Learning Objective
Students will be able to manage visual, physical, and digital assets for the purpose of resource sustainability. They will assess and utilize methods for sustainable ink and paper usage, digital carbon footprint measurement, and can justify design solutions based on economy of use and impact.
Biological Strategy
Leafcutter ant colonies have a strategy to economically transport and distribute leaf cuttings. Forager ants collect leaf cuttings and bring them back to the colony, where processor ants collect and distribute the cuttings. You would think that a leafcutter ant would want to bring back the largest cutting possible, but the ants have an efficient strategy. There are more forager ants than processor ants, so the forager ants have to bring leaves back at a steady pace so that the processor ants don’t get overwhelmed. Forager ants travel in a single-file line; if one ant is carrying too heavy a load they could slow the entire line. The ants transport leaf cuttings that are the optimum size to maintain a steady traveling speed and a reasonable workload for the processor ants.
By the time a design goes into manufacturing, it is usually too late to make the production process more efficient. The designer needs to learn about manufacturing processes and plan ahead.”
- Brian Dougherty in Green Graphic Design, page 104
But designing sustainably–I don’t think I really do that because it would mean I was very efficient, right? Using the least resources possible. But right now, I take a lot of time to design stuff.”
- Design Student, Interview #7