Synopses & Reviews
Design for Environmental Sustainability is a technical and operative contribution to the United Nations "Decade on Education for Sustainable Development" (2005-2014), aiding the development of a new generation of designers, responsible and able in the task of designing environmentally sustainable products. Design for Environmental Sustainability provides a comprehensive framework and a practical tool to support the design process. The book offers an organic vision of methodologies, tools and strategies for the integration of environmental requirements into product development. Possible strategies and design guidelines are highlighted, accompanied by a large selection of high-quality environmentally-aware product design case studies. Divided into four parts, the first part covers environmental sustainability and presents the general guidelines that can be followed to reach it. The second part examines the Life Cycle Design approach and the strategies to minimise consumption of resources, select low environmental impact resources, optimise product life span, extend the life of materials, and design for disassembly. The third part presents methods and tools to evaluate the environmental impact of products (e.g., Life Cycle Assessment) and other support tools for the integration of environmental requirements into real design processes. The fourth and final part describes the historical evolution of sustainability, both in design practice and research. Design for Environmental Sustainability is an important text for all students, designers and design engineers interested in product development processes.
Review
From the reviews: "The authors describe life cycle assessment, including a discussion of its importance in selecting among design options. The book covers methods to evaluate environmental impacts associated with design alternatives, and addresses the historical evolution of sustainability. The volume has many references and footnotes to help the reader find additional information on key topics. ... the work is generally useful for planners, engineers, and architects, and anyone concerned about environmental sustainability. Summing Up: Recommended. All collections." (L. E. Erickson, Choice, Vol. 46 (9), May, 2009)
Synopsis
This volume is a technical and operative contribution to the United Nations "Decade on Education for Sustainable Development" (2005-2014), aiding the development of a new generation of designers, responsible and able in the task of designing environmentally sustainable products. The book provides a comprehensive framework and a practical tool to support the design process. This is an important text for those interested in the product development processes.
Table of Contents
Sustainability and Discontinuity Products, Contexts and Capacities A Social Learning Process Life Cycle Design Minimising Resource Consumption Select Low Impact Resources and Processes Product Lifetime Optimisation Extending the Lifespan of Materials Facilitating Disassembly System Design for Eco-efficiency Environmental Complexity and Design Activity Estimating Environmental Impact of Products: Life Cycle Assessment Environmentally Sustainable Design-orientated Tools Evolution of Sustainability in Design Research and Practice