How can consumers influence sustainable design?

In my opinion, we should first question whether the 'design' is essential or not. Even sustainable design, if not required, consumes resources - renewable or not. 'Zero' design is more efficient than sustainable design.

And reducing items by consolidating is so helpful. Like with packaging, you can identify a package that will work for several items with just a change in label can save money and improve the sustainability!

Hire a design team of A&E professionals, certified by exam & experience!! Show the client how many ways sustainability can add value to the project, the owners, and the design team.

I agree with it completely. I think there should be more practices and opportunities for consumer to have easier access to those products. I am aware there are phone applications that help people to select longer lasting products, but I didn't know about it for a very long time and maybe other people don't know it either.

In the context of the built environment, its proven that the gadgets we use in the kitchen and beyond, waste far more energy that the building itself does. So I think the easiest and the most effective contribution we all can make is to do things manually. For example: When there is the great outdoors why use a treadmill, when there is manual juicers why use electric ones, when there is our fingers why get gadgets to play music...

Firstly, consumers should demand corporate accountability in managing a product's life cycle can trigger a cascading impact on various stages, starting from design and policies to supply chain and operations. By urging companies to bear the responsibility of handling product waste, a comprehensive circular approach emerges, encompassing research, development, and the journey of the product to its ultimate consumer. Time to rephrase "Extended Producer Responsibility to Profit Makers Accountability" Secondly, consumers should develop a habit of conscious buying.

When considering which companies or materials to utilize ask for their sustainability measures, goals, or policies. Most should be able to share with you a tangible year on year report showing what the company has done personally to support sustainable practices, support the community and it’s impact locally/globally, along with future goals. These same clear and easily accessible documents should be available for any materials or products you would be considered. Do your due diligence. If a company claims to have a goal and their track record or availability of documentation is not there, then I would look for alternatives.

This is an extremely critical element. Eventually the goods and services that are developed and created will be based on what the market demands. Additionally, policy support and guidelines will also be based on what maximises benefits for the end user. Integrating and demanding accountability and transparency will greatly influence policy decisions and market demands.

Calling out greenwashing and inconsistencies can only occur if there is education in the first place. If consumers don't know where their fibres come from or how fabrics and apparel are produced, how can they possibly know what questions to ask that brands will respond to authentically? Before we can demand transparency and accountability, we ideally need to recognise what it is we're demanding these for. What is missing from the current system that means we have to fight for this?

Transparency is essential for sustainability as it enables informed decision-making and holds companies accountable for their environmental and social impact. For instance, in the fashion industry, many companies are now, offering details about the sourcing of materials and the working conditions of garment workers. Patagonia, for example, has a "Footprint Chronicles" feature on their website that allows customers to trace the environmental and social impact of specific products. In the food industry, companies like Whole Foods have transparently communicated their sourcing and production methods, enabling consumers to make sustainable food choices.

We often forget that our biggest vote is through our wallets. By choosing to purchase an item you are voting for that product. Brands that are committed to sustainable practices and initiatives won’t hide their stories. They will be front and center and authentic. It comes natural and doesn’t sound like a PR stunt. Support those brands that are honest, passionate and transparent with their commitments to sustainability by purchasing their products.

Beyond just consumption, look for housing and office space that walks the talk. Consumer demand for deeply sustainable architecture will drive more of it--and lead to a lower carbon built environment for the whole community.

Consuming local is key to the carbon footprint. This implies having development programs as a company at a local level in the long term, involving the living forces of the area where one is and investing in research and development.

Where is it made ? Is it in my country ? If not, is it in a neighbouring country? If not, is it on my continent ? If not, does any other producer makes this or similar on my continent ?

To promote sustainable design and support local and ethical enterprises. They typically pioneer social and environmental responsibility in corporate concepts. They can reduce their carbon footprint and follow sustainable consumption habits by supporting these businesses. Support also promotes community development and fair and humane workplaces. This also helps you grasp the stories and values behind these companies' products. This commercial engagement teaches about sustainability and its various applications in business. This approach teaches AEC professionals a holistic understanding of sustainable design beyond technical considerations, fostering socio-environmental consciousness in decision-making.

You can most definitely get a more robust sustainable results where there is active feedback and careful utilization of the responses. These co-creation contributions especially from consumers or potential users are key to crucial development, iterations and future explorations of products and services.

Seeking to develop more sustainable products requires a long-term commitment from the company and the individuals who work for it. It takes time. You need to believe that it is the way for companies to be sustainable over time.

