Author: laurenelaine42

Plastic, plastic everywhere!

Posted on by laurenelaine42

Our 2050 OneWorld future scenario is a fossil fuel free society that is aiming to create innovative solutions and drive change to ensure a more sustainable future for humanity and the Earth. Our speculative object, Echo, is a result of striving to correct past wrongs in regards to consumption of plastic as it is made from recycled plastics. A designer that follows this same value of recycling plastics is Design Academy Eindhoven graduate designer, Dave Hakkens. He knows the immense waste of plastic materials therefore he created his own plastic recycling machines in order to create new products.

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Dave Hakkens’ project Precious Plastics (Precious Plastic 2015) reflects the same values of recycling and using objects to their full potential within our OneWorld future. Hakken’s says in a interview that “Of all the plastic thrown away, I’ve heard that we recycle just ten percent and I wondered why we recycle so little…” (Etherington, R. 2013). The main problem with plastics is that they are lightweight, strong, durable and inexpensive therefore they are deemed a precious material on Earth (Hopewell, J. et al. 2009). But the biggest problem of all is that it is destroying the environment. Plastics are mainly created from petrochemicals that is derived from fossil oil and gas and more fossil fuels are used to manufacture such plastic as an energy source (Hopewell, J. et al. 2009). This is why in our OneWorld future, fossil fuel consumption has been banned and the remaining plastics are being efficiently recycled. Returning back to current day however, the blunt truth is that “…our current use of plastics is not sustainable.” (Hopewell, J. et al. 2009).

Realising these statistics and implications with plastics, Hakken’s was inspired to manufacture his own plastic recycling machines. These include a shredder machine which can create pipes; a rotational machine which can create large hollow objects and was rebuilt from an old oven; and an injection machine which is the fasted and most efficient in moulding recycled plastics (Precious Plastic 2015). Plastics are easily recyclable under the right circumstances. It needs low temperatures and pressures to remould and then recycle into new products. Products that Hakkens has created include lamp shades and bowls. The possibilities are endless as you can create your own type of mould for whatever you desire to create. This project is also very open source as Hakkens has allowed anyone to access the blueprints to his machine designs. This is similar to our concept of the contributory citizen in our OneWorld future; everyone actively contributes to the betterment and preservation of society.

Recycling and repurposing plastics isn’t such a futuristic concept. It is already achievable as Hakkens demonstrates through his project Precious Plastics. However, there are so many difficulties and various consequences to the processes involved in recycling plastics for mass-manufactures. In our 2050 OneWorld future, these implications have been surpassed and the recycling and treatment of plastics has become more sustainable. Maybe Dave Hakkens will be the designer that makes our future plastic recycling premonition a reality.

Bibliography:

Dave Hakkens 2015, Projects, viewed 24 October 2015, <https://davehakkens.nl/projects/>

Etherington, R. 2013, ‘Precious Plastics by Dave Hakkens’, dezeen magazine, 21 October, viewed 24 October 2015, <http://www.dezeen.com/2013/10/21/precious-plastic-open-source-local-recycling-workshop-dave-hakkens/>

Hopewell, J. Dvorak, R. Kosior, E. 2009, ’Plastics recycling: challenges and opportunities, Philosophical Transactions – Royal Society Biological Science, viewed 25 October 2015, <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.ezproxy.lib.uts.edu.au/pmc/articles/PMC2873020/>

Matus, M. 2013, ‘Open Source ‘Precious Plastics’ Machines Recycle Small Scale Waste’, inhabitat, 22 October, viewed 24 October 2015, <http://inhabitat.com/open-source-precious-plastic-machines-recycle-small-scale-waste/>

Precious Plastic 2015, About, viewed 24 October 2015, <http://preciousplastic.com/>

Youtube 2015, Dave Hakkens, Youtube, viewed 26 October 2015, <https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqA-SppbeUi5ou0isB27mgg>

Echo [Speculative Object]

Posted on by laurenelaine42

SCENARIO BACKCASTING

To contextualise our speculative object, below is a brief recap of our OneWorld future scenario from 2014-2050.

2050, the beginning of our OneWorld future scenario, a fossil fuel free society. The damage has been done and it is up to the collective consciousness of the entire population to create innovative solutions, work hard and drive change to ensure there is a sustainable future.

