Design for Sustainability

D4S: a step-by-step approach is geared towards the various stages of and approaches to the design process.

D4S incorporates environmental, social and economic concerns into the product design process and lifecycle. D4S aims to drastically improve the efficiency and social qualities of meeting consumer needs by developing new products, services, and systems.

Online materials compliment the print publication including: case studies, additional design and management tools, design-related innovation topics and worksheets.

D4S is targeted at product innovation and sustainability professionals, designers, company executives, environmental managers, consultants, researchers, business, NGO and government professionals that work with industry.

Content

The main body of the publication is focused on three different design objectives:

Redesign an existing product made by a company, paying special attention to its primary function from a sustainable point of view. This is an incremental, ‘inside-the-box,’ type of product innovation involving relatively small risks and investments.

Includes:
– A 10 step process organized around developing goals and strategies, idea generation, option development and realization.

Radical sustainable product innovation
Provides guidance to manage and minimise the risks inherent in a more ‘out-of-the-box’ approach that looks at long-term sustainable development and impacts.

New product development
A general model for new product development, including new product technologies and market opportunities to facilitate ‘out-of-the-box’ innovation involving a higher level of technical, market, and organisational uncertainty.

Read more >>>

Developed out of long-term cooperation with international experts from the Netherlands, Sweden, Italy, France, Germany, Japan, Australia, UNIDO, the Swedish EPA, InWent Germany and UNEP.