This thesis reports on the research undertaken to investigate the reduction of the environmental impacts of plastic packaging through the effective selection and application of biopolymers during the pack design process. The principle objective of this research is to develop an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of biopolymers as a packaging material and to develop a framework which enables biopolymers to be considered at each stage of the pack design process to enable their effective and appropriate selection and use.

abstract: This paper discusses the second phase of sustainability in the field of design and identifies the success factors of design innovation in the ethnic craft industry in northern Thailand. This study explored craftspeople’s capital, their means of developing it, and potential routes to sustainable development on the capital. The literature review examines three topics: (1) ethnic identity and craft; (2) northern Thailand and hill tribes; and (3) design thinking, vulnerability, and resilience. Empirical research was conducted with hill tribe craftspeople in northern Thailand. Seven types of capital—human, social, natural, physical, financial, cultural, and emotional capital—were identified through interviews and observation. Those types of capital indicated what the craftspeople wanted and needed. The key findings were as follows: First, social capital has a close relationship with both human capital and emotional capital, indicating that for craftspeople, networks and membership ensure knowledge and increase connections with friends and family. Secondly, emotional capital is affected by financial capital. Financial capital refers to the monetary resources used to achieve craftspeople’s livelihood objectives. The craftspeople required high order volumes to earn to more money and thus improve their economic condition; they experienced more stress when order volumes were low. Third, financial capital is not related to social and cultural capital. Graphs implied certain relationship among them, with the reasons varying depending on the individual craftsperson’s environment. A high level of social and cultural capital does not affect low financial capital, and vice versa. Finally, cultural capital directly influences emotional capital because the happiness of hill tribe craftspeople is related to their identity and dignity as craftspeople. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Design 2017

The loss of ecological integrity as a result of urban spread and construction threatens the overall biodiversity of urban areas and prompts us to consider means of better including ecological biodiversity within development projects. The UK’s best practice tool for ensuring the integration of ecology into such projects is the Building Research Establishments Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM). This thesis seeks to identify the efficacy of the current approach to ecological integration within BREEAM, and enable development to foster biodiversity and ecology more positively in the urban environment. Qualitative and quantitative research techniques were used to develop a new approach to the integration of ecology within an existing and nationally recognised model. This began by exploring the efficacy of and the main flaws in the present system by a survey of ecologists with experience of the BREEAM process. This led to a new approach to establishing the ecological value of urban ecology utilising a new calculation methodology, adapting the current scheme to focus on land use change as a result of urban land use planning and development. This new approach utilises habitat changes at its core to measure positive and negative change and indicate potential design solutions in land use planning within a development. The innovative methodology was tested using an in depth case study to review and discuss its effective application. The outcome was a new way to address the important variables of habitat integration and linkages maintaining ecological integrity and provision of ecosystem services. It is considered that the outlined approach of the new Land Use and Ecology section of BREEAM is suitable for integration into the next iteration in 2010, which will enable development to positively foster biodiversity and ecology in the urban environment.

The important positions and proposals of the thesis are firstly the framework posited for a socially sustainable urban environment, and secondly a proposal for the parameters of place formation for sustainable urban design. Research into social sustainability has provided a variety of approaches among which Castells&amp / #8217 / model for urban movements have been adapted as a matrix for social organization in terms of placemaking, highlighting the goals of an urban movement, in this case of a place, with the citizen as urban actor, against its adversary the historical actor. As for the parameters of place formation a matrix of place is developed as a tool for urban design and for measuring urban sustainability. The matrix delineates the six dimensions of place in terms of the three sustainabilities most strongly involved in each / to be measured by the indicators of sustainability which are to be achieved by applying various strategies for urban design. As a result of the study of the underlying dynamics of the paradigms of sustainability, place, and place-making, and the shifting role of urban design necessitated by problems of urbaproposed within a discourse that prefers to see the three sustainabilities in conjunction and, believes socially sustainable communities to be also environmentally and economically sustainable- the issue becomes how to facilitate a place process through urban design. Place as a social product, and place as an experiential, cognitive construct, place as object and subject of place-making, and place as a geographically specific, historical materialist formation are the four vantage points from which to inspect the juxtapositions and differences of the concept / and may be arrive at a theory of place. The predilection that sustainability and urbanization can be evaluated via placemaking stems, on one hand, from a study of the city/urbanization through the works of Harvey, Castells, Lefebvre and Bookchin who emphasize social space/process in the face of physical/geometric space / and an architectural background/disposition which finds place congenial on the other hand. The paradigm of sustainability and place, and place-making as urban design is applied to the case of Temelli, Ankara for a critique of sustainable/unsustainable urbanization. As a geographic, social, economic and historical location within the Greater Municipality of Ankara, Temelli has been a region of attraction for investors since the 1990s. What was once a small village planned for settling Balkan immigrants, became a municipality in 1994 / the land within the municipal boundaries were increased tenfold, and the region was earmarked for an overspill of 650,000 people from Ankara Metropolitan Area in the next 20 years. Four residential areas in the region have been assessed comparatively in terms of sustainable urban forms / and an evaluation of everyday lives have been conducted through surveys and interviews with residents to observe how and if place as social product evolved / how the conceived, perceived and lived spaces interacted.

