Considered innovative and radical due to the way they disrupt consumerist lifestyles, ‘sustainable product service systems’ (s.PSS) can reduce the negative environmental impacts from wasteful consumption. An inventory of existing s.PSS solutions in Oceania was carried out to help inspire entrepreneurs and innovators to champion alternative ways of needs fulfilment and to offer added value to customers with less ecological damage. The search encompassed cases of collaborative consumption lifestyles, redistribution markets, distributed production, and the circular economy. Over 140 innovative cases were found. Analysis showed that the majority of cases found were use-oriented PSS, such as product sharing, renting, leasing or pooling, and there were hardly any innovative cases of product- and result-oriented PSS. While many of the PSS cases in the study demonstrated environmental improvement through minimized resources and waste, others in fact were more material and energy intensive and therefore negated the sustainability advantage.

Authors: Mariano Ramirez

This paper reports on the Design-for-Sustainability (DfS) approaches practiced in Australia, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia and Peru to help achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). The study is part of a project funded by the Council on Australian Latin American Relations (COALAR) titled ‘South-to-South: activating Australian Latin American Cooperation through Sustainable Design Education’, which is a collaborative endeavour of DfS educators from 8 universities in the above-named countries. The current phase of the project involves an initial collection of 60 case studies of products, services and systems that deliver positive impacts to society, the environment and the economy in the Australia and Latin America. The SDG case studies will be shared, discussed and built on during the upcoming LeNS South-to-South educators’ symposia, students’ workshops and research collaboration dialogues.

Authors: Mariano Ramirez