Is the Industrial Designer the Environmentalists Punching Bag?
I think that it's interesting how a third of the presentations and sessions at the IDSA conferences are about sustainability/environmental design. And they all admonish the designers, saying "shame on you for designing so much stuff that's going to be landfill." And we keep inviting these presenters and environmental activists year after year for more condemnation and scolding. It's as if we're coming back to church after a year of sinful product design, pleading, "please forgive us, O Earth, for designing a co-molded vinyl non-recyclable out-gassing product this year! Next year, I promise to do better." In fact that's my idea for next years IDSA conference, to have an environmental confession booth for fallen designers. We can confess all our wrong doings to William McDonough behind the veil, and light a candle at a Victor Papanek shrine. Do the environmentalists leave the IDSA conference thinking that they've done their dut...