Author Archives: Rachel Johnston

After taking this class, I can say without a doubt in my mind that I am leaving a much more knowledgeable and aware person about the sustainability issues present in today’s society. Coming into this class, I couldn’t even think … Continue reading →

In lecture this week we watched the documentary called the 11th hour. It talked about the state of the natural environment and the current conditions of the world we live in. It discussed the different natural issues such as deforestation, … Continue reading →

This week in class we discussed how beneficial it is to manufacture local, and how detrimental it is to not. I think one of the hardest things about going local is actually implementing it. Obviously, people don’t need to be educated … Continue reading →

In class this week we discussed the idea of cradle-to-cradle designs. This is also known as a closed loop. A closed loop is essentially when there is no waste. A closed loop, as opposed to an open loop, reuses materials … Continue reading →

Your carbon footprint is calculated by what someone does or doesn’t do in their daily lives.  Everyone contributes to the greenhouse gasses that are causing global warming whether they are aware of it or not. The U.S Average per Person … Continue reading →

Sustainability is such an important topic this day in age, but it is also just as important to learn how to apply it to your everyday life. This week we participated in our first design slam, and the whole purpose … Continue reading →

I really learned a lot this week after doing the Design Probes Package. I really didn’t know what a Design Probe was or how it would be helpful to designers before doing this project. After completing this project, I was … Continue reading →

Empathic Design helps to solve the problem of the lack of sustainability in the world today. Sustainability is not a technical problem, it is driven by a pattern of thinking and behavior. This is where empathic design comes into play. … Continue reading →

This week in class revolved around the idea of the future and how sustainability will be affected. It was brought to my attention that we not only need to be thinking about how our actions today will affect the future, … Continue reading →

On the first day of this course, we were asked to define sustainability and explain how it pertains to our specific area of study. It seems like a fairly easy question, but the more I thought about it, the more … Continue reading →