Abstract
Plastic pollution and using up non-renewable resources is a massive problem that we are facing but not nearly enough is being done about it. As the world’s population and consumption increases, the problem will only grow exponentially if we do not take action to change our trajectory. Industrial designers have contributed to this massive problem by designing millions of products that are made out of plastic and unsustainably sourced materials. Is there a practical and effective way to teach industrial design students to design products that can help to restore our environment? This paper unpacks a case study in which industrial design students learned that it is possible to divert pollution from reaching our lands and oceans and save energy and valuable non-renewable resources by upcycling “trash” into “treasure” through the power of design.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
National Geographic Society: A Whopping 91 Percent of Plastic Isn't Recycled. https://www.nationalgeographic.org/article/whopping-91-percent-plastic-isnt-recycled/
When The Mermaids Cry: The Great Plastic Tide. https://plastic-pollution.org/
Perspectives on PE and Vinyl Billboard Recycling. http://www.enkad.net/59401.html
Confronting Plastic Pollution One Bag at a Time. https://blog.epa.gov/tag/plastic-bags/
Fact Sheet: Single Use Plastics. https://www.earthday.org/fact-sheet-single-use-plastics/
Voltmer, C., Giskes, I., Brauner, E., Allexon, K.: Plastics in the Ocean. https://oceanconservancy.org/trash-free-seas/plastics-in-the-ocean/#:~:text=Everyyear,8millionmetric,currentlycirculateourmarineenvironments
The New Plastics Economy: Rethinking the future of plastics & catalysing action. https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/publications/the-new-plastics-economy-rethinking-the-future-of-plastics-catalysing-action
Wood: Material-Specific Data. https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/wood-material-specific-data
U.S. and World Population Clock, https://www.census.gov/popclock/.
Agency, T.C.: How to recycle your campaign lawn signs. https://bangordailynews.com/2020/11/14/news/nation/how-to-recycle-your-campaign-lawn-signs/
Plastics: Material-Specific Data. https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/plastics-material-specific-data
Fela, J.: Every minute of every day, the equivalent of one truckload of plastic enters the sea. https://www.greenpeace.org/international/story/15882/every-minute-of-every-day-the-equivalent-of-one-truckload-of-plastic-enters-the-sea/
Lebreton, L., et al.: Evidence that the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is rapidly accumulating plastic. Sci. Rep. 8, 1 (2018)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2021 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this paper
Cite this paper
Chow, G.K. (2021). Trash to Treasure: An Upcycling Project Case Study. In: Shin, C.S., Di Bucchianico, G., Fukuda, S., Ghim , YG., Montagna, G., Carvalho, C. (eds) Advances in Industrial Design. AHFE 2021. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, vol 260. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80829-7_18
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80829-7_18
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-80828-0
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-80829-7
eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)