Pragmatic Design Pedagogy Interventions for Climate Resilience
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Beyond Human-Centered
Developing Ecosystem Personas
WHY Considering the natural ecosystem as a participant in design is a critical step towards building climate resilience into our design strategies. If we design packaging/rideshare apps/toys/social networks without thought to the natural environment they will be experienced in, we lose critical opportunities to build something that will have a positive impact on its immediate locality. Creating a persona for an ecosystem is similar to a traditional persona, but requires more grounding in fact. Like users, ecosystems have characteristics, needs, challenges, and desires.
OUTCOME Students will choose credible, relevant research sources to support the development of a persona for an ecosystem, and use these sources to articulate an ecosystem’s needs and challenges. Students can evaluate how design decisions will affect the ecosystem.
Level 1 2 3 4 5
Beyond Human-Centered
To de-center the human in the design process is to acknowledge that the welfare of humanity depends on the welfare of all life on Earth. Students develop a holistic view of the context of their work, and are prepared to design in a way that considers and nurtures the interdependence of all life. Students incorporate empathy for living beings and ecosystems into their design processes and learn actionable strategies for broadening the definition of “user” to include all nonhuman participants in their design projects. They consider the needs of technologies as an integral part of the context of their work that has a measurable effect on natural ecosystems and well-being.
Engagement with Policy
Climate Advocacy
WHY Being aware of local sustainability and resilience initiatives–and supporting them–can help the initiatives gain the support and momentum they need to meet their goals. Students can become familiar with the climate policies of their school, city, or state. They can identify and visualize areas for improvement, or feature a goal that resonates with them, then use their image and communication skills to educate their community or advocate for policy.
OUTCOME Students define the policies of a chosen institution, and design a visual aid to effectively convey the urgency, necessity, or participation required to work towards these initiatives.
Level 1 2 3 4 5
Engagement with Policy
Students will recognize relationships between design and policy, and advocate for and support environmental and climate policy through design. They will assess how their design practice can align with civic, cultural, and environmental climate goals.
Systems & Transitions
Mapping Circular Lifecycles
WHY A crucial role for visual communication designers in a climate resilient, circular economy is visualizing the lifecycle map of products designed for circularity. Being able to see what a closed-loop system looks like and why it is more environmentally sustainable than a linear take-make-waste system is beneficial for concerned consumers and interested stakeholders. When assigning a project about designing a network diagram or data visualization, educators could consider introducing the concept of a circular lifecycle and allow students to use this as inspiration for their project.
OUTCOME Students utilize hierarchy, balance, and color to diagram a circular lifecycle map for designed materials. Students can articulate the difference between a linear and a circular product lifecycle.
Level 1 2 3 4 5
Systems & Transitions
Students will be able to apply systems thinking and circular design principles to visual communication design, recognizing and embracing the complexity of the interdependent environmental, economic, social, and technical systems their work is a part of. They will make design decisions based on context, explore circular economies as they relate to design, and understand the consequences of the design field on interrelated ecosystems.
Honesty & Optimism
Greenwashing
WHY In order to build a more resilient future, we have to learn from the past. There are myriad examples of corporate greenwashing, deceptive patterns, and political propaganda in recent years. Students should be mindful of the language they use, the visuals they choose to feature, and vague or misleading claims.
OUTCOME Students critically analyze historical and contemporary examples of greenwashing, dark patterns, and propaganda in design.
Level 1 2 3 4 5
Honesty & Optimism
Students will practice identifying and avoiding instances of bias, dishonest marketing strategies, and unethical design practices. They develop the ability to identify opportunities for positive change, and reflect on design’s ability to innovatively shape culture and environment.
Economy
Digital Sustainability
WHY It is often thought that designing sustainably can be as simple as not printing. However, our digital artifacts require massive amounts of energy to exist. Understanding best practices for reducing energy use online can put less strain on servers, ultimately requiring far less fossil-fueled energy to exist. As more companies strive for carbon neutrality, digital sustainability practices are great skill sets to possess. Educators can help students optimize their file sizes so they aren’t using unnecessarily large files on the web, and can discuss best practices for color palettes.
