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Keeping up with the Greens

Sustainability becomes a part our traditional educational curricula.


The tidal wave of Green-related events, articles and other resources keeps piling on, and it’s beginning to feel like it’ll take a full-time job just to keep track of them all. The most recent ones to come across our short attention spans are Greengaged, a series of workshops, exhibitions and classes being put on by the Design Council in the UK.

We’ve also discovered (albeit a bit late) this session put on by o2NYC in 2007 that underscored the need for better communication between designer and printer to come up with more eco-friendly solutions. Then there’s the Organic Design Operatives, which has a tonne of useful news and resources for the aspiring conscientious designer including their updated 2008 eco-design toolkit.

On the more traditional educational front I’m used to seeing Sustainable Design refer to the architectural disciplines, but more and more I’m seeing Graphic Design schools step up. MCAD has started a Certificate Program on Sustainable Design geared towards graphic and product designers. This 18 credit course of study covers everything from Life Cycle Analysis to Green marketing and Sustainability and Everyday Choices. I’m, actually thinking of signing up for the Green Packaging course starting this Fall ( I’ll keep you posted on what I learn from the experience).

Other schools incorporating sustainability in their design curriculum are the Art Institute of California and our very own SCAD.

Does it mean that Sustainability is a legitimate graphic design issue now that it’s becoming a part our traditional educational curricula?

Andrew Davies

Drew's degrees in Illustration, 2D animation and Broadcast Design, and his volleyball skillz mean he can get your design done and play well with others at the same time. He’s the Creative Director at Paragon and will call you out if you start hanging out with shady-looking fonts and messing around with whacked-out color palettes.

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