Between the year of 2044 and 2050, the OneWorld government established a head quarters in NYC under the leadership of Georgia Lee. Under her guidance, they pledged to utilise the possibilities of plastic recycling, new forms of renewable energy and a more socially aware community.

Now we are in 2055, situated in New York city, the social, political and technological hub of OneWorld, where Echo, our speculative object, was developed and first trialed.

Echo is a result of new plastic recycling technologies, a desire for multipurpose fashion, new energy sources, notions of shared consumption and the concept of the ‘contributory citizen’ a term which will be explained in more detail shortly. 

PROCESS

Our speculative object design started with a large mind map identifying areas of interest within OneWorld such as economics, politics, relationships, health, environment, technology, housing, culture, education, architecture, food, work and transport. From this initial mind map, we selected 5 categories to synthesise some speculative object concepts. These included a personal energy quota in regards to everyday life, an integrated respiratory device to combat air pollution, an environmentally friendly responsive garment, using rising water levels as an energy source and the  appropriation of religious buildings into useful community spaces.

The next step was a quadrant mind map detailing ideas around making energy, the environment, health and culture. From this quadrant we decided on our speculative concept which involves a renewable energy source in the form of a personal energy quota. Citizens must create energy to feed back into the grid to be redistributed equally by the government.

The next process stage was sketching our ideas in various forms. Our initial sketched were situated around harnessing and storing wind energy in the form of a neck piece based on the computerised garment generator from our first presentation. We refined this object through various iterations and the hollow tubular neck piece eventually transformed and developed into a vest. Our focus changed from wind energy to harnessing the bodies natural energy which is where the idea of a vest arose from.

We made a first paper prototype to gain an understanding of scale and proportion. From here, we developed the shape and form of the vest, refined the shape of the chest plate from a circle to a semi-circle and we replaced the collar with a waist band for functionality and wearability. This process work had led to our final prototype of our speculative object design, Echo.

FINAL PROTOTYPE – ECHO

Fundamentally, Echo is an energy capturing and storage device integrated into a wearable vest. In 2050, New York City, Echo was first developed by the OneWorld Environmental and Design sector.

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vest

In 2051, the first prototype was created as a result of the discovery of new plastic recycling methods which allows energy to be stored in the finished product, similar to a rechargeable battery. The next stage involved tapping into previously unused energy sources and integrating them into the central core and sensor pad resulting in the chest plate you will see today which the harnesses the bodies natural energy, like a human battery. Echo is a reaction to the lack of energy sources, as fossil fuels are completely banned. Society has turned to other energy sources in order to survive including solar, wind, water and as explained, human energy.

In 2055, the government distributed it to all citizens of NYC as a citywide trial. Only adults over the age of 18 were eligible for this trial and the device is to be worn for a minimum of 8 hours per day. It is at the individual’s discretion as to when they fulfil these hours.

Echo relies on the concept of the contributory citizen. A contributory citizen is someone who actively contributes to the betterment and preservation of society. Echo harnesses lost thermal and kinetic human energy. The energy is stored in the removable central core, which is then connected to a energy dock at home. This energy is then harvested and fed back into the grid where the government redistributes it as they see fit.

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There are three components to Echo – the vest, which also consists of an adjustable strap, the central core and the sensor pad. The vest is made of recycled plastics to give the feeling and appearance of neoprene. There are four standard sizes with adjustable straps to fit any body shape. It comes in black or white, is machine washable and reusable. You are assigned your first vest on your 18th birthday and must apply for a new one if it is damaged. Each central core is tagged to the individual through an ID code. The central core has a lifespan of approximately 10 years, at which point a new device will be issued to the user. The sensor pad is positioned over the heart and draws energy from the human body through over heating, sweating, vibrations from heartbeat and kinetic energy from daily movement.

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For example, contributory citizen Ben, ID number 749575, rises from bed at 6.30am and is ready for work by 7am at which point he places on the Echo vest. He removes the Echo central core from the energy docking station which has been unloading energy overnight and places it into the Echo sensor pad. The device is worn for the 8 hour woking day gathering and strong human energy. Upon returning at night, the Echo central core is returned to the energy docking station to again unload the days energy that Ben has accumulated. Ben goes about his night time ritual, goes to be and this cycle is repeated the next day.

