ecoblog

Sustainable design seems such an overwhelmingly huge subject, that I feel the need to come up with my own personal summary of what is entailed.
1. Material resources have to be sustainable. This includes materials from renewable sources ( e. g. bamboo), reusables (e.g. certain glass milk bottles), recycled or upcycled materials (e.g. paper bags)
2. Production of materials has to be clean, i.e. no huge amounts of toxic waste or excessive use of clean water while producing a `clean` product.
3. Material has to be produced as close to the end user as possible to avoid excessive transportation with its inherent carbon footprint.
4. Responsible disposal of material: reusable, recyclable, biodegradable etc
5. Production has to be socially responsible, i.e. no sweatshops, decent pay.
Sustainable design has implications on most aspects of life, as it deeply affects the way we live, the way we handle products, and the way we consume. Sustainable design leads to a sustainable lifestyle.

Well, what does it all mean?
To start thinking about what should be produced using more sustainable materials I felt that I should really examine the contents of our trash can. The first thing to notice was that there was a lot of biodegradable materials clogging it up, and ultimately filling up our non-recyclable plastic trash bags. Since we live in the Peoples Republic of Takoma Park, a nuclear free zone, I went to the public works department and picked up a free composting bin. While I was going there I took the huge amounts of electronic waste for recycling, an entire trunk full of old hard drives, printers, and other heavy metal laden stuff. Several plastic bags of old batteries went along with it. After that the house felt seriously detoxified!
Then I went and did some applied research in one of the little shops in down town Takoma, named `The Tranquil soul`. which I had stumbled upon only recently. I asked the girl in the shop several questions regarding the materials things were made out of. All of their clothing was made from fair trade materials. All fibers were modified natural materials, ie, cotton, hemp and bamboo. Now the latter surprised me somewhat, because it is so soft that they make underwear out of it! In fact I was so curious that i had to buy a pair!!! And, of course, to take my purchases home I was given a corn plastic bag, which I can now throw into my newly acquired compost bin!