What is Sustainability?
This concept means meeting our needs today without preventing future generations from meeting theirs.
sustainability
Native Americans practiced this technique, setting small fires to prevent larger wildfires and restore soil nutrients.
controlled burns
What are the five stages of design thinking?
empathize, define, ideate, prototype, and test
This type of thinking looks at interconnected parts and feedback loops rather than isolated problems.
systems thinking
The UN adopted these 17 interlinked objectives in 2015 to achieve a better future for all.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
This approach examines a product’s environmental, social, and economic impacts from creation to disposal.
lifecycle thinking
These are the three pillars of sustainability.
environmental, social (people), and economic
The “Three Sisters” refers to planting corn, beans, and this crop together for mutual benefit.
squash
This visual tool captures what a user says, does, thinks, and feels about a problem.
empathy map
This type of feedback loop amplifies change in one direction, like a snowball effect.
reinforcing loop
This SDG aims to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education for all.
SDG 4: Quality Education
The five stages of a product’s lifecycle are raw materials, manufacturing, distribution, use, and this final stage.
end-of-life
This type of sustainability includes renewable energy and conserving resources like water and land.
environmental sustainability
This 1962 book by Rachel Carson revealed the dangers of pesticides and helped launch the modern environmental movement.
Silent Spring
These three words start questions that help reframe challenges into opportunities for solutions.
How Might We
This type of loop stabilizes systems, like a thermostat adjusting room temperature.
balancing loop
This SDG calls for urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.
SDG 13: Climate Action
This linear model is often described as “take-make-waste.”
cradle-to-grave
This outdoor gear company became a “benefit corporation” in 2012 and donates 1% of sales to environmental causes.
Patagonia
This landmark 1987 UN report provided the most widely used definition of sustainable development.
Brundtland Report
This brainstorming rule encourages people to generate as many initial ideas as possible, rather than focus on how good the ideas are. (3 words)
quantity over quality
These are small areas in a system where a tiny change can make a big impact.
leverage points
This SDG focuses on ensuring access to affordable, reliable, and clean energy.
SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy
This circular model designs products for reuse and recovery, eliminating the concept of waste.
cradle-to-cradle
This car company’s mission is to “accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy” through electric vehicles and solar power.
Tesla
This 1989 oil spill in Alaska released 11 million gallons of crude oil and devastated wildlife.
Exxon Valdez spill
The motto “Fail fast to succeed sooner” best describes this stage of Design Thinking.
prototyping
This diagram type visualizes how variables affect one another with reinforcing and balancing feedback.
causal loop diagram
This product, designed for rural communities, lets users roll 90 liters of water instead of carrying it.
Hippo Water Roller
These lifecycle stages contribute more than 20% to overall impact.
Environmental hotspots
This clothing industry model produces trendy, cheap clothing quickly, but causes major environmental and social harm.
fast fashion
This 2015 international agreement united nearly 200 countries to limit global warming to well below 2°C.
Paris Agreement
This principle of universal design ensures that a product communicates necessary information to ALL users.
perceptible information
This systems archetype describes when individuals deplete a shared resource, harming everyone.
tragedy of the commons
This packaging alternative, made from agricultural waste and mushroom mycelium, composts in just 45 days.
Ecovative Mushroom Packaging
According to research, a reusable stainless steel water bottle becomes environmentally superior to a plastic bottle after this many uses.
15–20 uses