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In a society where there are no fossil fuels, OneWorld has turned to a new energy source, each other, as a solution to the social, technological, environmental, economical and political problems. By integrating a non-invasion device into everyday life, Echo has the potential to harness previous unknown and untapped energy sources. Echo’s’ simple aesthetic responds to the conditions of the time and aims to repair humanities past destructive actions.

Interview: A Designer, Technology & the Future.

Posted on by laurenelaine42

For my primary research, I interviewed Thomas Fitzpatrick, visual designer and illustrator and also my awesome yet annoying 26 year older brother. I asked him about his views, understanding and interpretations of the future and technology. He has worked as a designer for about 5 years now working at agencies and also freelancing. He may only be 6 years older than me but he does have a different and insightful perspective of the future and technology. You can read the full transcript of the interview here.

Thomas spoke a lot about his practice as a designer and how it is impacted and influenced by technology. He is always looking a screen. He works on a screen all day and then watches the TV or plays a video game for his down time at home. As I asked him how technology impacted his life, he was sat at his desk designing a mobile app. He said “…I’ve got three things open. I’ve got my monitor, I’ve got my laptop and then I’ve got my phone plugged in so I can see what my design looks like on the phone as I’m designing.” [T.Fitzpatrick 2015, pers. comm., 20 October]. It is clearly evident that technology plays a large role in his design practice and his life in general and will continue to be in the future.

Thomas working with three different technologies at once.

Thomas working with three different technologies at once.

An important topic I wanted to ask Thomas about was the role of designers in the future. Personally, as a visual designer and illustrator, he feels that he doesn’t have a significant role in shaping the future. He states that “In terms of changing the world, I think that kind of concept is bandied around too freely and too easily.” However, he speaks of his time working at Digital Eskimo, a user centred design studio. “I learnt a lot there in my two years…that place really made me appreciate the role of a designer…”. [T.Fitzpatrick 2015, pers. comm., 20 October] His design practice is fulfilling for him yet he doesn’t believe he shapes the future directly.

The question that sparked the most response from Thomas was about our impact on the Earth with technological advancements. In short, his response was “We’ve f***ed up with technology, but we will hopefully fix it with technology.” He is very passionate about sustainability and has recently become vegan “…because the amount of green house gases contributed by the meat industry is around 51%…”. The Vegan Society states that “…according to the UN, [the livestock industry] generates more greenhouse gases than all transport combined.” (The Vegan Society, 2015). He compared the views of the  meat industry to smokers in the 40’s. It was the norm then until reports showed that it was detrimental to our health. You look at smokers today and judge them for their stupidity. This is what could happen in a few years time to the meat industry. We will look back and be disgusted with how we treated animals with utter disregard for the environment.

Finally, I asked Thomas if he believes that technology is a force to be reckoned with in the future. He hesitated at this question at first but concluded with this – “Yeah, it could go either way. In terms of it being a force to be reckoned with, yes it could turn Earth into a wasteland. Or, it will be amazing. It will be all lush and green with plants on buildings, everything will be solar and wind powered and awesome. And then we’d have solent green. That would be the only bad thing.” [T.Fitzpatrick 2015, pers. comm., 20 October].

Bibliography:

The Vegan Society 2015, Take the Vegan Pledge, viewed 22 October 2015, <http://www.vegansociety.com/try-vegan/take-vegan-pledge&gt;

The Vegan Society 2015, ‘World Environment Day: 3 reasons why going vegan can save the planet’, pressat, 4 June, viewed 22 October 2015, <http://www.pressat.co.uk/releases/world-environment-day-3-reasons-why-going-vegan-can-save-the-planet-19cbe110017d759e0bcb5bae6a42dce5/&gt;

Interview: A Designer, Technology & the Future [transcript]

Posted on by laurenelaine42

20 October 2015

Completed by Lauren Fitzpatrick (12048880)

This is the full transcription of the interview: A designer, technology and the future. In this interview, I questioned Thomas Fitzpatrick, visual designer/ illustrator and my awesome 26 year older brother, about his views, understanding and interpretations of the future and technology.

WARNING: This interview contains coarse language – apologies from my bad mouth brother.

LAUREN:
So in this interview I will be asking you about your views, understanding and interpretations of the future and technology.

THOMAS:
Can I begin by saying that is incredibly broad? It could mean anything. Anyway, go on.

