How Has Environmentalism Shaped Modern Design?

 by Liberty Mitchell Brock

The Gardens by the Bay, Singapore

Environmentalism is a movement that has risen in response to the global environment crisis. It covers theories about nature and the causes of the issues. It also shows moral views and our relation to nature, whilst trying to encourage an environment focussed society. 

Designers have always had to create in a sustainable manner to be cost effective, but now they need to consider their impact more than ever. There are lots of stages in the manufacture of a product that could impact the environment in a negative way. For example, the product life cycle of an object can clearly show negative and positive impacts of a product. 

When raw materials are extracted they either come from a renewable or a finite resource. Plastic for example comes from crude oil which is a finite resource that is harmful to the environment. Plastic is created through fractional distillation which is an energy intensive process. However designers now have a choice when manufacturing a product, they can now use machinery powered by renewable energy sources instead of fossil fuels. Alternatively they can create the products entirely by hand, but this adds limitations on the designs you can create and make the process more time consuming.  A main environmental factor to consider when manufacturing a product is the transportation of the materials as well as the product once it is finished. Materials sourced locally have a smaller carbon footprint than materials produced far away. Designers need to consider the utilisation of their product and how durable it will be. Companies like Apple use planned obsolescence to encourage the user to upgrade their phone. This creates unnecessary waste. Designers are starting to think about the end of life for their product. Environmentally conscious designers will design their products to be able to be repaired when broken, or taken apart completely so the different  materials can be separated and recycled. 

Another way in which environmentalism has influenced modern design is in aesthetics. There is a design movement called biomimicry in which designs are inspired by elements of nature. This design style is increasing in popularity, an example of a country that has majorly incorporated this design style into their architecture is Singapore. The biomimicry network in Singapore was set up in 2016, it aimed to unite a diversity of people like biologists, engineers, designers, architects, entrepreneurs and individuals. This idea was to inspire connectivity with the natural world. My favourite example of biomimicry in Singapore is a nature park called The Garden’s by the Bay. There are 18 Supertrees which are mechanical structures made of reinforced concrete wrapped in a steel frame. There are planting panels all around the trunks creating a living skin of plants. These super trees reach up to 50m  above the ground and are located in a natural park amidst the city. There is an Observatory in one of the trees and 7 of them harvest solar energy. Altogether the trees hold over 162,900 plant made up of over 200 species. These trees have a futuristic design whilst incorporating nature and benefiting the environment. 

In conclusion, environmentalism has influenced modern design in a multitude of ways. It has changed the way designers think and manufacture their products, as well as influencing the style of the design as well.