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DCL
The folks who design for our future are looking to us for clues to helping people go greener. How about using humor?
I recently wrote about how designers are incorporating people's behavior in their "design thinking." This 'power to the people' premise only goes so far (although, it is virtuous to always consider the consumer's needs). The next common sense step to sustainable design is to implement a shift people's behavior towards, let's say - garbage and recycling.
My family was recently reminiscing about a trip we took to Spain to visit relatives. I asked one of my kids what made them smile from their visit abroad. He said that when we got to the small town of Sitges, he liked the messages on the sides of the trash receptacles that dotted the streets. Go figure -- not the topless sunbathers? Anyway, I thought about this, and realized that there was a loud and clear message occurring in this town and it was...funny (maybe a little more cute than funny).
Either way, there was an obvious persuasive behavioral shift stemming from good "design thinking" happening in Sitges. The town was so clean and pristine looking that the residents wouldn't think about not recycling their cans, or throwing garbage on the ground, or not cleaning up after their pet. So, the visitors followed suit. There was a conscious effort made by whoever decided to hire a graphic designer whose goal must have been to impact change through the posters on the trashcans. Check out the "design thinking" here: (Are we the only people who take pictures of garbage cans when we travel?)
You may have seen these videos by Rolighetsteorin before that take a simple problem and answer it in a fun way that is intentionally meant to change people's behavior for the better. Could it be this easy?