LAUREN:
Just to get you into the future thinking mood, what would your preferred future be like in 2050?

THOMAS:
Wow, okay, I might be dead by then. I don’t know, I’m kind of happy as things as are. I’m kind of stuck in my ways. I’m not really going to change anything. In terms of my practice, unless there is something absolutely game changing in the next few decades, I really can’t see myself changing. My work flow and the devices, technologies and apps that I use at the moment are fine. If something better comes along I might change but I don’t really think about it. I just get on with it and do my work.

LAUREN:
From a designer’s point of view, how important is it to have knowledge of the past to shape and transform our future?

THOMAS:
I don’t think it’s that important. Everything has been done, so don’t fucking worry about. I try not to look at other people’s work or even look back on my own work. Again, just get on with it and do it to the best of your ability. Don’t worry about what other people are doing and what people have been doing in the past.

LAUREN:
But you know how some people say what if we revert to old values, do you think that will actually happen?

THOMAS:
Ah yeah, absolutely. It can potentially go full circle. You can definitely see it in web design as an example. When it first started there was no real visual design applied and it goes through all these phases like that phase when people were adding texture and making everything look real. And then web 2.0 came along and everyone’s going flat with super subtle gradient and bevelling and now it’s kind of going back to that more textured hand-made feel. It happens in waves. Yeah, it happens in waves.

That kind of view makes it seem that one way is right as well which is bullshit. If you back to the old way because it’s the best way, well no. There are so many different ways, people work so many different ways.

LAUREN:
What kind of roles and importance do you think designers have for the future and technology?

THOMAS:
Pretty big. I mean myself personally I don’t see myself contributing much as an illustrator and visual designer, you know, I have done UX stuff for like educational and government stuff which is all great and worthwhile. In terms of changing the world, I think that kind of concept is bandied around too freely and too easily. A lot of people say that and it’s bullshit. You look at people’s studio websites and they’re just like a service design and they’ll be like ‘Oh we make life changing products. We are shaping the world.’ And it’s just no, you’ve just made a fucking mobile app for a bank or something, that’s not changing the world you dickhead. That’s just bringing in more business for what ever particular app your making for whatever particular client.

But having said that, there is definitely designers and stuff out there making things.

LAUREN:
Well this whole subject I am studying is about interdisciplinary design, so architects or product designers would be more likely to do something that would affect the future.

THOMAS:
Yeah definitely, but that’s from my point of view as a visual designer. But yeah, having worked at Digital Eskimo which is a user centred design studio, I learned a lot there in my two years. I learnt a lot about user experience and that place really made me appreciate the role of a designer, even just a visual designer, and how much that affects a person’s experience using a particular product you’re designing. Even all the research that goes into something and all the thought behind why have I made that button a particular colour and why have I placed it there. Sorry, trailed off a bit there.

LAUREN:
To what extent have human beings changed the Earth with technological advancement and is this change irreversible? Will we ever revert back to lo-fi technology?

THOMAS:
Well one, we fucked it up. I mean, really badly. I have been trying to go vegan as you well know because I have several vegan friends and I’ve always been very interested in that topic and sustainability in general. And my reasons for going vegan were my health and sustainability because the amount of green house gases contributed by the meat industry is like 51% which is just mental. And that will change.

I was having a conversation the other day and we were just like, you look at smokers back in the day in the 40’s and 50’s when everyone smoked and it was just the norm. Then in the 50’s that started to change when reports started to come out saying well no, this is actually detrimental to your health and people look at smokers now like your are disgusting. Why are you doing that? Your’e an idiot, your’e killing yourself! And we were just sort of saying that I reckon like, probably your generation and potentially the next generation, that will start to change and we will look back on this time now and go wow, we were fucking animals eating all this meat with utter disregard for the environment. And it will be that same process where we look back at smoking now. Ah what was the question again?

LAUREN:
So to what extent have we changed the Earth with with technology and will be ever revert back?

