Circular Design Deep Dive 2024 Schedule
November 19-20, 2024
Virtual Event
Thank you to our sponsor
Tuesday, November 19
(all times in Eastern Standard Time)
Kickoff & Ice Breaker
11:00-11:30am
Lisa Pellegrino | Soil & Soul
Design for Degrowth
11:30am-12:10pm
Sayeh Dastgheib-Beheshti, IDSA | York University
It is clear that we cannot have infinite economic growth on a finite planet, yet every few years, continued growth of the economy is packaged in a new way to make it palatable for those who see our planetary boundaries. In this talk, Sayeh will talk about the alternative of embracing economic degrowth as a way of enriching our lives by using less, enabling the majority of people living in poverty to live more equitable lives. Such a transformation might seem daunting but it is already happening around the world and industrial designers can play a critical part in creating a degrowth future.
The audience will learn:
- The fundamental principles of degrowth theory
- What a degrowth society would look like
- The role of industrial designers in a degrowth economy
Scalable Manufacturability with 3D
12:10-12:50pm
Oluwaseyi Sosanya | Gravity Sketch
Companies are tasked with creating products in ways that lower resource consumption, waste generation, and the company’s carbon footprint. Initiatives from the C-Suite are put in place to reach carbon neutral manufacturing goals, yet even more can be addressed within the design phase. Designers have the opportunity to revolutionize their workflow for the betterment of the product, if they incorporate digital tools throughout their process.
Incorporating sustainable principles into product design can start with the tools and mediums they select to convey ideas, right through to the tools and mediums they use to communicate with manufacturing teams and factory partners. 3D-first workflows have the power to balance environmental goals with other design priorities while still delivering commercially viable products.
Gravity Sketch CEO Oluwaseyi Sosanya will take you through how 3D tools are evolving to be more human-centric, and in turn opening up the possibilities for more sustainable products.
The audience will learn:
- How embracing a 3D-first mindset can reduce material waste
- Why reducing physical sampling and factory travel to partners doesn’t mean you need to sacrifice communication
- How the move to a 3D-first design mindset benefits designer, engineering teams, the company’s bottom line, and planet!
Sustainable Design in Automotive Plastic Components
12:50-1:30pm
Karen Guzman | Covestro
Circularity requires innovative technologies, designs, material selections, and their effective utilization to conserve valuable resources and minimize the long-term effects of CO₂ emissions. The purpose of this presentation is to demonstrate how engineered plastic solutions and sustainable design can lead to a more sustainable future. It will highlight the principal challenges of achieving Circularity, the importance of collaboration throughout the value chain, and will present specific cases of plastic automotive components that have been redesigned for sustainability, which can be applied to other components and industries.
The audience will learn:
The integration of Engineering Plastics, Design Thinking, Mono-Material approach, Advanced Techniques and other strategies can lead to sustainable designs in automotive components. This approach is versatile and can be applied across various industries and markets to enhance sustainability.
Breakout A: Circular Design Becomes Transformative, Regenerative, Restorative
1:50-2:40pm
Baillie Mishler | PROWL
Lew Epstein | Lot21
Shujan Bertrand | Aplat Inc.
Jason Belaire, IDSA | Belworld Creative
Circular Design is our profession’s growth opportunity to transform the circular economy and tackle climate change simultaneously. Industrial design’s contribution—breakthrough products, packaging, and design practices—impacts lives and livelihoods worldwide across consumer, commercial, and industrial sectors. Given this scale and global reach, every material selection, production method, and transportation decision we make forms a critical part of a holistic circular system. As a result, our roles are influential, and our work is consequential because it leaves a lasting imprint on the environment everywhere.
Guiding principles, common goals, and accountability are needed to ensure our approach is sustainable and scalable for both people and the planet. To that end, UN Sustainable Development Goal #9 focuses on building resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and fostering innovation. It’s a goal around which we can all unite and join with others to broaden its inclusivity.
By adopting these practices, we can drive Circular Design further to create a future filled with the transformative, sustainable solutions that our planet urgently needs.
The audience will learn:
- How human-centered and systemically designed experiences across all touchpoints of the Circular Economy can become transformative worldwide.
- How a holistic approach that employs materials, processes, and technology more responsibly can create regenerative design solutions across multiple industries.
- How carbon utilization, which turns CO2 waste into valuable materials, cultivates a new frontier for circular design and restorative climate solutions for our planet.
Breakout B: Decision Making in Uncertainty
1:50-2:40pm
Lisa Hix | Keene State College
Yes, Circularity in our materials and products is imperative. But what actually is circulating and how do we know it is safe for human health? As designers, we can influence the materials used and the manufacturing processes. Detoxifying our materials stream will reduce negative human health effects for all in a circular economy. The goal of this session is to shed light on how to research what is (or may be) in the materials we select and processes we use. The basics of human health exposure and researching toxics disclosures will be covered along with suggestions for informed decision making and tools available.
The audience will learn:
- How to research and decipher human health information about materials
- Background of toxicity disclosures, transparency and IP
- Basics of the body’s response to toxic exposure and who is vulnerable
- Informed decision making on materials and processes for product design
Recycling Realities
2:50-3:30pm
Barent Roth | Parsons The New School
Recycling has its problems, and we should Reduce and Reuse first, but Recycling must still be part of a Circular Economy as we transition away from single use plastic. New York City alone is currently diverting 1,000 tons a day from landfill of glass, metal, and plastic.
