Changing the world for the better

The definition of an environment is the surroundings or conditions in which a person, animal, or plant lives or operates. We as humans have learned to live in any environment and in a general sense have thrived. With our technological advances, our species has become more sophisticated with agriculture, communication, and science. With more knowledge comes more danger. The dangers of our advances are overconsumption. Some environmental issues that are affecting the world are vast amounts of waste, air pollution, overpopulation, global warming and deforestation. Any child born after the 1990s has grown up with these terms and problems, among other problems. While our global environment is deteriorating, there is hope for our world to become more sustainable. Sustainability is the answer to our global environmental problems. While this term is thrown out, very people can actually describe sustainability. A way that I understand sustainability is through a cradle-to-cradle model. The cradle-to-cradle model is to design an item that once its use is fulfilled can be up-cycled and not lose any material or use. Our society is running on a cradle-to-grave system. Once a specific item has become obsolete to us, the item is discarded and a new one is bought. An example of cradle-to-grave would be the using plastic bottles to create carpet. While plastic bottles are being used in something else, as well as downgraded, what will happen to the carpet once its use has become dirty and damaged? The carpet most likely cannot be changed into something else and will eventually end up in a landfill. While the intention to better the plastic bottle was there, the changing of the bottles to carpet only prolonged the bottles to being put into a landfill. With the proper design, almost anything can be sustainable and the design needs to be well though out. This I believe is our answer to reversing our environmental problems.This cradle-to-cradle model was not my idea but I learned of it through Cradle-to-Cradle by William McDonough and Michael Braungart.

A New Green History of the World: The Environment and the Collapse of Great Civilizations told a dismal story of Easter Island. Easter Island is a remote island off the coast of South America. The island was created through volcanic activity. Polynesians traveled to this island and started an advanced civilization but through their careless use to create stone statues, the society deforested the entire island and soon destruction encroached. Easter Island is an example of what would happen if humans ignored the environment and continued to live the way we do, destructive and non-relenting. While we believe the Earth has unlimited resources, the truth is the Earth’s resources are finite. By the use of changing design for many of our products we can reverse and better the Earth and humankind.

How do we go about designing our products for a better purpose? Do not approach problems as a one-size-fits-all. As humans we want homogeneity in everything we do, it builds on our capitalist economy but it also destroys our environment. Instead of a company building a homogeneous headquarters, the company should embrace the environment. Build a building that seems to fit into the environment, use trees and flowers that are natural to area not a Bermuda grass. Is there a lot of sunlight in the area you are building? Use windows to make workers feel outdoors and solar panels to power the building.

Although changing the intention of design is important there is also a need of regulation, along with the mantra of reduce, reuse and recycle. Regulation can be difficult but we must limit our use of resource in order to reverse damage. Without implementing regulation quickly and sufficiently, our world with end up as a global version of Easter Island. Regulation is beginning on a positive note with guidelines being set on fisheries, forestry and water being stated in Eco-Systems and Human Well-Being. A regulation given in the Eco-Systems is reducing marine fishing capacity in fisheries or providing transparency in water management and increased representation of stakeholders for water. While regulation will not solve problems overnight or even in ten years, over time the regulation of valuable resources will begin to reverse damage, and hopefully better the environment.

With the use of regulation and a change in the intention of design, we, I believe, as humans can reverse the damage that we have caused. If we do not change how we are using our resources, our world will end up as Easter Island.