I’m upset.
I live in this beautiful country, where comfort and style are always put first. I’m surrounded by amazing architecture, first-class facilities, and luxurious services. So where’s the disappointment? As luxurious as life can be out here, it comes at a high price – and I’m not just talking about the financial side of things…
Ecology? Not my thing.
I just came back from the mall. It has been ridiculously hot outside this week. Temperatures are reaching 50 degrees Celsius.
Despite this heat, I still need to take a sweater with me when I go shopping, since the ubiquitous shopping center AC systems work tirelessly to keep the temperature below 20 degrees. On my way to the market, I pass the ice skating rink – surprisingly a very popular attraction in the desert.
Once I’m done with shopping and am ready to pay, I’m actually not allowed to put my groceries on the belt at the cashier counter. A dedicated member of staff is already doing it for me. Packing? No, ma’am, we’ll pack everything for you.
And there it begins. One separate plastic bag for the yogurt, so it doesn’t spill. One for each fruit. Eggs? Double plastic bag. Usually, all tied with a knot making it impossible to ever reuse them. Plastic bags in excess everywhere. I try to reduce the excess, even just a little – at this point, I’m so tired of politely declining and explaining that my cotton tote bag is enough. And tired of returning home to discover that despite my requests, plastic bags were smuggled inside my eco-friendly tote anyway. I didn’t realize I was playing a game with packers, yet somehow they always win. It could almost be scene from a sketch comedy show, yet at the same time, it is no laughing matter.
So far I haven’t seen a single person in this country refuse to take the free plastic bags when shopping.
All inclusive?
A couple of weeks ago we went for an iftar dinner (dinner at the break of fast during the month of Ramadan). A nice restaurant in a beautiful district (The Pearl – if you haven’t been to Doha yet, google it, it’s gorgeous). My husband and I are vegetarian and were not fasting, so we were looking for a light meatless dinner. Despite our clear requests, the restaurant had a different vision of our perfect evening meal. Waiters kept on bringing to the table dishes we didn’t order, and definitely didn’t want to eat, including lamb, chicken, and beef. An abundance of unwanted food. A demonstration of richness, a “luxurious” experience. A dozen beautiful dishes we did not ask for ended up in the trash.
Regardless of the tasty food and beautiful interior, we left sad and with a sense of guilt that we had contributed to a thoughtless & wasteful business.
Entire product lifecycle
On an everyday basis I encounter services that are beautifully designed in terms of the experience during service consumption, but give very little thought to what happens before and after.
I believe it’s the designer’s responsibility to examine the whole lifecycle of a product or service, measuring not only the direct comfort of use for the consumer but also the impact it has on the world around us.
Comfort and style mean very little when you cause long-term damage. It’s your role as a designer (whether designing a supermarket service experience or soap packaging) to evaluate the impact of your projects.
Is designing for the whole product lifecycle even possible? I believe it is.
Pangea Organics is an American brand of organic cosmetics that maintains handcrafted, organic and cruelty-free manufacturing principles.
Once you have taken the soap out, you can soak the box in water, then literally toss it in your backyard and wait for wildflowers to spring. Their 100% compostable, biodegradable and plantable product packaging has been embedded with wildflower seeds. Moreover, it perfectly communicates Pangea’s brand values and their care for the full lifecycle of the product.
Another great example of thoughtful service design. IKEA is not only the world’s largest furniture retailer. It’s also the world’s largest producer of paper packaging. In their latest project, presented at Cannes Lions two weeks ago, IKEA aims to facilitate creative play by empowering kids to turn an old box into something completely new. Less waste, reused packaging and a celebration of creativity. Kudos IKEA!
Check out the IKEA toybox video:
Do you think about the entire lifecycle of the product you’re using or designing?
Consumer evolution
Last week I returned from my third trip to Sri Lanka and reflected how different it was from my first Sri Lankan experience 6 years ago. Back then I was a silly tourist, longing for all tourist attractions, trusting my tourist guide and not giving reflective thought to my holiday activities. I rode an elephant, played with chained monkeys and supported their owners, posed for pictures with snakes and their charmers, visited elephant “orphanages”, turtle hatching spots and ate all kinds of meat. Shame on me.
My trip last month was more conscious. I didn’t visit any places harming animals. Instead of zoos, I chose safaris in national parks. I enjoyed local vegetarian food, practiced yoga at sunrise on the rooftop of our house and meditated in Buddhist temples. Including values and thoughtfulness made my experiences more meaningful and enjoyable.
Am I a different person? Probably not. But over the years I came across people, books and other sources of information that have made me understand the impact of my actions. This has changed the way I make decisions, even the ones concerning little everyday things.
Open your eyes & step up
I believe people aren’t bad most of the time. Quite often they are simply ignorant and reluctant to learn. But for that there’s hope. The role of the designer is to make visible the costs of the choices we make, to plant the seeds of thought in the minds of unenlightened consumers.
And if you think all this additional effort is counterintuitive to profit, I believe you’re wrong. Consumers have become more and more conscious, have started demanding sustainable solutions and have a myriad of ways to display their dissatisfaction with egregious offenders.
Recently I discovered a new supermarket, further away from home. They’re slightly more expensive, but have no plastic bags, only paper, and reusable totes. They’re crowded. I’ll be visiting them more often too.
Fancy restaurant in The Pearl wasting food? Regardless of the delicious meals, I’m not stepping my foot there ever again.
Good design thinkers observe.
Great design thinkers observe the ordinary.Tim Brown, IDEO
Whether you’re a designer working on a new product, an entrepreneur starting a new venture or a consumer making purchase decisions, you have the possibility to make a change. Observe the world around you. The services, the products, the experiences. What happens before they are delivered? What happens afterwards? Are you comfortable with this?
Observe, ask questions, demand, improve, educate.
It might be challenging at times, but you’ll do us all a favor. And maybe in the near future, the term luxurious will also be synonymous with sustainable, organic, ecological and mindful.
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If you would like to find out more about the designer’s role, check my post Good design – what is it about?