In 1987, Brundtland Report coined the term “sustainable development” for the most frequently cited explanation for current development without compromising the ability of future generations. The definition’s explicit anthropocentric focus emphasizes social justice and human needs for operational stability in the environment. Initially associated with human dependence on ecosystem services, the theoretical understanding of the concept has evolved. It has now shifted from a static goal to a dynamic target that responds to our knowledge of interdependencies between social and ecological systems.
According to the current understanding, sustainability is a system property and not a property of individual elements of systems. It thus requires a multi-scale systemic approach guided by a vision rather than a traditional goal-based optimization approach. This approach requires technological interventions and social, behavioral, institutional, and organizational change at every interval.
Similarly, the evolution of the design discipline towards sustainability issues has brought in a broad field of “Design for Sustainability”. A sustainable product design is popularly known as eco-design, “green” design, or design for the environment. The key factors of these designs include remanufacturing, disassembly and sustainability. The recycled materials are reduced to standardized raw materials, thereby discarding their function. The product design produced from recycled materials facilitates waste reduction through modification, materials mixture, redesigning compatibility, and adopting materials coding systems.
For instance, Nike shoes are a perfect example of eco-friendly design products. The first Nike performance basketball shoes were produced from manufacturing waste materials to create a sustainable, high-performance basketball shoe. Nike utilized synthetic leather waste from the products factory floor, scrap-ground foam, low-toxin, environmentally preferred rubber, and cardboard shoe boxes to produce Nike recycled shoes. To date, the company continues to encourage designers to create more sustainable products.
But the human’s attachment to designs that include non-sustainable elements rigorously pushes the companies to go against the rising awareness about sustainable edging. When customers have high expectations from products and services, they can quickly express their dissatisfaction through social media, call centers, emails, and instant messaging. Many emerging and young companies find it extremely difficult to fulfill both environmental and consumer satisfaction together. Consequently, they are forced to take up practical decisions about adopting new technologies and designs to meet customer expectations positively.
As an evolutionary economic theory, technological development is interlinked with a context-specific selection of the most suitable options along the path of sustainability. This route of interlinked technologies evolves innovation in one sector, which then triggers the development and use of other related technologies in various industries that are less harmful. Hence, sustainability is an individual goal that requires collective achievement.