THOMAS:
I mean, we’ve fucked up with technology, but we will hopefully fix it with technology. There’s lots of good stuff out there like, you know, I try to keep abreast of that stuff because I find it fascinating, like the solar highways and solar tiles. I don’t drive because one, I’m lazy and two, because it contributes quite a fair bit as well to greenhouse gas. And you look at electric cars now and they’re freaking cool. There’s lots of new technology coming out and as grim of a picture as it is right now I have faith that there are lots of designers out there that are working on stuff, it’s just a matter of government funding and everyone agreeing. Obviously there are lots of climate skeptics out there. It’s just complacency for a lot of people, they are stuck in their ways. I mean I care, but it’s more just like philosophical. I’m not actually going to do anything. I am at least trying to go vegan and not using so much energy and not buying so much shit and stuff. That in a way does help. I’m not going to design an app or do something that’s going to change people’s views on climate change, I can only do these little bits and pieces. It’s the little things that count, they all add up.

LAUREN:
As a visual designer you primarily work on a computer and you also have daily interactions with other technologies such as your phone. How do your daily interactions with technology affect you?

THOMAS:
It’s detrimental to my health. I have really bad RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) because of the amount of illustrating I do and I don’t really look after it. I spend all day looking at a screen. When I’m not working, I’m still looking at a screen because I’m watching tele or playing a video game. I’m always in front of a screen and loads of different screens. Right now I’m designing a mobile app so I’m working between – well look, I’ve got three things open. I’ve got my monitor, I’ve got my laptop and then I’ve got my phone plugged in so I can see what my design looks like on the phone as I’m designing. But that’s just the way it is, that’s the way design is at the moment. Web and app design, you have to see how it looks on the final product.

In terms of daily life, technology does affect my social life. I just text people, I don’t call them. I have the odd friend who will actually call me and have a conversation on the phone. Everybody else I just text. It’s just easier. It’s right there. I’ll be working and I’ll have messenger open or I’ll be texting while I’m working. You don’t even know you’re doing it. I don’t think about it. It’s not inherently bad, I still think I can communicate fairly well even though I text all the time.

Having worked nearly five or so years as a designer and illustrator, there’s nothing better than being in a room full of people. Like at Digital Eskimo, I’d never done it before, we use to do lots of workshops with the clients and stakeholders and that was super beneficial because your’e all in the same room, you do all these exercises, it’s fun, people open up and it’s so much better collaborating than say if you had them on a conference call on Skype. You get a better product at the end when doing that.

For my practice, I use a Wacom tablet for my illustrating, but I still do sketch everything first in a sketch book then take a photo and go over it. I still do that because it’s still nice to get that initial sketch, thought or idea down on paper. I could sketch straight into Photoshop but it just feels better doing it in a sketch book.

LAUREN:
You grew up in the 90’s and witnessed the greatest technological advancements. Dial-up internet to you is like fast wireless internet connection to the youth of today. In about 15 years technology has evolved incredibly fast. What is do you think is going to happen in the next 15 years?

THOMAS:
Not much is going to happen, I think it’s kind of happened now and there’s not going to be any huge leaps in the next few decades. Everything we have now is just going to be getting a little better and better each year and that’s it. Everyone is really comfortable with it and I really can’t see anything hugely game changing in the next two decades. I mean, Apple and Google and Microsoft are most likely working on new shit. You know, Google had the Google Glasses a few years ago. What the fuck has happened to that? That technology has just fallen off the face of the Earth. I don’t think people were ready for it for starters because it’s just kind of weird. And I don’t agree with that kind of wearable technology anyway, even though I have an Apple watch. I think that’s just too far and it’s bad. A good example is people walking down the street on their phone not looking around and having no idea what is happening around them. I don’t know, that stuff kind of scares me a bit, I don’t think it will be that beneficial to humanity as a whole, I think it will be detrimental. Look, it’s Skynet. That’s probably what’s going to happen.

LAUREN:
Robotic technology is developing rapidly and many feel uneasy about this? What is you view on robots potential assisting humans in the future?

THOMAS:
I think it’s awful. Yeah, I think it’s terrible. It’s so lazy. Its just ridiculous. You look at the extremity of it and we will probably turn in to fat pigs. An awesome example is the film Wall-E. If we really let ourselves go and just keep on going in that direction, I mean, that’s a incredibly fantastical view, the picture that Wall-E paints, but it could potentially happen. It is amazing. You look at Yasimo, that first humanoid Japanese robot, it’s bloody amazing. It can run, it can do all this awesome stuff. Just to get that shit to run like a human being is a massive feat. But, I wouldn’t want one. It’s just creepy. Because then we just completely loose our connection to humanity and what it means to be human in a way. As cool as Terminator is, I don’t want that to happen!

