where climate action meets the future of design

Author: 9ve8c

NEXT GEN Workshop at Barcelona Design Week 2024

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On October 17th, the NEXT GEN DESIGN Workshop on circular economy took place at the Disseny Hub Barcelona, led by *HOLON and aimed at young designers between 18 and 30 years old. The workshop offered tools to integrate the principles of circularity in design projects, with an emphasis on reuse, digital traceability and the sustainable business model.

With two case studies from different sectors, participants learnt how to apply circular methodologies in areas such as food and fashion, adapting the design of products and services to the demands of a more sustainable future.

*HOLON is a cooperative agency that designs products, services, policies, and futures to facilitate sustainable and equitable transitions. Their work spans a range of strategic and design-oriented projects aimed at fostering just sustainability practices. They approach challenges with a multidisciplinary lens, focusing on creating tangible solutions that are adaptable and future-oriented.  

Valentina Auer

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Valentina has navigated through many design disciplines, from interior design and furniture design to communication design. However, the fascination and passion for all three areas are connected by one important factor: the focus on sustainability and conscious design.

This not only concerns material and production but also entire systems and processes—where the topics of feminism and equality also play a significant role. Since 2021, she has been working at the University of Applied Sciences Salzburg, where she aims to instil her passion in young aspiring furniture designers.

In her keynote speech at »Next Gen Design: Women Creating the Future of Design« on 20th September 2024 at designfourm Wien, she discussed her experiences as a young woman in the design and working world in Austria and Europe. Thought-provoking ideas, observations, and insights on teaching in the design field, along with visions for a female-led design world, were significant topics.

MOMENTS Sidetable

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MOMENTS Sidetable by studio re.d is dedicated to the recycling of leftover panels, such as cutouts from stoves and sinks, that are left over from the production of ceramic kitchen worktops. The design emphasizes the value of the remaining panels as a central element of the side table

In order to save work steps, the processing of the remaining panels is implemented into existing production processes. The ceramic plates are connected to sheet steel elements using screws, which means that the furniture can be easily dismantled at the end of its usage cycle and returned to the circular economy. 

AWARDS: 

BIG SEE Product Design Award 2024 

Nominated for the Green Product Design Award 2024

Therese Balslev

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Therese is a strategic circular designer at the Danish Design Center working with strategic design-driven approaches to circular economy and the green transition. She has been part of developing DDC’s circular toolkit – Designing Your Circular Transition targeting mainly businesses to get started (or continue) their work on circular initiatives with a holistic and design-driven approach.

She has also co-developed the  Circular Behavior Toolkit, an introductory tool to the intersecting field of circular economy and behavioral design. With the Circular Behavior Toolkit, businesses, organizations, and design studios are provided with a tangible method for working with behavioral design in the context of a circular economy. Its purpose is to get you started actively working with the human factor in a circular context. Therese is part of the international cluster by designaustria of the next generation of designers who are meeting frequently in Vienna, Austria for peer events.

What if water… exhibition at Barcelona Design Week 2024

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During the Barcelona Design Week (16th to 26th October) presented the “What if water…” exhibition on the critical challenge of water management and conservation, created by design students from six design schools from Barcelona: BAU, EINA, Elisava, IED Barcelona, LCI Barcelona, and Escola Llotja (ESDAPC), in one of the BDW Associated Venues: Cosentino City Barcelona. A small version of the exhibition was also produced and shown during the ‘Disseny en Diagonal’ day on October 19th as an urban installation in the Av. Diagonal.

The same installation was presented at Underground BDW, a new collective exhibition in a parking lot, the 24th and 25th October, together with 24 exhibitors and 2 other installations, which attract more than 2.500 visitors. The exhibition was organised by Educació per al Disseny per Viure (EDIVI)

*Visitors to the exhibition: 677

Reef Rocket

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ReefCycle has developed biologically-grown cement-like material that mimics the chemical structure of reefs, re-growing vital material in days that take millennia to form in nature. The production process combines plant-based enzymes with crushed waste, like culinary shells and glass, to grow a mineral glue that binds waste material together.

Reef Rocket is a bio-cement structure that mimics the naturally occurring oyster reefs that protect shorelines from flooding, filter seawater and promote biodiversity. Nature has the unique capacity to grow durable material without polluting its surrounding environment. Reefs grow to withstand extreme wave energy and corrosive water for hundreds of years.

Harnessing nature to repurpose discard into durable “cements” locally without burning fossil fuels, this process fosters a bio-circular and localised economy. Reef Rocket by ReefCycle provides a cheaper, cleaner and more durable alternative to industrial cement.

Refugio Bees

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Building on Refugio Bees’ work done over the last few years, Apidae proposes a system of objects for raising Meliponini bees. This system consists of breeding boxes, which function as ‘houses’ for the hives, as well as a kit to fabricate potes and piqueras.

Apidae is a project that seeks to improve our relationship with nature, specifically with a group of bees known as Meliponini. This species is known for producing phenomenal honey and being the main pollinators of many native foods in Mexico, as well as being essential for the conservation of the biodiversity of the ecosystems they inhabit.

The potes and piqueras are part of the natural structures that bees build using wax. The potes’ function is to store honey and pollen, while the piqueras help to manage the access that other species have to the hive. The wooden breeding boxes are designed to have a life-cycle of at least twenty years. The potes and piqueras are designed so that the bee-keepers can create potes and piqueras directly from wax produced by mature hives, aiding young hive development.

Cellsense

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Cellsense has developed a method to transform algae and cellulose into durable, transparent bio-embellishments with water resistance and appropriate texture. To replace toxic dyes used in traditional embellishments Cellsense has engineered bacteria to produce vivid colours and unique properties like bioluminescence.

Cellsense is a response to the problem of beaded garments: conventional beaded embellishments are produced utilising petroleum plastics and resins, which are then manually assembled into garments. Beaded garments are worn about five times before they end up in landfills—contributing to the microplastic crisis.

Recognising the labour-intensive nature of beadwork, Cellsense has also implemented automation to support ethical labour practices: a bead loom and a robotic syringe can efficiently create large-scale graphic beaded panels in seven minutes, which would otherwise take four hours by hand.