This session will begin with a brief Circular Economy intro, followed by an explanation of the realities behind recycling, including the debunking of many recycling myths currently circulating.
The session will conclude with an explanation of our own efforts at Circular Economy Manufacturing. There we are creating a local Technical Cycle by using our 100% solar powered MicroFactory to recycle single use plastic into durable goods with our innovative rotational molding machine on Governors Island in New York City.
The audience will learn:
- Circular Economy Principles
- Design for Circularity
- Recycling Facts
- Recycling Myths Debunked
- Solar Powered MicroFactory production
- Rotational Molding innovation
Day 1 Closing Remarks
3:30-3:50pm
Lisa Pellegrino | Soil & Soul
Wednesday, November 20
(all times in Eastern Standard Time)
Kickoff & Ice Breaker
11:00-11:30am
Lisa Pellegrino | Soil & Soul
Designing Circular Identity
11:30am-12:10pm
Michael Mossoba | IDEAX
Ever thought about the term “consumer”? It sounds like a zombie that devours everything in sight! To catalyze the circular economy, we need to not only redesign our products, but also our identities. This talk will explore how product design, brand and social identity can create the flywheel of circular future.
The audience will learn:
- The way the language of economics has limited our moral imagination.
- Examples of how design shaped social identities in the past.
- How design can once again shape social identities, this time to meet the environmental challenges and opportunities of the future.
Exploring Role of Artificial Intelligence in Sustainability: Enhancing Skills and Staying Relevant
12:10-12:50pm
Anusha Yella | AT&T
This session explores the transformative impact of AI on sustainability, examining its applications in predictive analytics and optimization algorithms. Attendees will receive strategies for enhancing their skills in this evolving field, emphasizing continuous learning and staying updated with the latest advancements.
The audience will learn:
- AI Applications in Sustainability: Explore real-world uses across industries like renewable energy and waste management.
- Skill Augmentation: Learn practical ways to enhance AI skills for sustainability through training and projects.
- Staying Relevant: Discover strategies to keep up with AI and sustainability advancements, including networking and continuous learning.
The Circular Shift: Reinventing Design Practices
12:50-1:30pm
Gerhard Seizer | Indeed Innovation
Surya Vanka, IDSA | Authentic Design
Stephan Clambaneva, IDSA | PARK
As global challenges escalate, the need to rethink design for a circular economy has never been more urgent. This panel brings together three leading industry experts who are revolutionizing how businesses integrate sustainability into their design processes. They will discuss strategies for driving systemic change, enhancing business resilience through circular design, and advancing the industrial design field on its path toward circularity. Additionally, they will explore how to empower people globally—including non-designers—to generate and test circular solutions to real world challenges. This interactive session will provide attendees with actionable ways to embed circular thinking into their work, inspire companies to reduce environmental impact while unlocking new revenue streams, and share tools and strategies to drive culture change. Don’t miss this chance to learn how to be part of the Circular Shift.
The audience will learn:
- Integrating circular design for business resilience and innovation
- Fostering a sustainability culture within organizations and cities
- Empowering citizen designers to address circular design challenges
Breakout A: Roadmap for Circular Design
1:50-2:40pm
John Skabardonis | Covestro North America
We have to get smarter about how we design, incorporating Design for Repairability, Design for Upgradeability and Design for Disassembly into the product. Circular Design also depends on using materials which can be re-used, over and over again. We will touch upon factors which need to be considered.
The audience will learn:
- Begin with the end in mind
- Don’t buy the hype
- Pros and cons of circular material options
Breakout B: Design + Science–Doing More with Less
1:50-2:40pm
Saurabh Mhatre | Northeastern University
This session explores how the intersection of design and science can leverage geometry, materials, and emerging technologies to achieve more with less. By integrating advanced 3D printing techniques, robotic fabrication, material & fabrication knowledge and multi-disciplinary collaboration, the session demonstrates creating sustainable, functional structures with minimal material usage. By showcasing examples such as Extruded Ceramic Tessellations, multi-material ceramic 3D printing, Apollo Covid Hood , and deployable Kiriform flexures, this session highlights the potential for efficiency and sustainability in modern design practices.
The audience will learn:
- Multi-Disciplinary Design: The importance and novelty of multi-disciplinary collaboration in Design and Science.
- Sustainable Design: Strategies for creating efficient and sustainable products using minimal materials and joineries.
- Practical Applications: Real-world applications of innovative ceramic and deployable structures, emphasizing their potential to enhance modern design while promoting sustainability and circularity.
UPMADE in Estonia: Where Tradition Meets the Future in Circularity and Digital Innovation
2:50-3:30pm
Reet Aus | Reet Aus & Upmade
Nestled in the heart of Northern Europe, Estonia has become a global leader in both design and digital innovation. In this session, Reet Aus, the creator of the UPMADE® certification, will share how Estonia’s minimalist design philosophy has been reimagined to lead the way in sustainability and digital transformation. You’ll learn howUPMADE bridges Estonia’s traditional values with cutting-edge innovations, demonstrating how circular design practices are shaping a more sustainable future. This session offers a unique perspective on how Estonia’s heritage and forward-thinking mindset intersect to drive global change.
The audience will learn:
- Industrial Upcycling as a Scalable Solution to Textile Waste
- Fusing Traditional Minimalism with Modern Sustainable Innovation
- Leveraging Digital Tools to Drive Circularity in Fashion
Closing Remarks
3:30-3:50pm
Lisa Pellegrino | Soil & Soul
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