die kweek van 'n sensitiewe bewussyn in die ontwerp-industrie van sodanige belang is dat dit nie beperk behoort te word tot alleen die diskoers rondom kritiese burgerskap en globalisering nie ‒ die debat móét eenvoudig verder en meer indringend gevoer word.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-25T20:21:01Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ana Claudia Berwanger.pdf: 26059274 bytes, checksum: 6d0d91a9d8953af0ca2abe240c7a0d64 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-06-20 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This thesis presents a panoramic view of the process of formation of the Brazilian institutional system that was built around the notions and practices called "industrial design" and "design". It also presents an interpretation of the disputes held specifically in the academic field of design, in its current configuration, while trying to understand the different requirements articu-lated, in that area, for the specific rarity of such practice. The text is divided in two parts of which the first one is dedicated to present the main institutions and formative events in the field, from the foundation of the Institute of Contemporary Arts of the Sao Paulo Art Museum (1951) to the end of the first decade of the years 2000, going through the quarrels that happened in the first schools (ESDI and FAU-USP), the creation of the first professional associations (ABDI and APDINS), the downfall of the name "industrial design" and the rise of the name "design", the dissemination of the graduation and post-graduation educational system, the growth of the student movements, the launching of several specialized publications, periodic awards and governmental incen¬tive programs, and finally the battle for professional regulation and affirmation of the speci city of this practice and its field, in regards to related practices and fields such as architecture and arts. The study in question aimed to present the essential traces of the competition between the institutions along the story of this field, and aIs o the most relevant external pressures, which contributed to determine many of its directions. The institutions were discussed in the thesis according to the view of the social world forged by the Frencl1" sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, focusing on the roles developed particularly in regards to the production of symbolic assets, the reproduction of knowledge and values related to the field, and also the public distribution and the consecration/legitimization of its agents a d practices. The first part of the thesis intends to contextualize the specific problems discussed in the second part, regarding the recommendations currently articulated in the academic field for the relations be¬tween the designer, the business world, and the demands of other nature (social, environmental, psy¬chological, etc.) In order to sustain this approach, several positions articulated the academic field were analyzed, going from the full exploitation of the design in relation to the economic world, to the concealment of such exploitation. The discussion proposed is about the strategies and possibilities of empowering the area and reassuring the specific rarity of the practices of the designer. The main conclu¬sion is that, differently from what occurred in the initial stage of the formation of this field, around the 19th century, when the designer was clearly seen as an artistic consultant serving the industry, nowa¬days its specific rarity is so comprehensive and almost nonspecific, that it may ;only be defined a "doing something well"; and this doing is extended to the engaged formulation of any interface, which allows any user or agent to realize any task through the use of any tool or system, independently of their nature. This condition creates a paradox in which the design is more autonomous the more heteronomous its concrete practices are, and the more its agents specialize in interpreting and attending to the needs and interests of each other, either those demands are economical or noto economical or not. / Esta tese apresenta uma visão panorâmica do processo de formação do sistema institucional bra-sileiro que se erigiu em torno das noções e das práticas nomeadas desenho industrial e design . Apre-senta também uma interpretação sobre as disputas travadas no campo acadêmico do design em sua atual conguração, buscando compreender quais são as diferentes prescrições formuladas, nesse âm-bito, para denir a raridade especíca dessa prática.O texto é dividido em duas partes, das quais a primeira é dedicada a apresentar as principais insti-tuições e eventos formadores do campo, desde a fundação do Instituto de Arte Contemporânea do Mu-seu de Arte de São Paulo (1951), até o nal da primeira década dos anos 2000, passando pelos embates travados nas primeiras escolas (esdi e fau-usp), pela formação das primeiras associações prossionais (abdi e apdins), pelo declínio da nomenclatura desenho industrial e ascensão da nomenclatura de-sign , pela disseminação do sistema de ensino de graduação e pós-graduação, pelo crescimento do movi-mento estudantil, pela instalação de diversas publicações especializadas, premiações periódicas e pro-gramas governamentais de fomento e, por m, pela batalha em prol da regulamentação prossional e da armação da especicidade desta prática e deste campo, em relação a práticas e campos correlatos, tais como a arquitetura