Misleading consumers has always been an issue, but greenwashing is particularly dangerous as it distracts us from the harm caused by our purchasing habits.

Design has long been considered forward-thinking, creative, and innovative, but modern designers are constrained by profit margins. Design is treated as little more than a differentiator in a market that changes so rapidly most products are forgotten after a year.

Sustainability in business is a new territory that can seem daunting in a world driven by efficiency and speed to market. Companies have hesitated to make major moves towards sustainable practices and have fallen behind the demand of the general public.

Life cycle assessments, or LCAs, tell us where our projects may have the biggest ecological impacts. The information gathered can support sustainability claims, aid marketing, and show areas for improvement, but some impacts are not addressed.

Biomimicry is a bioinspired design tactic that emulates natural functions to solve problems. Nature has been designing iteratively for eons and has already answered many of our most pressing design questions.

Design thinking is used to guide us to a “perfect” solution that is needed, wanted, and actionable. This process can be used to solve problems across disciplines and business sectors. How can we integrate sustainability efforts?

The circular economy has been a popular topic amongst companies aiming to reduce their carbon footprint, but the term is often misused.

A great way to introduce yourself to sustainable practices is to follow a framework. There are many to choose from depending on discipline, complexity, and motives. Today we will discuss three globally recognized frameworks that guide decision makers toward better practices.

There are countless ways to define sustainability, but any truly sustainable endeavor must equally consider people, planet, and profit - the Triple Bottom Line.