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.

The thesis is focused on the construction of cartographic systems not only as a tool for environmental representation, but also for shaping practices, values, technologies, and cultural narratives around sustainable development of human landscapes in non- Western contexts. Cartographic theory is employed to question existing mapping techniques, especially in relation to documenting sustainable development. The thesis investigates the merging of technology, science and art in the process of making maps and explores the possibility to represent several spheres of reality in cartographic elements. Representation concepts and methodologies were tested around the Mexican settlement of Ciudad Obregon, within the bioregion of the Gulf of California. Parts of the agendas for sustainable development revised stimulate the collection of dreams, images, and fantasies about non-Western human agglomerations and their ecosystems, critically informing sustainable narratives framed in other contexts. The works reviewed reveal an absence of complex cartographic and visual systems, portraying instead emerging landscapes in growing economies as exotic, mysterious, folkloric, chaotic, less developed, and in need of corrective study and supervision from a Western viewpoint. Interpretive, visual, and technological instrumentations were utilized with the aim of constructing a cartographic system that exposes dynamics of sustainable development in emerging settlements. The methodological scheme considers a series of associations between quantitative and qualitative approaches, employing eighteen dialectical negotiations in the representation of six ecologies. The outcome was a hybrid system of representation concerning bi-dimensional maps, photography, and chronicles from local newspapers. Two fieldtrips to Mexico were completed in 2012 and 2013, visiting and studying eighteen human agglomerations in total. The outcomes (measured and gathered data, perceptions, bibliography, photographs, and cartographic evidences) of both fieldtrips were linked to the hypothesis previously outlined in the literature review. The methodological structure was influenced by the cartographic representation interpretation of the biosphere of Ciudad Obregon and its natural ecosystems. On the other hand, the cartographic representation-interpretation of different networks resulted in the study of polymorphous infrastructures that facilitate the flow of goods, capital and people throughout the same territory. The correlation of the research interrogates the paradigmatic challenges of the ‘network society’ in developing contexts. It questions the notion that human settlements develop sophisticated infrastructure networks, selectively connecting together the most favoured users and places, linking valuable segments and discarding irrelevant habitats, locales and people. As the cartographic and visual evidences gathered by this research suggest, these commodity landscapes allow terrestrial and aerial flow of physical and knowledge resources (food, water, gasoline, telecommunications, transport, information, services, waste) in granulated and disseminated environments of buildings and networks, materializing a palimpsest of infrastructures. The research finds that the assessment of social, cultural, and environmental sustainability in emerging and dispersed landscapes requires an adjacent design of cartographic and visual frameworks that represent the complexity found in developing locations.

Im Design ist Empathie der Schlüssel zum Erfolg. Warum? Weil diese Denkweise sich als höchst effizient bei der Lösung von Problemen erwiesen hat. Empathie sorgt dafür, dass ein Produkt in erster Linie einen Wert für den Menschen hat. Nachhaltiger Wert für den Menschen ist der Garant für beständigen Erfolg. Innovative Unternehmen haben die Chance erkannt und haben ihre Entscheidungs- und Entwicklungsprozesse angepasst. Doch längst nicht alle Firmen haben diesen Wandel vollzogen oder können es tun. In unterschiedlichsten Branchen begleiten wir Unternehmen sowohl auf der Entscheiderebene als auch in den Entwicklungsabteilungen interdisziplinär. Dabei arbeiten wir mit unterschiedlichen Ansätzen und Prozessen, um Innovation möglich zu machen. In unserem Beitrag teilen wir unsere Erfahrungen zur gegenwärtigen Entwicklung in der Digitalisierung. Wir liefern wir spannende Insights zu Innovationen und zum Thema Nachhaltigkeit in mittelständigen Unternehmen bis zu den Global Playern

