January 2021: Sustainability & Design
The National Design Centre (NDC) is ushering a brand new year with a challenge for all of us, whether you’re a designer, producer and/or consumer. We’ve integral roles to play in optimising our planet’s resources and protecting the environment. So why not make it one of your 2021’s resolutions to better care for the world you live in? We give you a head start with the exciting lineup of events this month that showcase how design can boost our sustainability efforts.
Showcases
R For Repair
Duration: 13 Jan – 6 Feb 2021, 9am – 9pm daily
Venue: Atrium, Level 1
When was the last time you wanted to repair a faulty product? Not too long ago, repair was the first response to a broken or worn-out item, until mass consumption made it easier and cheaper to replace. This exhibition counters the modern consumerist culture, where repair is either deprecated or even deemed extravagant, and shifts the concept of repair away from mere restoration to reimagining it as an inspiring activity that produces aspiring outcomes.
Find out more here.
Workshops & Talks
The Race for Sustainability
Date/Time: 7 Jan 2021, 5pm (Pre-recorded session)
Venue:
Online Sustainability is a complex word; more than just environmentalism, it also encompasses socio-economic dimensions in delivering long-term prosperity. Business leaders share how they address sustainability in these dimensions, using design thinking to promote the sustainable design of products, environments and livelihoods. This session is a plenary on Sustainability, presented at the “Catalysing Innovation with Design” segment of the TechInnovation 2020 virtual conference.
Find out more here.
Build Sustainability with Beauty and Burgers
Date/Time: 14 Jan 2021, 4pm – 5.10pm
Venue: Online
Would you like to explore the potential opportunities of sustainability with beauty or burgers? Speakers from Burger King Singapore and Shiseido Asia Pacific will share their goal of enhancing sustainability efforts through design by collaborating with designers to reduce waste and upcycle with innovative and smart solutions. This is a great opportunity for designers to work on enhancing the value of personal care products and the hospitality business.
Find out more here.
The Beauty of Good Design and Its Effect on Sustainability
Date/Time: 19 Jan 2021, 5.30pm – 6.15pm
Venue: Online
With the increased saturation of the design scene, many are left to wonder, what is good design? Is there a more objective way to evaluate design? How can good design promote sustainability in our community? Hear from speakers Dr. Christian Gilles Boucharenc and Hans Tan as they illustrate their evaluation framework for good design and how it plays a role in the timelessness of objects. This event accompanies the National Vending Gallery: Topic No. 2 Future Past.
Find out more here.
Unlocking the Power of Clothing – UNIQLO’s Sustainability
Date/Time: 20 Jan 2021, 2pm – 3.30pm
Venue: Onlin
Join one of the world’s biggest fashion retailer, UNIQLO, and learn more about the spirit behind its efforts towards building a better, more sustainable society, and the steps it has taken to accelerate the shift to a circular business approach through the RE.UNIQLO initiative. Gain insights and explore ways to be more sustainable through product design and innovative production methods from UNIQLO’s sustainability and merchandising specialists.
Find out more here.
R For Repair: e-Workshops
ate/Time: 23 Jan 2021, 10am & 11am / 30 Jan 2021, 10am & 11am (each session runs for 45 mins)
Venue: Online
A missing piece of jigsaw puzzle, a torn canvas bag, a ragged shoe, an unsightly exposed wall plug. If you have these or similar worn-out, faulty or blemished items, join us for a series of repair workshops and learn how to repair them creatively. Participants will receive unusual repair kits that will not only enable you to restore the utility of your item, you’ll transform it too! Limited slots available. Applicable to Singapore residents only.
Find out more here.
Inside The Creative Mind: Fireside Live Chat
Date/Time: 26 Jan 2021, 6.45pm – 7.30pm
Venue: Online
Culture and innovation when addressing particular urban challenges can take on different meanings if viewed through the lens of academics and practitioners of varied geographies or disciplines. Prof. Jason Pomeroy, founder of interdisciplinary design and research firm Pomeroy Studio and sustainable education provider Pomeroy Academy, will provide broad perspectives on how culture and innovation contribute to the sustainability agenda of global cities today, and share rich insights on shaping the cities of tomorrow.
Find out more here.
Delivering on a Sustainable Design Intent
Date/Time: 27 Jan 2021, 4.30pm – 6pm
Venue: Online
While following through on a sustainable design intent isn’t always easy, there’s no time to waste in tackling climate change and other issues. What are the biggest barriers to achieving more environmentally-sustainable cities, buildings, interiors and products? Are there viable ways to overcome them? When do top-down regulations need to be bolstered by bottom-up sustainability initiatives? A panel of designers address the ethical and economic factors at play in the pursuit of sustainable design.
Find out more here.
Contact
Name: National Design Centre
Email: info@designsingapore.org
