The brief, cases in sustainability were interesting and I doubt I would have learned about these products without having them presented.
That brings up a really good point about sustainable products, and how they don’t have a big platform in daily life. These products that were presented I had never heard of before. I was shocked by the ingenuity of most of them, things that I use in a day to day life, that could be relatively unchanged with this product, and have an impact on the globe as a whole. And I think that is, in essence, the point (or should be the point) of marketing.
We have learned in the readings up to this point in the semester that sustainability is not effective if just one aspect of society is concerned with a problem, but rather the problem can be solved with the interdisciplinary nature of all corners of society coming together. But I do think there are some pitfalls.
For example, most of the products we presented on as a class would not be accessible to every person in the world. While we have many products in the world that are not accessible to everyone, in my mind, sustainability should be simple, easy to access and add value/quality to living.
It is not about a new invention that you can fidget with, (I mean it can be) but it is about how can we make daily life easier, simpler, and higher quality? will our product solve a problem? and will it be an amenity that people of all areas/backgrounds can enjoy? That is what I think of when I think of sustainable design.
Now a couple of the products highlighted did that. for instance, our product, Imperfect Produce, even though we didn’t push this information as much as I wanted to, does a great job of being available to people of smaller demographics and lower income communities. People who qualify for SNAP benefits can get a reduced price box and they partner with food banks: two amenities which offer fresh fruits and veggies to demographics who often times either don’t have access or can’t afford them.
Print your city I thought was AMAZING and have been raving about the idea since I heard about it. My sister lived in Amsterdam for a little bit, and I love that the city is partnering with them, I think it is genius and I hope it takes off and spreads to more cities. That is something that the community has input in, and everyone can enjoy and removes waste that is harming the environment. I can’t honestly think of a better vision.
I am really excited for the rest of the semester and have really enjoyed everything so far!