LAUREN:
Speaking of, the classic films like The Terminator and Blade Runner are iconic depictions of futuristic hi-tech societies and shows a future where technology overpowers humanity. Do you think that technology is a force to be reckoned with in the future and why or why not?

THOMAS:
That’s a deep question. I will start by saying that Blade Runner is my favourite film. I have watched it a ridiculous amount of times it’s so good. Yeah, it is a force to be reckoned with. It’s probably going to go either way. You know, Terminator and Blade Runner and all this Sci-fi films, those are all slightly dystopian, they’re not full on dystopia, the world has just gone a little bit shit. Like the first Mad Max, the world is a little bit shit. The bombs haven’t been dropped yet and it’s like they’re running out of natural resources and then the second one, it’s an absolute wasteland. Could go like that, potentially. Why not? Yeah, it could go either way. In terms of it being a force to be reckoned with, yes it could turn Earth into a wasteland. Or, it will be amazing. It will be all lush green buildings, plants on buildings, everything will be solar and wind powered and awesome. And then we’d have solent green. That would be the only bad thing. I’m sure human tastes quite nice.

Speculative Object [prototype & presentation]

Posted on by laurenelaine42

Today was our last class to finalise our speculative object prototype and write our presentation for next week. During the week we began brainstorming dot points for our presentation and Elliot created the vest for our object. We decided our model would be Ben. Below is Elliot adjusting the vest to him, ready for next week.

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After the vest was complete, we began sketching up ideas for the central core component of the vest which will harness and store energy. We created a few iterations and settled on a semi-circle sensor plate with a circular orange central core. This speculative object is based on our first depiction of the social aspects of our OneWorld society, in particular our multi-purpose garment concept.

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After our sketches, we began creating refined illustrations on the computer for our presentation. This gave us a better idea of how the central core and sensor pad will sit on the vest and how it will function. For the rest of class, we began to finalise and organise our speech for our presentation and synthesised our speculative object concept. We plan to meet next Tuesday to finalise our prototype and speech and to prepare for our presentation.
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Speculative Object [design & prototyping]

Posted on by laurenelaine42

In this studio tutorial session, we focused on refining our speculative object design for our 2050 OneWorld future.  We began by creating quadrants relating to our future which concerned making energy, the environment, culture and health. From these central ideas, we quickly sketches out some ideas for speculative objects. Our strongest object/concept was the clothing collar which we touched on in our OneWorld future collages.

Quadrant Brainstorm

After we decided on our object, we drew many iterations of it and refined our concept. Elliot and Ben who study fashion and product design drew many iterations of the same idea and we have to come to a final conclusion of what our object is and what it should look like.

Sketch_04

Sketch_05

Sketch_06

Sketch_02

Sketch_01

Our idea stemmed from our creation of fashion trends in our OneWorld future which are functional, multi-purpose, weather proof, durable, recyclable, protective, self-cleaning and androgynous. The garment we imagined would be computerised and could potentially create energy whilst the person is wearing it. From this, we came up the idea of having a detachable crystal/ monitor from a vest which records a persons activity and heart rate throughout the day which in turn generates energy. When the person arrives home at the end of the day, they remove this object and place it on a charger which collects energy for their household. This reflect the value of using things to full potential due to the lack of resources in society.

From Elliot’s final fashion sketches and Ben’s sketches, we generated a quick prototype out of paper, cardboard masking tape to gain a better idea of how it might look and if our idea would work.

Prototype

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Now, we have planned what to bring to next class in order to start making our final prototype: muslin/ cheap material, roll of tape, cardboard etc. We will make many iterations of this speculative object and will refine and develop the concept behind it.

Who Killed the World?

Posted on by laurenelaine42

Where must we go, we who wander this wasteland, in search of our better selves?
The First History Man

In popular culture, we are presented with a variety of possible futures in regards to the existence of the Earth’s environment and the survival of humanity. One scenario is the Earth that has an abundance of resources and people live in harmony with the environment. The other is the Earth that is dying due to the harmful actions of humans. It is important to react to these premonitions in order to improve our future, hence concepts such as the Anthropocene have been created. We have shaped our past, we are shaping our present and we inevitably must shape our future.

