where climate action meets the future of design

Author: 9ve8c

Bojan – DIY inkjet printer

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Bojan [pron. Boy-yan] is an open DIY inkjet printer that students can build, understand, and modify themselves, offering a low-cost, repairable and educational alternative to closed commercial printers in student spaces.

Define the problem/need you are solving or addressing with your project. How does it address the Open Call criteria, such as environmental impact, social engagement, circularity, user experience, resource efficiency, and community-driven solutions?

Commercial printers burden students with high ink costs, e-waste from unrepairable “black boxes,” and dependency on proprietary parts, creating financial stress and environmental waste in shared student spaces. Bojan addresses this by being a fully open-source DIY inkjet printer: students assemble it from affordable, off-the-shelf components like NEMA17 motors, ESP32, and 3D-printable parts, understanding every mechanism, from printhead movement to paper feed. Environmental impact through repairability (no proprietary cartridges, refillable HP302) and reduced e-waste; circularity via modular, upgradable design; social engagement and community-driven solutions by inviting hacks and workshops; user experience with customizable print widths and intuitive touchscreen control; resource efficiency using standard parts (~€150 total) for low ongoing costs. Bojan empowers student makers to experiment, collaborate, and sustain their own printing ecosystem.

Please describe your project, reflecting on the concept, inspiration, materials, technical aspects, methods and process(es).

The name Bojan comes from the common Croatian name which sounds similar to the word “to color” [cro. bojati]. Bojan is an open-source DIY inkjet printer inspired by RepRap 3D printers and cartridge hacks found on sites like Hackaday, aiming to democratize color printing in student spaces. The concept: a modular platform students build themselves, using off-the-shelf parts. Technical aspects include microstepping, PDF rasterization on ESP32, and 1.5mm printhead gap to avoid crashes. The process: source parts (~€150), 3D print holders (customizable width via rod length), assemble mechanics like a 2D plotter and flash Arduino firmware for G-code like printing. This hands-on method fosters tinkering, with inspiration from Hackaday projects, emphasizing repairability over disposability.

What do you think makes your project innovative compared to the existing efforts and ideas in the field it addresses?

Bojan stands out from existing DIY inkjet efforts like Open Printer or Magic Paintbrush by targeting student ecosystems with extreme simplicity and affordability (~€150 BOM using ubiquitous parts like NEMA17 stepper motors, ESP32 microcontroler and HP302 cartridge). Unlike niche hacker projects requiring custom PCBs or STM32, Bojan prioritizes 3D-printable modularity—print width set by rod length, no exotic tooling and ESP32-only control for accessible Arduino programming, enabling workshops without advanced skills. Its innovation lies in educational transparency: every subsystem (motors, cartridge pulses, rasterization) is exposed for understanding, fostering community forks for UV inks, roll paper, or multi-color upgrades. While others focus on performance, Bojan emphasizes circularity: refillable cartridges, zero e-waste design and social scalability via plug-and-play assembly, bridging RepRap’s self-replication ethos to 2D printing for non-experts in shared spaces.

Does it impact or reflect young people need(s) and how?

Bojan directly impacts young people’s needs in student environments where printing is essential yet costly and unreliable: ink expenses (€0.05/page), frequent breakdowns, and e-waste from unrepairable printers create barriers to education and creativity. As a DIY open-source inkjet printer, Bojan slashes ongoing costs to near-zero (refillable HP302 cartridges at €2/fill) while empowering students to self-repair and customize—addressing frustration with “throwaway” tech. It reflects youth needs for hands-on learning and maker culture: high school/university students (like me, studying industrial design) gain skills in electronics (ESP32), mechanics (stepper timing), and coding (PDF rasterization), turning printing into a collaborative workshop activity. In shared dorms/clubs, it fosters community-driven sustainability, reducing waste and building resilience against vendor lock-in—key for Gen Z’s values of repairability, affordability, and digital-physical empowerment.

Laurin Böhm

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Designer and trained carpenter from the Alpine region, where local questions between material origin and landscape conditions shape everyday life. This background informs his research-driven practice, which investigates water systems and the ways human behavior affects environments and the other way around. At the Design Academy Eindhoven, he developed a methodology that combines handcrafted objects with engagement of communities. Recent work includes the exhibition Studio Technogeographies (Z33, Hasselt, 2024), where he presented research on water behavior, materiality, and handmade fieldwork objects. The investigation into Austria’s infrastructure and dependence on artificial snow was shown at Atlas of Distances (Faber, Timisoara, 2023).

Emina Murtezic

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Is a product and visual designer, researcher, and advocate exploring the intersection of design, inclusion, and ecological responsibility. Combining social engagement with systems thinking, she develops design solutions that challenge existing structures and center human needs. She studied Product Design in Sarajevo, where she is currently completing her Master’s degree.
Emina’s work explores how design can drive meaningful societal transformation. She collaborates with foundations and international organizations, which informs her impact-driven approach. Her award-winning work has been exhibited across Europe and beyond. She deeply believes that design should not adapt people to the system, but reshape the system to fit people.

