Material Innovations

A defining characteristic of human evolution is that over time we have become less integrated with the natural ecosystems that sustain life on earth. Our species needs air, food, water, and shelter to survive, and in the not-so-distant past, these were found in the same centers in which we lived: we were directly dependent on our immediate surroundings to sustain our lives and intrinsically responsible for our actions. Driven to gain independence from our biological ancestors, we have evolved by designing against nature.  Our current environmental crisis is the result of our disconnectedness from the natural world.

As our ancestors began to modify their environment, they created distance between themselves and the natural systems that sustained them.  Their relationship with nature changed.  They built shelters, made tools to hunt, and harvested food, each action creating greater distance between themselves and nature.  We lost touch with natural environment and only ventured there for the physical things we needed, it eventually became a supply source rather than a habitat.  Every step of the way has taken us further from our origins in the natural environment.

A true sense of environmental stewardship cannot be imposed upon a culture. It must grow from both the surrounding environment and the spaces we occupy.  We must design so that our built spaces and the natural environment are integrated as in traditional Japanese architecture, where lines between gardens and their surrounding landscapes are blurred so much that the two are indistinguishable.  Gardens serve as a transition between natural landscapes and built structures by incorporating elements of each.  A fundamental technique of Japanese garden design called shakkei (borrowed scenery) involves the incorporation of distant landscapes in the garden setting (Hayakawa 1973, The Garden Art of Japan. pg11).  http://www.williamarbizudesign.com/Pictorial Space.pdf Rock, plants and trees are not shaped into geometric or symmetric forms, but are cultivated to bring out their inherent natural qualities.  They lead the visitor to a stronger relationship with their surroundings, one that is consistent with the Shinto belief system in which the divinity manifests itself in natural objects.  Japanese homes open to the outside by means of moveable panels, eliminating the distinction between inside and outside, creating long, horizontal vistas.   Western architecture has traditionally created buildings with fixed walls and windows that emphasize the vertical, creating a conscious distinction between inside and outside.  This vertical orientation serves as a frame within which a person views the outside world or is in turn seen from the outside.  All too frequently, we have designed our physical surroundings in a way that disconnects us from the natural systems in which we have evolved and still depend upon for life.  The only way we are able to continue with the systematic degradation of the natural environment is by hiding, numb, in our own designed environs.

Garrett Hardin published “The Tragedy of the Commons” about the nuclear arms race in the late sixties for Science magazine.

Although extreme many of his points are very relevant today.

The tragedy of the commons is that the participants are not intrinsically responsible for there actions.

http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/162/3859/1243

Thank you , David Farrelly, for this title from your dedication, The Book of Bamboo.
“Knowing where materials come from is an essential design skill,” according to Alastair Fuad-Luke. Botanist, Ted Meredith, claims that 1200 types of bamboo grow across the planet from sea level to 14,100 feet, in the Andes in Ecuador. It is grown in widely disparate regions and climates. With the exception of Europe and Antarctica, bamboo is native to all of the other continents. Once introduced to Europe, bamboo has flourished in many areas from the Mediterranean to the Arctic Circle. Species of bamboo are found in tropical, subtropical and temperate areas. According to Oscar Hidalgo-Lopez in Bamboo, The Gift of the Gods, the approximate continental distribution is 67% in Asia and Oceania, 3% Africa, and 30% the Americas. Bamboo originated in the Oligocene or Miocene epoch, 30 to 40 million years ago, as reported to Ted Meredith from botanist, Lynn Clark. An excellent resource for bamboo species, as well as other general information about bamboo, is the American Bamboo Society (www.americanbamboo.org).

Taking design, specifically for bamboo products, to villages has phenomenal potential. However, there are challenges, for example, according to S. Balaram, “Mud, bamboo and thatch have been the most widely used housing materials for ages in rural India, yet it is hard to find Indian architects who know enough of these indigenous materials to use them well in their design of houses. “ An experimental bamboo house was designed at The National Institute of Design. The NID has a responsibility to encourage students to develop an expertise in bamboo and be useful to villagers. Developing friendships and empathy for rural people will come when designers experience village life. NIH has a powerful voice and should increase the number of design centers in small towns, throughout India, with a curriculum geared toward rural needs and with bamboo as a central theme. “Barefoot Designer: Design as Service to Rural People” is a concept coined by S. Balaram and could be applied to other rural areas of the planet as well.

Part of Sagmeister's illustrated list.

Based on Stefan Sagmeister’s list

1. I become a better observer of my environment when I take the time to walk or ride my bike.

2. I eat more creatively when I buy what is local, seasonal, and organic.

3. Buying food with minimal or no packaging always means choosing a healthier (in all senses) option.

4. I am incredibly privileged to be able to choose the way I want to live—and I am responsible to make thoughtful, considered choices every day.

5. People still like me even if I don’t shower every day (and it saves water).

6. Buying clothes from the Goodwill bins improves my sewing skills.

7. Shopping at my local, family-owned grocery store—though often more expensive—means that I am greeted with familiarity whenever I go there.

8. Material pleasures are nice but they don’t own me or fulfill me; simple living is rewarding. And simple.

9. Thinking about the world beyond myself puts my life in perspective, and makes me a better citizen of the globe.

10. Designing my own life with intent can affect others’ behavior as well.

Because food politics are important and interesting to me, and one major choice that I feel I can control, I decided it would be entertaining to look at some products in my kitchen to see if I could trace their individual journeys. Despite my best efforts to stay local, many of my staples have traveled a long ways.

Here’s what I found:

COFFEE: Bolivia–CA–OR

BALSAMIC VINEGAR: Italy–CA–OR

TONGOL TUNA: Thailand–NJ–OR

SALT: Pakistan–South Africa–CA–OR

COCOA POWDER: Peru–CA–OR

SO: just by looking at a few simple cooking products, I realize that my purchasing power is directly affecting the livelihoods of people on 5 different continents! I am not exactly sure what to do with all this information yet, but it certainly makes me more aware that my daily choices are constantly reaching a global scale.

Week 2 – Humans are Animals: Megacities, the Anthropocene & The Urban-Rural Continuum

1. Ch.1: Scale, Scope, Stakes, Speed from Whole Earth Discipline by Stewart Brand. Digital footnotes for the chapter can be found here. For the ridiculously quick video-cliff-notes on squatter cities watch the shortest TED talk I have ever seen.

2. Barefoot Designer: Design as Service to Rural People from Thinking Design by S. Balaram a Prof. at India’s National Institute for Design (NID). A well-worn copy of this book was generously given to me by Poonam Bir Kasturi of Daily Dump and much more. It is now out of print but can be found sans images here (.pdf). According to the Amazon page a new edition is coming out in 2010! This would be great news.

3. Global-Local Tensions: Key Issues for Design in An Unsustainable World from Design Activism – Beautiful Strangeness for a Sustainable World by Alastair Fuad- Luke who seems to be everywhere in the sustainable / resilient design discourse. I don’t know anything about these organizations but appearantly he is involved with SlowLab and SLOW

EXTRA
You may find this Short Interview “The Earth We Created” useful.

In Class we will look at:

* 19.20.21
* The Anthropocene
* Anthropogenic Biomes