e as artes. No panorama em questão, buscou-se apresentar os traços essenciais da luta concorrencial travada entre as instituições ao longo da trajetória do campo, e também as pressões externas mais relevantes, que contribuiram para determinar muitas de suas direções. As instituições foram discutidas na tese de acordo com a visão do mundo social forjada pelo sociólogo francês Pierre Bourdieu, enfocando os papéis por elas desempenhados, particularmente no que se refere à produção dos bens simbólicos, à reprodução dos saberes e valores atinentes ao campo e, por m, à difusão pública e à consagração/legitimação de seus agentes e práticas. A primeira parte da tese tem por nalidade situar a problemática especíca que é discutida na se-gunda parte, e que diz respeito às prescrições atualmente formuladas dentro do campo acadêmico para a relação entre o designer, o mundo empresarial e as demandas de outras naturezas (social, ambiental, psicológica etc.) Para sustentar este enfoque foram analisadas diversas tomadas de posição formuladas no âmbito do campo acadêmico, que oscilam entre a instrumentalização plena do design em relação ao mundo econômico, e o ocultamento dessa instrumentalidade. A discussão proposta diz respeito às estratégias e possibilidades de autonomização do campo e da armação da raridade especíca das práti-cas do designer. A principal conclusão obtida é que, diferentemente do que ocorria no estágio inicial da formação deste campo, em meados do século xix, quando o designer era claramente visto como um consultor artístico a serviço da indústria, nos dias de hoje a sua raridade especíca é tão abrangente que beira a inespecicidade, podendo ser denida apenas por um fazer bem feito , fazer este que incide sobre a formulação engajada de quaisquer interfaces, que possibilitem a quaisquer usuários e agentes a consecução de quaisquer tarefas, por meio do uso de quaisquer artefatos e sistemas, independente da natureza dos mesmos. Tal condição gera um paradoxo segundo o qual o campo do design é tanto mais autônomo quanto mais heterônomas são suas práticas concretas, e quanto mais seus agentes se espe-cializam em interpretar e atender às necessidades e interesses de um outro, sejam essas demandas de natureza econômica ou não

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-26T14:54:23Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ana Claudia Berwanger.pdf: 26059274 bytes, checksum: 6d0d91a9d8953af0ca2abe240c7a0d64 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-06-20 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This thesis presents a panoramic view of the process of formation of the Brazilian institutional system that was built around the notions and practices called "industrial design" and "design". It also presents an interpretation of the disputes held specifically in the academic field of design, in its current configuration, while trying to understand the different requirements articu-lated, in that area, for the specific rarity of such practice. The text is divided in two parts of which the first one is dedicated to present the main institutions and formative events in the field, from the foundation of the Institute of Contemporary Arts of the Sao Paulo Art Museum (1951) to the end of the first decade of the years 2000, going through the quarrels that happened in the first schools (ESDI and FAU-USP), the creation of the first professional associations (ABDI and APDINS), the downfall of the name "industrial design" and the rise of the name "design", the dissemination of the graduation and post-graduation educational system, the growth of the student movements, the launching of several specialized publications, periodic awards and governmental incen¬tive programs, and finally the battle for professional regulation and affirmation of the speci city of this practice and its field, in regards to related practices and fields such as architecture and arts. The study in question aimed to present the essential traces of the competition between the institutions along the story of this field, and aIs o the most relevant external pressures, which contributed to determine many of its directions. The institutions were discussed in the thesis according to the view of the social world forged by the Frencl1" sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, focusing on the roles developed particularly in regards to the production of symbolic assets, the reproduction of knowledge and values related to the field, and also the public distribution and the consecration/legitimization of its agents a d practices. The first part of the thesis intends to contextualize the specific problems discussed in the second part, regarding the recommendations currently articulated in the academic field for the relations be¬tween the designer, the business world, and the demands of other nature (social, environmental, psy¬chological, etc.) In order to sustain this approach, several positions articulated the academic field were analyzed, going from the full exploitation of the design in relation to the economic world, to the concealment of such exploitation. The discussion proposed is about the strategies and possibilities of empowering the area and reassuring the specific rarity of the practices of the designer. The main conclu¬sion is that, differently from what occurred in the initial stage of the formation of this field, around the 19th century, when the designer was clearly seen as an