You want to be a sustainable designer. How can you keep your adaptability sharp?

I think one of the best pieces of advice I've every received (and subsequently given) is to read outside of your 'vertical' - more specifically, read proper literature. Be that the classics (think Homer, Wilde, Goethe) or more modern greats (Herbert, Nietzsche, Lorde) - seek for ways of thinking and how to ask questions, rather than trying to find answers to questions in the modern mind. The field of sustainability today is more akin to philosophy and politics (unfortunately) than it is pure material logic - this means we must learn to tell the right story. Borrow and steal from the past, other disciplines or even fantasy. The problems we're designing for today have barely been understood by the majority of leaders tomorrow.

My main message to practisioners is to not get lost in the myriad of tools available to us. Find a method, build common ground and start building with your partners. The tools you use won't determine the success of a project, the commitment to a shared goal with responsibilities along the value chain will. The story you will create will echo further than anything else you do. Make sure you can prove your claims!

Il recommend for Sustainable website design -Explore tools and plugins for optimizing website performance, reducing energy consumption and incorporating eco-friendly design elements. Use renewable energy-powered hosting, efficient coding practices and sustainable design principles to minimize the environmental impact of digital platforms. By continuously exploring and adopting new tools in digital website design, you can adapt to evolving trends and contribute to a more sustainable digital landscape.

We can take a leaf from the Agile playbook here. As much as our processes will help us, we must not be blind to the complexities of the problems we're trying to solve and the uncertainty that comes with it. Consistent, transparent decision making involving the right stakeholders in the right moment will allow you to steer through uncertainty with iterative cycles breaking down the complexity into bitesized pieces while keeping an eye on the overarching goals. Common ground (i.e. your shared goals as a project / company) will allow you to sanity-check your approach. If you're wrong, GREAT, now you know; pivot and remain focused on the problem you're trying to solve!

As a sustainable designer it’s important to stay open to new ideas and approaches, even when outcomes are uncertain. It means being willing to experiment, iterate, and learn from failures. This mindset allows designers to explore innovative solutions that may lead to more innovative and sustainable outcomes.

Consider how your designs affect the environment and people globally. Include diverse perspectives and practices in your design process to promote creativity and positive change in sustainable design.