Giulia Principe

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Giulia is a Neapolitan transdisciplinary artist currently based in Amsterdam. Her practice explores perception as an unstable interface between the self, technology, and the environment. Mapping a deliberate conceptual arc of moving from the outer environments we observe to the internal environments that observe us. She works on mixed media installations and material research on sustainable darkroom practice, first developed during Covid-19 and later supported by Rijksakademie van Beeldende Kunsten via tech fellowship (2022). Her work has been exhibited throughout the Netherlands, India, Japan and NYC. Her photographic research won the Art and Science Prize at Crqlr Awards (JP) in 2024. In 2023 she co-founded Doka 107, a photographic darkroom studio in the centre of Amsterdam.

Bold Collection

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BOLD Collection reinterprets a traditional Albanian stool into a modular, sculptural and personalizable system translating cultural memory into contemporary, adaptable, and internationally relevant objects.

Define the problem/need you are solving or addressing with your project. How does it address the Open Call criteria, such as environmental impact, social engagement, circularity, user experience, resource efficiency, and community-driven solutions?

The BOLD Collection addresses the growing disconnection between contemporary design and local cultural identity. In many emerging regions, traditional crafts are disappearing while mass-produced furniture dominates markets with little emotional or environmental value.BOLD reinterprets a vernacular wooden stool into a modular, adaptable system designed for longevity, repairability, and reinterpretation. Produced locally with small-scale manufacturers, it supports regional craftsmanship and reduces transport impact. Its modular logic allows parts to be replaced, reconfigured, or expanded, encouraging circular use rather than disposal.Beyond function, the project creates social engagement by repositioning heritage as a contemporary asset. It strengthens community-driven production networks and empowers local makers to compete in international markets.By combining cultural continuity, local production, modular adaptability, and durable materials, BOLD proposes a sustainable model where identity, economy, and environmental awareness coexist.

Please describe your project, reflecting on the concept, inspiration, materials, technical aspects, methods and process(es).

BOLD Collection originates from the reinterpretation of a traditional Kosovo wooden stool used for generations in rural homes. Rather than preserving it as a nostalgic artifact, the project transforms it into a modular, scalable design system adaptable to contemporary living.The collection is crafted from solid wood sourced and produced locally in collaboration with small manufacturers. Its structure is based on a clear geometric logic that allows stacking, reconfiguration, and expansion into tables, benches, and spatial installations. The joinery is simplified for durability, repairability, and efficient production.The process combines digital modeling with hands-on prototyping, ensuring both precision and craftsmanship. By maintaining minimal components and structural clarity, BOLD reduces material waste while increasing longevity. The project is not only a product, but a method: translating vernacular memory into a flexible, contemporary system rooted in culture and built for the future.

What do you think makes your project innovative compared to the existing efforts and ideas in the field it addresses?

BOLD is innovative because it does not treat heritage as decoration, but as infrastructure. Instead of applying traditional motifs superficially, it extracts structural intelligence from a vernacular object and transforms it into a modular design system.Its innovation lies in combining cultural reinterpretation with scalability. The same structural DNA generates multiple typologies, allowing adaptability without redesigning from zero. This reduces production complexity and material waste. Unlike many contemporary furniture brands that prioritize aesthetics over context, BOLD positions identity as a driver of sustainability. By strengthening local production networks and enabling international distribution of regionally rooted design, it proposes a new economic model for emerging creative ecosystems. The project demonstrates that innovation can emerge from reinterpretation rather than technological excess; merging craft knowledge, modular logic, and circular thinking into a globally relevant design language.

Does it impact or reflect young people need(s) and how?

BOLD impacts young people by reframing cultural identity as a source of confidence and opportunity. In regions where creative industries are still developing, many young designers feel disconnected from both global markets and local traditions. The project demonstrates that heritage can become contemporary and internationally competitive without losing authenticity. Through workshops, lectures, and exhibitions, BOLD has been shared with students and emerging designers as a case study of how local narratives can become global platforms. Its modular and adaptable logic also reflects how younger generations live today: flexible, mobile, and multifunctional. The collection encourages reinterpretation rather than fixed use, aligning with evolving lifestyles.By proving that a locally rooted idea can win international awards and travel globally, BOLD offers a tangible example that innovation does not require leaving your context; it requires redefining it.

Botijo, the furniture that breathes cool air

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Botijo is a modular furniture system made of terracota that cools spaces through natural evaporation, reinventing tradition to create a versatile climate control solution that merges southern Spanish heritage with function and contemporary design.

