Keywords: systemic design, synthesis map, communication design
Client: Bounce Beyond, the Bioregional learning centre (BLC), Fibreshed
Role: Redesign of a synthesis map
Co-designed with: Professor Peter Jones
The perils of fast fashion cycles have long been recognized as a major source of greenhouse gas emissions from the textiles industry. However, seasonal trends, aggressive marketing and consumer mobilization has convinced some producers to re-think the systems involved in this industry. Fibreshed works towards the creation of local textile life-cycles, involving all stakeholders within a bioregion and adopting environmentally conscious practices in the production, supply and consumption of fibre-based products.
Through the Bounce Beyond initiative, Fibreshed and the Bioregional Learning Centre (BLC) collaborated with MDes students of the Strategic Foresight and Innovation Design program at the Ontario College of Art and Design University, Toronto, Canada. Under the guidance of Professor Peter Jones, a team of students worked with Fibreshed and BLC to map their progress in developing a local economy for fibre-based products. Through this project, the team developed a synthesis map, applying systemic design principles to chart a systems approach to developing fibre-based economies.
The MDes team was able to create a synthesis map, reproducing Fibreshed's story in a visual format, highlighting the complexities of the ecosystem, and the way forward in this journey. Peter and I then refined the content and visuals of the synthesis map, that could be used by the clients for engaging with stakeholders, and provide elements that could be used for digital collaterals, such as their website, pamphlets and other communication media. The map was released with a creative commons licence, and published at the Related Systems Thinking and Design Conference in 2023.
Publications
Jones, P. and Arun Kumar, P. (2023). Fibreshed: A positive alternative for the fashion industry, consumers, and the planet. In: Proceedings of Related Systems Thinking and Design RSD12 2023 Symposium, Georgetown University, Washington, D. C. https://rsdsymposium.org/fibreshed/