The Anthropocene is a transcendent geological epoch that comments on the detrimental impacts that humanity has on the Earth. We have manipulated the Earths environment and resources to suit our own lives. It is like we have forgotten to live in harmony with the Earth like our past selves. This new epoch “…will be another strong reminder to the general public that we are now having undeniable impacts on the environment at the scale of the planet as a whole…” (Steffen 2011). Climate change is now a large portion of the Earth’s existence and it cannot be ignored. However, there are still many who are skeptical and say there is no discussion needed in the matter (Latour 2013). We have to convince society that this is a problem and that we know what we have fight for.

As mentioned before, there are two main types of future scenarios in relation to the idea of the Anthropocene. Firstly is the world that is working towards a Utopia which is similar to our own future scenario design. The film Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind directed by Hayao Miyazaki in 1984 is set 1000 years after the apocalyptic catastrophe “The Seven Days of Fire” where the world’s environment is perilous and toxic. Nausicaä, who’s is based on the “The Princess Who Loved Insects” from a tale told during Japan’s Heian Period, lives to restore the past plights of humanity and reconnect humanity with the Earth. The film was actually supported by the government-free Wolrd Wide Fund for Nature due its message that the environment must be preserved and looked after. Ideas of how design can help repair the environment can be seen through the peaceful people of The Valley of the Wind. They have large windmills which pump up clean water from the Earth and they solely rely on plants and their remaining environment to survive. (Deep Focus Review 2015)

On the other hand, there is the depiction of a dystopian world such as the crazy desert world in the film Mad Max: Fury Road directed by George Miller in 2015. The film is set 45 years in the future and demonstrates the impact that fossil fuels and the lack of resources could have on the future of the Earth. This is the opposite outcome to our own future scenario design. Actor Charlize Theron has spoken about how the film portrays humanities darkest environmental nightmares which are slowly coming true today. She talks about the grand shot of the thunder-sandstorm in the film being far-fetched, “But there are images on Google right now of Sahara desert sand being blown, in that state, all through Africa. And that’s frightening…What makes [the film] even scarier is that it is something that is not far off if we don’t pull it together.” (Shoard 2015).

We cannot ignore these visualisations of the future as they can easily become true in the future. Climate change is worsening and the Earth is struggling to accommodate the needs of human beings. The Anthropocene is here and we must react to it.

Bibliography:

Deep Focus Review 2015, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, viewed 25 September 2015, <http://www.deepfocusreview.com/reviews/nausicaaofthevalleyofthewind.asp>

Kasunic, J.L. 2015, ‘lecture notes: change us to suit the world: living in the anthropocene and why designers need to act now’, UTS Subject85202, lecture, UTS Sydney.

Latour, B. 2013, ‘Telling friends from foes in the time of the anthropocene’, The anthropocene and the global environment crisis- rethinking modernity in a new epoch, London, Routledge, pp. 145-155.

Mad Max: Fury Road 2015, motion picture, Warner Bros. Pictures, Australia.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind 1984, motion picture, Madman Entertainment, Japan.

Shoard, C. 2015, ‘Charlize Theron: Mad Max landscape awaits unless we tackle climate change’, The Guardian, 15 May, viewed 25 September 2015, <http://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/may/14/charlize-theron-mad-max-landscape-awaits-unless-we-tackle-climate-change>

Steffen,W.et al. 2011, ’The anthropocene: conceptual and historical perspectives’, Philosophical Transactions A, viewed 20 September 2015,<http://rsta.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/369/1938/842.short#sec-7&gt>

Stomberg, J. 2013,’What is the Anthropocene and Are We in It?’, Science and Nature, weblog, Smithsonian.com, viewed 22 September 2015, <http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/what-is-the-anthropocene-and-are-we-in-it-164801414/?no-ist>

Speculative Object [brainstorm]

Posted on by laurenelaine42

In our final class before out mid-sem break, we began to brainstorm ideas for our OneWorld speculative object, situated in New York City. In out mindmap, we focused on the main areas we explored in our scenario which were education, environment, economy, politics, home life, food, water, architecture, fashion, health, relationships, transport culture and work.