Define the problem/need you are solving or addressing with your project. How does it address the Open Call criteria, such as environmental impact, social engagement, circularity, user experience, resource efficiency, and community-driven solutions?

Due to pollution and frequent heatwaves, rising global temperatures are making life in hot climates increasingly difficult. Although evaporative air conditioners exist to alleviate this discomfort, their manufacture and installation are often complex. Botijo solves this problem by creating a simple, modular terracotta piece that can be easily used to make versatile furniture, such as tables, benches and room dividers, which also function as evaporative coolers. This type of cooling reduces environmental impact, as it simply involves wetting the piece with water — which is reused to water plants — and allowing it to evaporate. Circularity is guaranteed thanks to the material used, terracotta, which is natural, durable and recyclable, and can also be reused as raw material if a piece breaks. These accessible modules allow people to build bespoke pieces, thereby enhancing the user experience and enabling endless configurations to suit any space.

Please describe your project, reflecting on the concept, inspiration, materials, technical aspects, methods and process(es).

The project aims to transform the concept of the traditional Spanish water jug into a functional piece of furniture. The decision to choose terracotta as the primary material draws inspiration from both the jug and traditional architecture, as it is a durable and resistant material, yet porous enough to absorb water and allow it to evaporate. The shape was chosen following extensive research into sustainable cooling methods, during which I discovered adiabatic coolers and how they use curved cellulose pads to absorb as much water as possible. This specific geometry increases the surface-to-volume ratio and forces the air to change direction, maximising contact time with the wet clay to achieve optimal evaporative cooling. At the same time, the pieces are designed to be stacked in any orientation and joined with mortar, allowing users to create endless configurations. The dimensions also allow for heights that are ergonomically suitable for any type.

What do you think makes your project innovative compared to the existing efforts and ideas in the field it addresses?

Botijo is innovative because it transforms the concept of furniture, shifting from a passive object for use and decoration to becoming an active part of the space, which benefits both the environment and users. Furthermore, it changes the paradigm of climate control, since, rather than viewing a cooling device as a machine that needs to be hidden away, it integrates it directly into domestic life as an aesthetically pleasing piece of furniture. It solves two problems at once: furnishing a space and cooling it. Unlike traditional cooling devices, which can only be installed in specific areas of a room, Botijo’s modularity and versatility allow for endless configurations and customisations, demonstrating that climate control technology can be sculptural, customisable and seamlessly integrated into interior design. On top of all this, the simplicity of its construction, compared to other furniture, makes it much more affordable than most.

Does it impact or reflect young people need(s) and how?

Young people require solutions that match both their ecological awareness and their dynamic lifestyle. Botijo directly addresses their needs offering an affordable, simple and energy saving solution to combat extreme heat, in line with the shared concern for the future of the planet. Furthermore, its modularity speaks to their need for adaptable living, since the system can be scaled up or down, functioning as a small stool or a large room divider, depending on the user’s available space and budget. It encourages young people to take sustainable climate action in their own homes, whilst continuing to create aesthetically pleasing spaces where nature takes centre stage. This project aims to create iconic pieces that can also spark conversation and help mitigate the effects of climate change, either through their function or by changing people’s way of thinking.

Janine Kerscher

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Writing this, I‘m freelancing as a sustainable communication designer, in my early twenties, situated in Germany. Last year, I graduated, leaving uni as “Bachelor of Fine Arts“. But more important than any title, I left with my own expression as a creative person and the goal to craft connection through design. I know it‘s actually complex, but to put it simple: I want to do good.
To me, good design is so much more than “make it pretty”. It means acknowledging the power to change views, to guide, to shape – essentially to map the future. And most importantly “good” includes treating this power with responsibility & care, asking why before what.

Barbara Koniecka

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My name is Barbara Koniecka, I am a transformation designer, artist and maker. In my work I focus on addressing ecological and social issues, promoting equality and access to green spaces. I am fascinated by the city, its unique structure, and the challenges and potential it holds. In my work, I focus on analysing this subject and seeking out opportunities for change. Thanks to my background in design (Bachelor’s degree in Product and Graphic Design, Warsaw) and art (Bachelor’s degree in Art Education, Warsaw), my work combines the need for pragmatic problem-solving and the search for a form that best serves a function, with the need for artistic creation that is free and bold.

Sebastian Melenge Valladares

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Designer who is constantly questioning how and why things work the way they do. His approach is grounded in curiosity, research, and a need to understand what sits behind people’s decisions, especially in digital environments. Originally from Colombia and now based in Barcelona, his experience as a migrant has shaped how he sees culture, context, and the way people relate to information. He is not particularly interested in polishing solutions, but in uncovering tensions, contradictions, and behaviors that often go unnoticed. Through his work, he explores how design can shift perspectives, challenge assumptions, and create more conscious ways of interacting with the world, rather than just making things smoother or faster.