Renee Wever

User‐centred design for sustainable behaviour

Traditional eco‐design has a strong focus on the supply side. Even when focusing on the use phase of products, it still impacts directly under the control of the manufacturer dominate. However, the way users interact with a product may strongly influence the environmental impact of a product. Designers can try to influence this behaviour through the products they design. Several strategies have been proposed in the literature, such as eco‐feedback and scripting. Existing literature in this field has its limitations. Publications either focus on a single strategy, or do not take a design perspective, or lack empirical data. This paper will present a typology of the different strategies available to designers. This typology will be illustrated with examples and experiments related to two sustainability problems, namely littering behaviour and energy using products. Furthermore, a methodology will be presented for applying these strategies. This will be demonstrated in a case study on an energy meter.

Designing cradle-to-cradle products: a reality check

The cradle-to-cradle (C2C) concept of McDonough and Braungart, which has a strong emphasis on materials strategy, gives a vision of a sustainable future, inspired by nature. Their guilt-free approach has enthused many new people, drawing them into the field of sustainability. However, the question of when and how the C2C concept can be applied successfully in business is still being debated. This paper takes a look at the applicability of the C2C concept in day-to-day product development in a business setting. Based on student design projects for several multinationals, the strengths and weaknesses of the concept are evaluated. In particular, the compatibility of C2C and life cycle assessment (LCA) is addressed. The authors conclude that LCA and C2C can and should be used as complementary tools. C2Cs main value is that it triggers many questions about current business practice. Designers may play an interesting role in ‘paving the way’ for the restructuring of business operations according to C2C: through design pilots they can show how C2C could make business sense. LCA should be used to assess whether such pilots still make environmental sense if implemented in todays ‘real world’.

Multiple Environmental Benchmarking Data Analysis and its implications for design: a case study on packaging

For almost a decade Philips Consumer Electronics has been performing environmental benchmarking as a way of evaluating and improving the environmental performance of its products. This benchmarking is performed on product-only level and aims at five focal areas; energy, weight, packaging & transportation, potentially hazardous substances, and recyclability. It is believed that by combining the results from individual benchmark studies more general business performance conclusions may be drawn. In the past some preliminary studies have been done in this field. This paper reports on a more extensive study concerning the focal area of packaging & transportation. This analysis has yielded insights that could not have been obtained from product-level reports. It has been found that there are two distinct groups of products in the Philips CE portfolio, both asking for their own specific design and management approach. A second study is performed to determine what distinguishes these two groups. Finally, a case study on Philishave packaging was performed to verify the findings.

State-of-the-art Ecodesign on the Electronics Shop Shelves? A Quantitative Analysis of Developments in Ecodesign of TV Sets

From 2005 to 2010, environmentally relevant data was collected on mainstream television sets to select the yearly EISA Green Award winner. As the sets represent state-of-the-art developments in application of ecodesign principles, the data is used to sketch progress in ecodesign application in mainstream development of television sets. It is concluded that improvements in energy consumption were substantial, fuelled by application of new physical principles, from CRT to LCD and plasma, to LED. This has also enabled thinner screens, lower weight, and more efficient product architecture and packaging. For chemical substances and recycling implications, progress is less evident.

Greening the Design Brief

Front End Innovation is a hot research topic, but there is still little research done in its relationship to design for sustainability. This paper explores the challenges of integrating environmental sustainability in this early stages of an innovation process and the design brief. The study is based on a content analysis of 35 design briefs from Belgian SMEs and multinationals, and a focus group with representatives from 14 Belgian companies. This study assumes a limited uptake of sustainability in Belgian design briefs. Furthermore, it argues that the use of certain strategies, such as front-loading, pushing sustainability upstream in the briefing process and sustainability opportunity identification in the front end, could help in greening the design brief.

Beyond behaviour change: technological artefacts and characterological development

Addressing the root causes of (un)sustainability entails fundamentally changing our ways of living. This requires going beyond technology and behaviour-oriented approaches common under the umbrella of sustainable development (SD). More fundamental change is required to increase the possibility of realizing ecological and psychological well-being. Here, such change is conceptualized as ‘characterological change’. Next to SD another domain is introduced: characterological development (CD). The potential role of design-interventions in CD is explored in this article. Two studies were conducted, a literature study and experts interviews, covering the fields of Design for Sustainable Behaviour, Persuasive Technology, Practice-Oriented Design and Philosophy of Technology. The literature study shows that current research and interventions predominantly fall within the domain of SD, leaving character and related notions largely unaddressed. The expert interviews (n = 10) show a consensus that (design) research concerning the relation between technological artefacts and human character would be valuable. Research challenges and opportunities for design towards ‘living the good life within ecological means’ are discussed.

Universities’ intermediary role in the “design for sustainability” field: Case studies from the Netherlands and Turkey

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the intermediary role of universities in spreading design for sustainability into industry. Design/methodology/approach Three case studies were undertaken on Delft University of Technology, Design for Sustainability Program from The Netherlands; a center on sustainable consumption and production; and Prof. Goksel Demirer from Middle East Technical University, Environmental Engineering Department from Turkey. Findings The process and evolution of the intermediary roles of the cases are explained. Three types of structures, through which universities undertake intermediary role, are investigated via the cases studies, a program, a center and an individual scientist. Originality/value This study is a first attempt to investigate the intermediary role of universities in the design for sustainability field.

Customer perception of buying new but unpacked electronics products

Earlier research by Delft University of Technology has shown that bulk packaging has significant environmental and financial benefits, that would be even greater when the need for local repacking can be reduced. Hence, an explorative research project into the customer perception of buying new but unpacked products was carried out. Results show that more than half of the interviewed persons are positive about this. Conclusions are also drawn on the concerns that customers have, and how these can be addressed using minimal packaging concepts. Furthermore, the preferred in-shop buy/sell situations are discussed.

Mental innovation space of Vietnamese agro-food firms

Purpose – Vietnamese agro-food firms are often small and have short value chains. They are facing increasing competition from multinationals to serve the consumers of the rising middle class. It is assumed that co-creation or open-innovation can be a competitive innovation strategy for the Vietnamese firms. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to understand whether the agro-food firms have the “mental space” or an according mindset to innovate with their customers. Design/methodology/approach – A three dimensional model of “mental innovation space” (MIS) was developed, comprising of the: focus of innovation, level of innovation and degree of collaboration. A total of 14 Vietnamese agro-food companies agreed to embark on a process of problem definition for innovation according to these three dimensions. This process creates a deeper understanding of the firms’ fuzzy front end of innovation and results in less hypothetical findings, compared with traditional interviews. Findings – The results show that t...

Presentation media for route instructions for pedestrians in urban environments

GPS-based route-guidance systems are used for various types of transport, such as airplanes, boats, cars and motorbikes. Such systems have also been developed for pedestrians, focusing initially on hikers in rough terrain. Recently, some devices were developed for pedestrians in urban environments. This study focuses on the ways in which route instructions can be presented to urban pedestrians with such GPS-receivers.