Viewing entries tagged
Design Thinking

Let's redesign everything through Circular Design

Let's redesign everything through Circular Design

The future of sustainability and wellness is achieving a restorative and regenerative economy as we are in the age of the Anthropocene- when human activities started to have a significant global impact on Earth's ecosystems.  For the past century, we have been digging things out of the ground, turn them into products / materials that last from minutes to a few years at most, and then stick them back into the ground as landfill. We are NOT making the world sustainable through our linear approach to sustainability.

The AEC industry to stay relevant must come up an industrial system that is, by design and intention is restorative, using material/resources (either in a bio-cycle or in a techno-cycle) and applying materials /resources designed for multiple use cycles, at high quality.  The AEC Industry must take a radical, restorative, regenerative approach to way we conduct business. We must move away from the way we do business which is deeply rooted in a linear approach to growth - make, use, dispose. We should design and build buildings that reuse components and structures that can be extracted without damage and at low cost?

This will require us an industry asking ourselves the question: Does this mean we must start from scratch and redesign everything we do today. Yes, this will require making changes that require new workflows, new training, and evangelism and commitment to from builders and owners the long-term benefits of transforming how buildings and communities are designed, constructed, maintained and operated across the globe.

Disrupting the Business of Design – Architecture

Disrupting the Business of Design – Architecture

It is obvious the AEC industry must disrupt- as mentioned in the a recent blog “Disrupting the AEC Industry” in this disruptive, digital global economy. The AEC industry will find its environment of operation will have to change quickly to survive. No one can predict the future of the industry but the industry can decide for itself to disrupt itself or be blindsighted by some other industry that will disrupt it. In order for the Business of Architecture to be in step with their clients they will have to transform the AEC Industry infrastructure & its ecosystem through a disruption of their practise

Are restrictions or problems a hindrance to creativity?

Are restrictions or problems a hindrance to creativity?

Since my days as a Designer and now as a Management consultant at Optum+, wherein I project manage projects, I have heard the refrain from designers of both exterior and interior environments: “oh if these restrictions and problems were not there we would have come up with a great design.” I have to admit I too have made this remark in the past. However over the years I realised the hard way that all the sweat and brain crunching to get around restrictions and work around problems have produced some of my most interesting design and products.