artistic consultant serving the industry, nowa¬days its specific rarity is so comprehensive and almost nonspecific, that it may ;only be defined a "doing something well"; and this doing is extended to the engaged formulation of any interface, which allows any user or agent to realize any task through the use of any tool or system, independently of their nature. This condition creates a paradox in which the design is more autonomous the more heteronomous its concrete practices are, and the more its agents specialize in interpreting and attending to the needs and interests of each other, either those demands are economical or noto economical or not. / Esta tese apresenta uma visão panorâmica do processo de formação do sistema institucional bra-sileiro que se erigiu em torno das noções e das práticas nomeadas desenho industrial e design . Apre-senta também uma interpretação sobre as disputas travadas no campo acadêmico do design em sua atual conguração, buscando compreender quais são as diferentes prescrições formuladas, nesse âm-bito, para denir a raridade especíca dessa prática.O texto é dividido em duas partes, das quais a primeira é dedicada a apresentar as principais insti-tuições e eventos formadores do campo, desde a fundação do Instituto de Arte Contemporânea do Mu-seu de Arte de São Paulo (1951), até o nal da primeira década dos anos 2000, passando pelos embates travados nas primeiras escolas (esdi e fau-usp), pela formação das primeiras associações prossionais (abdi e apdins), pelo declínio da nomenclatura desenho industrial e ascensão da nomenclatura de-sign , pela disseminação do sistema de ensino de graduação e pós-graduação, pelo crescimento do movi-mento estudantil, pela instalação de diversas publicações especializadas, premiações periódicas e pro-gramas governamentais de fomento e, por m, pela batalha em prol da regulamentação prossional e da armação da especicidade desta prática e deste campo, em relação a práticas e campos correlatos, tais como a arquitetura e as artes. No panorama em questão, buscou-se apresentar os traços essenciais da luta concorrencial travada entre as instituições ao longo da trajetória do campo, e também as pressões externas mais relevantes, que contribuiram para determinar muitas de suas direções. As instituições foram discutidas na tese de acordo com a visão do mundo social forjada pelo sociólogo francês Pierre Bourdieu, enfocando os papéis por elas desempenhados, particularmente no que se refere à produção dos bens simbólicos, à reprodução dos saberes e valores atinentes ao campo e, por m, à difusão pública e à consagração/legitimação de seus agentes e práticas. A primeira parte da tese tem por nalidade situar a problemática especíca que é discutida na se-gunda parte, e que diz respeito às prescrições atualmente formuladas dentro do campo acadêmico para a relação entre o designer, o mundo empresarial e as demandas de outras naturezas (social, ambiental, psicológica etc.) Para sustentar este enfoque foram analisadas diversas tomadas de posição formuladas no âmbito do campo acadêmico, que oscilam entre a instrumentalização plena do design em relação ao mundo econômico, e o ocultamento dessa instrumentalidade. A discussão proposta diz respeito às estratégias e possibilidades de autonomização do campo e da armação da raridade especíca das práti-cas do designer. A principal conclusão obtida é que, diferentemente do que ocorria no estágio inicial da formação deste campo, em meados do século xix, quando o designer era claramente visto como um consultor artístico a serviço da indústria, nos dias de hoje a sua raridade especíca é tão abrangente que beira a inespecicidade, podendo ser denida apenas por um fazer bem feito , fazer este que incide sobre a formulação engajada de quaisquer interfaces, que possibilitem a quaisquer usuários e agentes a consecução de quaisquer tarefas, por meio do uso de quaisquer artefatos e sistemas, independente da natureza dos mesmos. Tal condição gera um paradoxo segundo o qual o campo do design é tanto mais autônomo quanto mais heterônomas são suas práticas concretas, e quanto mais seus agentes se espe-cializam em interpretar e atender às necessidades e interesses de um outro, sejam essas demandas de natureza econômica ou não

The notion of sustainability has become an extensive area of research ever since the term emerged in the late 1980s, due to the negative effects of unsustainable production and consumption patterns on environmental stewardship, social equity and economic development. There have been various approaches developed for product design and education within the context sustainability. Biomimicry is one of those approaches, and its implications for product design education have recently started to be explored. In this study, an educational tool - Biomimicry Sketch Analysis (BSA) - was developed and integrated into the idea-generation phase of an educational design project at the undergraduate level in the Department of Industrial Design at the Middle East Technical University (METU). This integration is analyzed throughout the graduate thesis study, to understand and explore the implications of the biomimicry approach for sustainability in product design education. The educational tool within this approach was found as influential among the third year industrial design students for the idea-generation phase, yet the results of this study included both pros and cons for the incorporation of the BSA exercise.

