short talk in ntu doctoral school postgraduate research conference 2016: sustainable production and...

Kyungeun Sung, Sustainable Consumption Research Group, School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment

Kyungeun Sung Supervised by Tim Cooper & Sarah Kettley Sustainable Consumption Research Group

School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment

Sustainable production and consumption by upcycling: Understanding and scaling up niche

environmentally significant behaviour

NTU Doctoral School Postgraduate Research Conference 2016 (short talk)


Introduction: Project background

UK target: Reductions in GHGs by 80% from 1990 levels by 2050.

Government’s commitment: RCUK Energy Programme.

CIE-MAP goal: Identify opportunities that may ultimately deliver a reduction in GHGs.


Introduction: Longer lifetimes for industry energy reduction

Embodied energy: the total (direct + indirect) energy for the production (Costanza, 1980)

Material efficiency: reducing the amount of new material inputs per given level of service/output reduce energy demand for industry (S. Cooper et a.,

2016)

Product lifetime extension: reducing demand for new products/production increase material efficiency (T. Cooper, 2010)


Introduction: Product lifetimes extension

Exception: more energy efficient products for high energy consuming products (e.g. washing machine)(e.g. Brezet et al., 1997; Charter & Tischner, 2001)

Strategies: durable design; professional repair and upgrade services (Cooper,

2002)

Durable design: negative perception from manufacturers; early replacement buyers’ concern; durability as low priority for purchasing decision; frequent relative obsolescence (e.g. Cooper, 2004; Van Nes and Cramer, 2005)

Repair and upgrade service: high cost of labour relative to energy and raw materials (Cooper, 1999)


Introduction: Consumer trend of upcycling

Creation or modification of any product out of used materials in an attempt to result in a product of higher quality or value than the compositional elements (Sung et al., 2014)



Creation or modification of any product out of used materials in an attempt to result in a product of higher quality or value than the compositional elements (Sung et al., 2014)

No need to force manufacturers

No need to pay for professional services

Add new features + change design/style

Alternative to durable design + professional services



Contemporary maker movement

Readily available physical resources (e.g. Hackspace)

Shared digital resources (e.g. Instructables)


Introduction: Research question

Despite growing interest, still a marginal activity

Scaled up (Ceschin, 2012; Van den Bosch, 2010) extended lifetimes increased material efficiency reduced embodied energy GHGs reduction

How can this emerging, yet still marginal activity, be scaled up into a mainstream everyday activity in households (and beyond) to make a bigger impact on the environment and society?


Introduction: Aims and objectives

Aim: develop actionable strategies for upscaling upcycling in households (and beyond) to contribute ultimately to the reduction of GHGs

Objectives:

1. Gain insights into upcycling in the UK

2. Identify UK-specific key factors influencing upcycling

3. Formulate design and policy interventions for upscaling upcycling


Research methods


Results: Key findings from interviews and a survey Study Category 1 Category 2 Findings

Understanding consumer upcycling

Approaches to upcycling

Materials for upcycling Wood, electronics, fabric and packaging as common materials

Ways of acquiring materials Online shops and networks as common source of materials

Material selection criteria Value, cost saving, and relatively high quality as main criteria

End product usage Mainly for oneself but high aspiration for commercialisation

Context

When Mainly any time suits one

How often Wide spectrum from enthusiasts to pragmatic makers

Where Predominantly at home

With whom Mainly by oneself, but high demand for people with similar interests or good collaborators

Identifying key factors influencing upcycling

Descriptive statistics Psychological/emotional benefits more common than economic or environmental benefits

Correlation Tools, materials, teachers, skills training, imagination, inspiration, information significantly correlated to upcycling

Logistic regression Intention, attitude and subjective norm as relatively more important factors

Non-parametric statistics for comparing groups High scores from older (30+) females working in art and design


Results: Interventions for scaling up upcycling

Target population – Females working in art and design, aged 30 and older with under £60,000 annual household income – People working in art and design, aged 30 and older with part-time or self-employment

General strategy for scaling up

Shaping intention by building positive attitude and establishing positive subjective norm

First priority interventions for short term success

(1) Improve facilities and services of the community workshops (2) Produce TV shows and other inspirational media to share the best practices

Second priority interventions for short term success

(1) Operate a reuse/upcycle centre with used materials collection and affordable, professional upcycling service within the existing waste management system

(2) Design and provide a service model for improved provision of used materials, components and products

(3) Organise community-based upcycling family events, workshops and training sessions (4) Change government procurement policy to favour upcycled goods

First priority interventions for long-term success

(1) Provide tax benefits and subsidies for upcycling-related businesses (2) Provide grants and subsidies for upcycling-related research and initiatives

Second priority interventions for long-term success

(1) Enrich the curriculum in art, design and engineering from preschool to higher education to equip people with upcycling knowledge and skills


Discussions and conclusion

Meet the aim and objectives

Limitations: generalisability of the data to the overall UK populations (sampling method and sample size)

Applicability of the findings: (1) empirical data UK context; (2) overarching framework and the behaviour model other national contexts and other behaviour domains

Contribution to knowledge: (1) Design – applying Darnton’s framework in DfSB; mixed methods data for idea generation; design intervention beyond product and communication design for DfSB; (2) Psychology – a new combination model; data on behaviour factors of upcycling

Kyungeun Sung, Sustainable Consumption Research Group, School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment Image sources: http://image.slidesharecdn.com/clapresentation-talisopenday-march14-140328085008-phpapp01/95/cla-presentation-talis-open-day-march-14-14-638.jpg?cb=1395996639

Thank you! Any question?

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