By raising awareness among consumers of the necessity to use resources effectively to help avoid the consequences of earth warming

In my professional experience, co-creation and feedback improve sustainable design outputs. This involvement lets people?directly communicate their requirements, preferences, and insights to designers and manufacturers, impacting product and service sustainability. This engagement makes customers vital to innovation, providing real-world insights to steer development. This method ensures that end goods meet user needs and helps stakeholders grasp sustainability concepts. Consumers can directly impact products' ecological footprints by offering constructive criticism and suggestions, helping the sector adopt sustainable practices.

As an interior architect that works in a small atelier in Brussels, co-design has been my best friend in most of our projects. We always implicate the clients to the highest levels. We dig deep to seek what they need. We educate them on realistic elements that comes with the fact of designing and making sustainable environments, such as accepting imperfections when working with reused materials!

Recycling materials is a great way to up your sustainability profile. You can work with companies that have internal recycling programs that can help turn older existing materials into new products, making those new products even “greener”! You are also diverting waste from landfills and other unethical waste removal processes. Donating materials to trade schools, testing facilities, or companies like Material Bank are other great options for those in the sales industry where samples are often trashed and can be used for educational purposes or projects instead!

The circular economy presents an enormous challenge, especially due to the issue of reverse logistics. Being able to develop a program of scale requires the commitment of society as a whole for it to have an impact. That's why it's a huge challenge. We must achieve the commitment of all of us who participate in the life of the product. And there must be government policies that facilitate and reward this program.

In sustainable design, circular and sharing techniques are vital to extend product and resource lifespan and value. To implement this technique, products can be repaired, reused, recycled, upcycled, donated,?or sold to new customers. This environment also emphasizes borrowing, renting, or trading goods and services instead of buying them. Based on Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) expertise, such practices promote resource efficiency and industry collaboration. Circular and sharing methods are ecologically friendly and?help solve resource scarcity and environmental deterioration, providing a more sustainable and resilient design framework.

A 'Climate Literate' consumer can be significantly influential in creating a demand for sustainable design by making the right choices. While there are lot of resources, a good place to start is by being curious and asking questions as a means of educating oneself.

Education, information, aderenece and practice on Sustainability a is the next thing that needs to be cultivated at the grass root level, right from the site team to the sales managers and the consumer.

Consumers need to be specific as to the businesses they wanna support. The ones that are inconsiderate of the impact of their operations on the environment or the ones which are conscious about it and trying to make changes according to it

Consumers can transform the landscape of sustainable design that respects and cares for the environment through research, and true circumspection of the information they receive. Asking questions, thinking of the future, and being willing to adapt to changes, are all ways that consumers can acknowledge innovation in the world, and guide the transformation versus being subject to these transitions without influence or impact. Be the change!

In order of steps: 1. Share instead of buy (tools, etc. ) 2. Repurpose something you already own 3. Make it 4. Get it used 5. But if all else fails 6. If shareable, share.

It is not about what consumers demand, it is how consumers stop being consumers. For the past 15 years, I have been trying to integrate sustainability in everything I do… What I have found out, it is the person that needs to change. The consumer is a person, the producer is a person, the policy maker is a person…. How many of those who preach sustainability live sustainably?! How do you even know that you are living sustainably?! See, it is when the one heals, that the rest heals (including nature). So if we care about what the consumer demands, then we are not really tackling the core issue, we are dancing around it. The issue is that we got disconnected from ourselves and so we are disconnected from nature. Know Thyself is where to start.

Use your purchase power - if it's not sustainable, don't buy it! About 6 or 7 years ago I attended an education session for student housing where it was said that nearly 50% of Gen Z college students wouldn't consider living in an apartment that wasn't LEED certified or more sustainable. Developers heard this and sustainability being used more and more often as an amenity to attract tenants. Companies follow statistics, and when they see consumers aren't buying they're products, they'll shift the design to be more sustainable to make a sale.

It is not about what consumers demand, it is how consumers stop being consumers. For the past 15 years, I have been trying to integrate sustainability in everything I do… What I have found out, it is the person that needs to change. The consumer is a person, the producer is a person, the policy maker is a person…. How many of those who preach sustainability live sustainably?! How do you even know that you are living sustainably?! See, it is when the one heals, that the rest heals (including nature). So if we care about what the consumer demands, then we are not really tackling the core issue, we are dancing around it. The issue is that we got disconnected from ourselves and so we are disconnected from nature. Know Thyself is where to start.

If we don't buy it, they don't make it. Every action/purchase will contribute, one way or the other. So, what business is my money helping support and grow? How are the products (the materials they are made of) impacting the environment?

The goal is not always to please a niche of consumers that desire sustainable products. The first consumer to satisfy is climate and then humans. If a corporate is transparent, ethical and circular is not to sell more, but better, no matter what consumers demand.