What can Design do to end the Waste Age?
It begins with some stand-up-and-take-notice yellow infographics about the leading Waste Age contributors. As expected, packaging takes the lead here, followed by textile waste which initially surprised me until it dawned on me just how throw-away parts of the fashion industry have become; On average, a t-shirt, is worn 7 times in its lifetime but is produced using 2700 litres of water, and the rise of online fast-fashion retailers championing cheap throwaway items such as the £1 bikini are all part of the problem. In a society and an economy that favours speed and convenience over ethics and sustainability its no wonder we are in the environmental crisis we are.
The exhibition takes the view of how we manage this waste effectively and re-design it into useable materials again. From furniture made from discarded plastics and food waste, building materials made from waste coffee cups, to carbon zero fashion. It also shares, smaller, more relatable efforts designers are making everyday to encourage us all to make better choices.
Last week I headed to The Design Museum to see Waste Age; a powerful exhibition on the potential for design to help end the Waste Age.
We live in a time of excessive waste. It is a huge contributor to many environmental and social issues across the globe. This exhibition explores the main culprits of waste - from excessive packaging and our throw-away culture to possible design led initiatives that inspire the necessary change.
'We must face the problem of waste – we can no longer ignore what happens to things when we get rid of them. Instead of thinking of objects as things that have an end life, they can have many lives. This is not just an exhibition it is a campaign, and we all have an active part in our future"
Gemma Curtin, Curator.
Designers at Blast Studio have made a Tree Column from discarded take away coffee cups, combining it with mycelium - the root network of fungi - to make a biological paste that can be 3D printed into building materials. This concept is shared in the work of pioneering architect Mario Cucinella who features their 3D printed walls made from recycled materials using innovative technology. Such initiative to repurpose consumer waste in this circular way is what’s needed to make real change.
Our extract range of cards is built upon a similar principle; Made from discarded coffee cups, otherwise intended for landfill, the range aims to bring a repurposed product that can either then be fully recycled or treasured in the form of a card or letter.
Another consumer brand featured in the exhibition is Cosmetics company Lush. They have been pioneers against environmental damage and social injustices since they began in 1995 but now the rest of the world is waking up, they have sold over 36 million of their packaging free shampoo bars since launching them in 2007. It's these small and simple changes that are becoming more and more prevalent in our society that will help these ripples become waves of change.
The exhibition goes onto note, how we as individuals can make the most change, from low impact (but still important) things, such as upgrading our light bulbs and washing at 30 degrees, to more high impact changes such as eating a plant based diet, giving up our cars and having one fewer children. It was incredibly insightful and I really urge you to go, especially if, like me, you are only too aware of the issues, want to make meaningful change and strive to help make it happen.
What I was reminded of, surprisingly at first, as someone that led a Plastic Free by 2020 pledge, was that plastic, all be it not single use, was, and is, a great invention for many purposes. By the very nature of its composition, it has transformed many areas of our lives. Widespread use throughout science, medicine and safety equipment make it an incredibly difficult material to replace so, instead, we need to eliminate the unnecessary packaging, circulate plastics better to keep them in effective use and out of the environment and reimagine waste to become a more resourceful material for the future generations.