Brainstorm

From this initial mindmap, we selected the following five areas to focus our brainstorm on:

ECONOMY/POLITICS:

  • Personal energy quote integrated into everyday life – clothing, part of the architecture of a house/ residence, personal identification code
  • Use clothing collar to create energy for you house – feed energy back into the architecture
  • Collar is like a tube that collects energy by wind passing through
  • Grooves/indents underneath collar to place on docking station to collect and distribute energy – energy feeds back into the grid and government redistributes/ rations the energy back.
  • Each building has gym facility/ swimming pool – people would have an active/ workout quote: helps with health problems and assists with accumulating energy
  • Increases social life by working out and exercising as a community – community goals of creating clean and sustainable energy
  • Use old train lines as a tunnel system for exercise to avoid battling with temperamental weather – good alternative for pedestrians incase weather is bad

ENVIRONMENT:

  • Response to higher water levels
  • Drainage system – floating, hydraulics, barrier system (sand bags)
  • Use drainage system to protect New York city from temperamental weather and rising water levels resulting in flooding/ tsunami
  • Use higher water levels as an energy source – strong currents, water whirl pools, strong winds, drainage system captures energy of the movement of water
  • Drainage system redistributes where the water goes

CULTURE/ARCHITECTURE:

  • Appropriation of religious buildings and spaces into usable and profitable space
  • Used as refuge housing for immigrants along with migrant pods
  • Transformed into community and family housing – reconfigure architecture to bring up-to-date to current environmental standards
  • Use as education hubs for people – enforce community spirit in society
  • Use as space for exercise/ gym for people to generate their own energy

FASHION:

  • Multipurpose garment: functional, weather proof, durable, recyclable, protective, self-cleaning and androgynous
  • Integrated face-masks for pollution and a ‘garment generator’ that controls the physical and aesthetic form such as removing sleeves and thickening or thinning fabric depending on climate
  • Garment response to the lack of resources in society, the need for protection from the elements and the importance of reusing
  • Use objects to their full potential – burning energy that in turn creates more energy
  • Focus on the digital technology integrated into clothing

HEALTH:

  • Response to respiratory problems – body modification linked to your personal ID code
  • Chip or type of implant into the human body and creates an invisible barrier between people and the harmful air quality of the Earth
  • Air pollution is harmful to humans health but new technologies and using clean energy is helping to rebuild and restore the Earth’s atmosphere
  • Integration of respiratory device into fashion such as computerised collar or face-mask
  • New forms and types of medical equipment that have created faster solutions for disease and illnesses such as respiratory problems, cancer etc.

In the break, we will expand on these ideas and will generate some sketches of speculative objects to respond to our scenario.

Interim Feedback.

Posted on by laurenelaine42

Here are some feedback notes that we made from our interim presentation of our blog:

  • Think about the dynamic of our blog – should all the headings be in caps or lower case? Are we shouting our point or simply presenting it?
  • Main image is effective for our group identity – Super Studio image.
  • Include more studio class work and process work – quadrant exercises, scenario development, feedback.
  • Make sure we reference correctly – in-text reference, hyperlinks to reference and/or other interesting readings, videos or articles, caption images with reference.
  • Compare different sources in our blog posts to get different insights and perspectives.
  • Comment on each others blog posts for feedback and to improve our communication as a group.
  • Write blog posts as we learn more about the topics, instigating further research, directing our attention to area’s we may not have considered.
  • Ensure all posts are tagged appropriately.
  • Explore and exploit hyperlinks.

From this feedback, we have created an action plan in preparation for Task 2 and also to improve our blog:

  • Each write our second Big Ideas blog post.
  • Select our quadrant/ scenario we want to explore for Task 2 and begin brainstorming.
  • Begin brainstorming about how we want to present our chosen scenario.
  • Meet in our two hour break after the lecture this week to work on and finalise our Task 2 presentation.

Quadrant Exercise.

Posted on by laurenelaine42

This is the first quadrant exercise that we completed in our studio tutorial which has assisted us in envisaging possible future scenarios.

We began by selecting our variables which were Resource Scarcity/ Resource Abundance and Local Sharing Economy/ Corporatisation. Using post-it notes, we started to brainstorm aspects of these variables such as access to food and water, the environment, education and health. Through this brainstorming of ideas, we created four very different future scenarios.

This exercise was a great way to create our own future scenarios which we can then explore and develop further.

wk2_quadrants