sustainability - strategies & design

A Matter of Attitude

erik — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 10:26:26 +0000

To follow on from a few of the previous posts I am re-reading with my coffee (first cup, so allow for that)...

A few thoughts on our ability to adopt and adapt new frameworks:

I think where Biomimicry and Systems Thinking will fall down is precisely where we try to use them as 'replacement' constructs for a manipulative engineering strategy in a similarly limited perspective to the tactics now failing us: in other words, incomplete integration.

We need to consider not only how to change our technologies and policies, but equally when a tech solution is appropriate versus when we need to rethink the larger presumptions.

Let's take an example from the early 2011 season of massive floods which have literally deluged every inhabited continent. Obviously rescue and relief come first, but the situation has also inspired a burst of creative responses from the planning and design side of things: floating houses (such as the work of Koen Olthuis and Waterstudio in the Netherlands) , even floating communities and entire cities (such as this proposal for an Embassy of the Drowned Nations) are predicted for the future.

Bringing Back the Reefs

erik — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 21:03:15 +0000

One of the unfortunate "Poster Boys" for climate chaos has been coral bleaching, the worldwide die-off or coral reefs, and attendant loss of biodiversity, fisheries, and livelihoods.
Bleaching occurs when stress causes corals to expel symbiotic algae. Several factors can cause bleaching, but, according to Mark Eakin, coordinator of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Coral Reef Watch, the only thing that could cause mass bleaching on this geographical scale is high temperatures maintained over a period of months. "There is some evidence that local factors and other climate-scale factors, such as ocean acidification, sea-level rise and changes in storm intensity, may influence bleaching sensitivity," he says. "But temperature is the big driver." (See Nature 19 November 2010, Coral bleaching goes from bad to worse )

Architecture That Grows Itself

erik — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 19:02:39 +0000

Going beyond "biomimicry" and "bioinspiration", cutting edge research into "metabolic materials" has developed pseudo-cells whose behavior is animate, responsive, and c

Certificate in Sustainable Design Innovation - Ireland

erik — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 21:54:03 +0000

TEPUI has co-developed with IT Carlow and the Design Ireland Skillnet a certificate course in Sustainable Design Innovation. This module has now been accredited as an ECTS 10 credit Level 9 module (post- Masters Degree) by the Irish Higher Education and Training Awards Council, HETAC.

This 15-week course ran for two consecutive years, with students coming from a variety of backgrounds, most being mid-career professionals. They included architects, landscape designers, graphic designers, fashion designers, industrial materials designers, planners, industrial product designers, design managers, marketing managers and other business managers with responsibility for new product development (NPD), company strategy and design. In other words, representation was broad, and this served to enrich the exchange of ideas and experiences in the class.

In 2008/2009 and 2009/2010, the program consisted of........................

A Renewable World ....(FREE download)

erik — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:32:01 +0000

2009 Year in Review for IBI

erik — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 10:37:17 +0000

The International Biochar Initiative has gone from strength to strength in the past year, and TEPUI are delighted to see (and occasionally contribute to) that progress. They have just released their 2009 Review, and I have included it in this post.

If you can see the potential for this highly scalable technology for rebuilding soil productivity while sequestering significant amounts of carbon, then consider helping out IBI with a membership. Links for all that and more are in the review text which follows:

"IBI has achieved some major milestones in 2009 that we are proud to share. Organizationally, we grew from two part-time staff members in 2008 to six at the end of 2009. We began the process of expanding our board, bringing on new board member David Wayne in October. We drafted IBI's first strategic plan and launched a membership program. We convened a new advisory committee of 39 members from 13 countries to consult on all aspects of IBI's work. Thanks to the hard work of administrative director Lee Parker, we set up all the systems for planning, accounting and reporting that a non-profit organization needs in support of the IBI programs that we are developing to serve the biochar community. Here are some highlights of our program work in 2009:

Are humans creative enough for the coming future?

eduardo — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:19:41 +0000

I am completely sure we are born creative, otherwise we would have not arrived this far.

However I am also convinced that our mainstream education systems are killing this gift. We are taught to be afraid of mistake, and to do everything according to tradition.

There are big changes coming in the next few years: oil and other mineral resources are peaking, and climate change might reach a tipping point soon. In that scenario, our books and university degrees might not suit our needs, and we will need our creativity back.

Thanks, Sir Ken Robinson, for pointing this out at TED talks.

What Is Biochar? A Valuable Soil Amendment

erik — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 08:57:47 +0000

Biochar is a fine-grained, highly porous charcoal that helps soils retain nutrients and water.

"Biochar is found in soils around the world as a result of vegetation fires and historic soil management practices. Intensive study of biochar-rich dark earths in the Amazon (terra preta), has led to a wider appreciation of biochar’s unique properties as a soil conditioner. "Biochar can be an important tool to increase sustainable food production in areas with severely depleted soils, scarce organic resources, and inadequate water and chemical fertilizer supplies.

"Biochar also improves water quality and quantity by increasing soil retention of nutrients and agrochemicals for plant and crop utilization. More nutrients stay in the soil instead of leaching into groundwater and causing pollution.

Biochar for Environmental Management - Book Review

eduardo — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:33:36 +0000

"There is one way we could save ourselves..."
In a recent interview in New Scientist James Lovelock, originator of the Gaia theory, cited biochar as the one chance we have left to save humankind.

Finally, the long-awaited “biochar bible” has been published. I have been reading and reviewing Lehmann and Joseph’s textbook on biochar for the past month, and I am thoroughly impressed. The edited collection of articles treads the difficult line between

Probortunities: A Way Out of the Crisis

erik — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 08:27:06 +0000

(This article was originally oublished in the March 2009 issue of HLI, Horticulture and Landscape Ireland)

The economic bubble has burst, bringing an avalanche of crises with it. We have peaked not just the global oil reserves, but most reserves of industrial metals, clean water, soil fertility and biodiversity. Innovation and critical thinking, as well as leadership have slipped from our cultural vocabulary after decades of self centred gorging within that bubble economy. To come through this will challenge all of our individual and collective abilities. But, I believe we have three or four fairly “easy” (or at least obvious) avenues to explore, building upon a combination of the strengths and orientation of our sector, and the needs of our time.