OUTCOME Students optimize image file sizes for various screens and resolutions. Students implement color palettes online that use less energy to display.
Level 1 2 3 4 5
Economy
Students will be able to manage visual, physical, and digital assets for the purpose of resource sustainability. They will assess and utilize methods for sustainable ink and paper usage, digital carbon footprint measurement, and can justify design solutions based on economy of use and impact.
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Mindsets for Climate Resilient Design
Beyond Human-Centered
To de-center the human in the design process is to acknowledge that the welfare of humanity depends on the welfare of all life on Earth. Students develop a holistic view of the context of their work, and are prepared to design in a way that considers and nurtures the interdependence of all life. Students incorporate empathy for living beings and ecosystems into their design processes and learn actionable strategies for broadening the definition of “user” to include all nonhuman participants in their design projects. They consider the needs of technologies as an integral part of the context of their work that has a measurable effect on natural ecosystems and well-being.
Systems & Transitions
Students will be able to apply systems thinking and circular design principles to visual communication design, recognizing and embracing the complexity of the interdependent environmental, economic, social, and technical systems their work is a part of. They will make design decisions based on context, explore circular economies as they relate to design, and understand the consequences of the design field on interrelated ecosystems.
Economy
Students will be able to manage visual, physical, and digital assets for the purpose of resource sustainability. They will assess and utilize methods for sustainable ink and paper usage, digital and physical carbon footprint measurement, and can justify design solutions based on economy of use and impact.
Engagement with Policy
Students will recognize relationships between design and policy, and advocate for and support environmental and climate policy through design. They will assess how their design practice can align with civic, cultural, and environmental climate goals.
Honesty & Optimism
Students will practice identifying and avoiding instances of bias, dishonest marketing strategies, and unethical design practices. They develop the ability to identify opportunities for positive change, and reflect on design’s ability to innovatively shape culture and environment.
Interdisciplinarity
Students of design collaborate and communicate across disciplines, integrating innovative scientific, environmental, and sociological research and diverse perspectives into their design processes. They will approach complex challenges with a multidisciplinary mindset, leveraging methodologies such as co-design and participatory design to co-create impactful and sustainable visual communication solutions.
Hyper-Localization
Students have a practice of and appreciation for meeting the design needs of their local community. They understand that the biggest impact they can make in climate resilience is in their immediate community, and so are familiar with the local environment, community, indigenous practices, waste management, and supply chain. Living sustainably during climate change will require adaptations to particular places and ways of being that may not scale or travel well.
5 Levels of Sustainability Pedagogy in Postsecondary Design Education
Level 1: Sustainability as passive content
When teaching design concepts such as typographic hierarchy or layout, professors may choose to provide students with content that speaks directly to the climate crises or other sustainability issues. This passively brings the content to the student’s attention, but doesn’t necessarily invite any further consideration.
Level 2: Sustainability as message
Students may be asked to design a project that delivers a message about ecological sustainability–this is usually a data visualization, poster, or awareness campaign. Some students feel a disconnect between the urgency of the sustainability movement and the lack of measurable action their own project takes.
Level 3: Sustainability as material concern
Students learn about sustainable production practices such as using alternative papers, eco-friendly inks, and alternative finishes. They learn about local recycling requirements and limitations, and may explore concepts of carbon footprints. This comes with an understanding that digital does not equal sustainable–our digital artifacts require massive amounts of energy to exist. Students may learn how to optimize images for digital use and understand sustainable web design best-practices.
Level 4: Sustainability as a lens for understanding complexity
Understanding how the systems that support us are interconnected, and working to transition those systems towards more sustainable and equitable goals, are often cited as key strategies for addressing global issues such as climate change. Design priorities at this level might include concepts like Lifecycle Assessments and Cradle-to-Cradle thinking.
Level 5: Sustainability as critical inquiry
Professors may dive deeper into sustainable inquiry, exploring abstract concepts, processes, and aesthetics related to sustainability and visual communication.
Critical thought experiments might use design to question the status quo, explore methods of reuse and regeneration, and explore personal and societal values.
