I've recently attended a design thinking workshop which got me thinking about how ecology and design thinking can be integrated. My first thought was that the study of ecology and natural systems could help a lot in designing a sound ecosystem and thus ecology could inform the process of design thinking in how to design for a sustainable harmonious ecosystem that mirrors the laws of nature.
A second though on how to integrate ecology and design thinking, which is not too far from the first thought, is that design thinking can be an interesting approach to use when attempting to design actual environmentally sound systems that are ecologically resilient and sustainable.
I think that the study of design thinking would be a good step for me forward in order to get me closer to my ultimate goals which is effecting change in the current system through installing appropriate interventions which would lead to a more ecologically sound environment for humans to live in harmoniously and thrive in a sustainable way.
A second though on how to integrate ecology and design thinking, which is not too far from the first thought, is that design thinking can be an interesting approach to use when attempting to design actual environmentally sound systems that are ecologically resilient and sustainable.
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HEy Ashraf, that sound like the permaculture principle of THINK FIRST (80%) and then ACT (20%)...I think we should work a lot on the design question, especially on SOCIAL Design...taking into account local, cultural uniqueness and global best practice. Nature is the best example for global-local adaptation. Recently, I engaged with some people (you might also know) in discussion on this topic and we found some interesting websites:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.epea.com/en Cradle-to-Cradle or circular economy approach in product design. Great principles behind. They distinguish between technological cycle and natural cycle! One related expert is here at Cairo and is very active and wants to do a project and set up a C2C center! Ideas welcome!
http://businessinspiredbynature.com/ I quote: "BCI is a network of creative innovators, professional change agents, biologists and design professionals who work in creative collaboration with each other and our clients to apply ecological thinking for radical transformation."
http://biomimicry.net/ I quote: "Biomimicry 3.8 is the global leader in biomimicry innovation consulting, professional training, and educational program and curricula development."
Also a great book in this field from Giles Hutchins: http://thenatureofbusiness.org/2012/08/23/giles-hutchins-introduces-the-nature-of-business/ He actually links this book to an interesting blog
I am sure you know some of the links...
Thanks for sharing those wonderful links. The BCI in particular caught my attention. I'll attempt to investigate it further.
ReplyDeleteOne of the phases of Design Thinking is to look in a completely different direction to get inspiration. For instance, if you are designing a library you might go visit an Chinese restaurant to get inspiration on how to design your new library in an innovative way. It occurred to me that ecology could also be a good source for inspiration when designing just about anything even if on the surface it would seem unrelated.