In this unit, students become ethical designers by engaging with the principles of upcycling. They will identify and consult with a specific client, investigate their needs, and design a product using only recycled or scrap wood.Â
The project empowers students to think critically about sustainability, resourcefulness, and ethical responsibility in design while developing practical skills in ideation, prototyping, and creation.Â
By merging creativity with empathy, students will produce functional and meaningful designs that address a real user’s needs and minimise environmental impact.
Designers who use sustainable resources and consider client needs can create ethical products that have a positive impact on both people and the environment.
Development
Resources, Function, Sustainability
Globalization and Sustainability
What is upcycling, and how does it differ from recycling?
How can designers ensure that their products are both functional and sustainable?
Is it more important for a product to satisfy a client’s needs or to protect the environment?
You will take on the role of an ethical designer working with a real or hypothetical client. Your challenge is to design and make a functional product using only recycled or scrap wood. Your client could be a family member, peer, teacher, or someone else in the community, but the client’s needs and context must clearly inform the outcome.
The product could be functional (e.g., small furniture, storage solutions, household organizers) or aesthetic (e.g., decorative objects, artistic installations)
For Criterion A, you will be conducting research to develop your Design Brief. You will deliver this as a presentation that includes your research into the issue of waste and upcycling in design, focusing on how ethical designers address both environmental and client needs.
Briefly outline the challenge: designing a product from recycled wood to solve a client’s specific need.
Explain why reducing wood waste and practicing upcycling is important for designers today. Highlight your responsibilities as an ethical, sustainable designer.
Introduce your client and describe their main needs or problems. Share insights from any interviews or quick observations.
Share and describe 2–3 case studies or examples of upcycling wood or tackling waste in design.Â
Analyze one example of an effective upcycled product that inspired you. You may wish to refer to the ACCESSFM methodology to conduct your analysis.
Summarize the problem of wood waste and introduce your chosen client, clearly outlining their specific needs.
Present your research findings, including two to three key facts about upcycling or wood waste and an analysis of at least one existing upcycled wood product.
Define your objective: to design and create an upcycled wooden product that solves your client’s need in a sustainable, ethical way.
Broadly explain the deliverables for the project, such as the final upcycled product and any supporting presentation or documentation.
Summarize the main points discussed in the presentation.
Review the value of upcycling and how it can help with your client's needs.
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(3 or more of)
i. states the need for a solution to a problem for a specified client/target audience
i. outlines the need for a solution to a problem for a specified client/target audience
i. explains the need for a solution to a problem for a specified client/target audience
i. explains and justifies the need for a solution to a problem for a client/target audience
ii. outlines a research plan, which identifies primary and secondary research needed to develop a solution to the problem, with some guidance
ii. constructs a research plan, which identifies and prioritizes primary and secondary research needed to develop a solution to the problem, with some guidance
ii. constructs a detailed research plan, which identifies and prioritizes the primary and secondary research needed to develop a solution to the problem independently
iii. analyses one existing product that inspires a solution to the problem
iii. analyses a range of existing products that inspire a solution to the problem
iii. analyses a range of existing products that inspire a solution to the problem in detail
iv. develops a basic design brief, which states the findings of relevant research
iv. develops a design brief, which outlines the analysis of relevant research
iv. develops a design brief, which explains the analysis of relevant research
iv. develops a detailed design brief, which summarizes the analysis of relevant research