Climate change is now more of a reality than ever. Carbon budget provides an upper limit on the amount of carbon that can be emitted, for the earth to be within an accepted temperature rise. People are aware that eating less meat, flying less and reducing product consumption would decrease their emission, but they are not sure on how much less. Existing studies show that people are quite willing to accept the concept of carbon budget but there is no tool that visualises this information at an individual level.  This study investigated the features that must be included in a carbon budget tool when visualising an individual’s information to create awareness. An exploratory design approach was used in this study where the design was iteratively developed from user feedback. Four preliminary designs were first developed and discussed in a focus group. With the feedback from the focus group, one design was finalised and redesigned as a carbon budget tool. This was tested in a one-on-one user testing where users had to complete tasks using the tool. The study results provided evidence that personalised information, effective text, labels, interactive features, and clear and simple layout are important features that must be included when designing a tool to visualise an individual’s carbon budget. The participants also rated an increase in awareness of carbon budget concept after using the tool. / Klimatförändringarna är nu mer verkliga än någonsin. En koldioxidbudget anger en övre gräns för mängden utsläpp av klimatgaser som kan släppas ut för att hålla ökningen av jordens medeltemperaturen inom en acceptabel gräns. Många människor är medvetna om att lägre köttkonsumtion, färre flygresor och en minskad konsumtion av saker skulle minska deras utsläpp, men de är inte säkra på hur mycket varje ändring påverkar utsläppen. Befintliga studier visar att människor accepterar begreppet koldioxidbudget i sig, men det finns idag inga verktyg för att visualisera en koldioxidbudget på individuell nivå.  Denna studie undersöker vilka funktioner som behöver ingå i ett verktyg för visualisering av en individuell koldioxidbudget, med syfte att skapa medvetenhet hos användaren. En utforskande designmetod användes där verktygets design utvecklades iterativt med feedback från användare. Först utvecklades fyra preliminära designprototyper som diskuterades i en fokusgrupp. Med feedback från fokusgruppen vidareutvecklades en av prototyperna till en slutgiltig version. Detta testades i en användartestning där användare utförde uppgifter med verktyget. Studieresultaten visade att personlig information, effektiv text, etiketter, interaktiva funktioner och tydlig och enkel layout är viktiga funktioner som måste inkluderas när man utformar ett verktyg för att visualisera en koldioxidbudget för individuell användning. Deltagarna bedömde också att de uppnått en ökad medvetenhet om konceptet koldioxidbudget efter att ha använt verktyget.

Len len is about the process. Originating in environmental issues and reflecting the processuality of the creation of a work of art. Processes from production to product, from tradition to the present, from memory to experience, from fast to slow, from imperfection to perfection, from the impersonal to the personal, from beginning to end. I deal with work with textiles as a classic medium, while I devote myself to the cultivation of flax as the original, in our country, raw material for the production of textiles. From the beginning, I watch carefully as it grows, I take care of it and I patiently expect the time of collection and subsequent processing. This phase is very important for me, as it brings with it various procedures, applied in old proven technologies, in interaction with people from whom I learn the craft and who shape the whole process, but especially from behind, observe how I am doing, what I managed. It is a personal and at the same time technical record of a two-year effort.

This paper presents a project done within the field of office interior design, which aims to create an efficient set of services that caters to the needs of the interior designer while procuring and implementing used furniture in their projects. The project was conducted in collaboration with Plym Projekt AB, an interior design company who introduced the thesis topic, and Easy Steps, sustainability-focused consultancy company. The collaboration involved regular sessions throughout the course of the thesis, including feedback, guidance and co-creation. During the past two years, the Plym has seen an increase in the demand for sustainable furniture options in the office interior design field. Since then, the company has been attempting to update its business model to provide its customers with a sustainable alternative, encountering obstacles along the way. In addition to a literature review, primary research was conducted, including stakeholder interviews and an end-user questionnaire. Upon empirical data, the authors identified a gap in the industry that is ideally suited for a new actor. The project results in the development of this new actor and its business activities through service design, proposing a set of services that will not only benefit the interior designer, but also its clients, furniture suppliers, and other stakeholders in the office furniture industry. Finally, the service is partially demonstrated through the prototype of a digital platform.