Considering the continuous design activities that are performed throughout the design projects, design students go through several stages of decision makings, and sometimes they experience problematic situations in between consecutive supervisory meetings. Revealing all experiences during the discussions with supervisors, thus communicating the ideas could be sometimes difficult. In order to provide a better guidance, it is also important for supervisors to understand students&rsquo / process in between these meetings. There are available tools used in the fields like education or health in order to monitor an individual&rsquo / s daily life in relation to the context (e.g. time, place, activity) and personal circumstances (e.g. emotions, feelings, ideas). These tools are developed based on experience sampling method (ESM), a research method focus on collecting self-reported data from participants in order to measure their daily life experiences, especially during a long period of time. Since the target group and experience has different characteristics for each context, design of experience sampling tools are also gaining importance to address these specific experience according to individuals&rsquo / needs and expectations. Aiming at assisting design students to do regular self-reporting on their experiences, this study presents a background research for designing experience sampling tools that would be used by students and supervisors to keep track of students&rsquo / experiences throughout design projects. In this sense, this study intends assisting students self-reporting activities, translate the main design requirements of experience sampling tools into the context of design projects, as well as revealing guidelines for the future implications of ESM tools in design education

Problems that the earth has faced with such as the depletion of natural resources, contamination of water, air and land, extension of species, and the global warming have brought up the sustainable development to the agenda. This state of affairs has elicited the undeniable role of industrial design activity on the sustainable development / sustainability has become an important concern of industrial design education. The purpose of this study is to determine the state of sustainable design education in the undergraduate industrial design programs in Turkey &ndash / especially in the Department of Industrial Design at Middle East Technical University (METU) &ndash / by exploring the relation between industrial design education and the concept of sustainability with regard to the examples from all around the world. With reference to the arguments collected by the literature review study and findings of the field study about the opinions of industrial design students and educators, suggestions will be made on how sustainability can be integrated in the curricula of the undergraduate industrial design programs in Turkey.

Design juries are one of the assessment practices that enable evaluation and criticism of students&rsquo / projects in studio based courses. This study explores the aims and attributes of design juries from students&rsquo / and jurors&rsquo / perspectives. The thesis is constructed upon a field study which consists of an observational study on design juries, a focus group study with students and interviews with the jurors of METU Department of Industrial Design. The findings of the field study indicate that design juries in their current form exhibit several issues to discuss / delivery of comments to students, duration of discussions, organization of the jury and assessment criteria are important factors to consider in design juries.

Education is often viewed as a catalyst of change. Arguably, the future of our Planet is dependent on education that nurtures sustainable ways of thinking and living in our environment. This thesis seeks to argue that in order for abstract principles of sustainability to be understood, individuals need to have opportunities to explore and be a part of designing and experiencing their own places. Specifically, my thesis suggests that high school students in public schools should take an active part of this educational process. To test this theory, I investigated three high school sustainability programs in Austin, Texas that utilize place-based pedagogy. What was realized is that each program envisions sustainability programming that is integrative and experiential, but due to the current mechanistic education system the daily programming can be difficult. This result has led me to theorize that the entire educational system needs to be transformed in order for sustainability education to exist. However, I finally propose a more practical approach, and thus offer twelve generalized heuristic questions for sustainable design educators to consider and assist them in building social capital between themselves and the public school system. / text