S-Tiles - il ruolo del design

THE ROLE OF DESIGN

In the Sustainability is Now section we tackle the issue of how to build in a sustainable way, how to reduce the environmental and social impact of buildings and infrastructures, what are its principles, techniques and most appropriate materials… We cite representative examples of sustainable building, we describe policies and legislation promoting good practices and, finally, we list the many events, awards and competitions devoted to this issue.

Here, on the other hand, we would like to underline the role of design in pushing for a responsible growth and at the same time limiting the diffusion of unsustainable behaviour. We refer to the overall design world: from design of materials to that of products and services, from the architectonic project to urban planning, finishing with the most recent ‘network design’. In doing so we would like to raise some open questions intended to stimulate designers’ reflections and, more generally, those of the many people involved in one way or another in the world of design.

Is it still possible (and/or feasible) to think today of design as a creative/technical activity of individuals? How much does the designer gain (or lose) in acting out such an exclusive role?

How is it possible to reconcile the anthropocentric dimension on which all western culture - design included - developed itself with the new awareness about limits and the necessity to best cohabit with thousands of other species? Do these considerations have an impact on the sustainability project, for instance in the sectors related to the ceramic industry, or is nobody thinking about this?

How can we design in such a way to reduce not just physical but also semantic, saturation of the places where we live?

Many observers recognise that the physical dimension (energy and material flows) constitutes only one element of the project, sometimes not even the most relevant one. How are its relational aspects considered (from an economic, institutional and social point of view)? What about the ethical, aesthetic and cultural aspects?