Non-human centerd design
2021
Non human centered design was a research project in collaboration with Industrial Product Design students from Nice and spacial and product design students from the HKU. The goal was to design for nature rather than for humans.
Description of problem
We started researching the typesetter. A beetle that is common in Scandinavian countries where many spruce trees grow. Due to global warming, these trees have become weakened and the beetle can easily attack the tree. The beetle does this by gnawing on the bark and laying eggs under the bark. Normally the female lays eggs twice a year, but because the winters are less severe, the females can now lay eggs up to 4 times a year. Acres of forest have already been destroyed in this way. This creates a vicious cycle that is difficult to stop.
Solution
It is clear that global warming cannot be solved 1,2,3, which is why we have chosen not to tackle it at the source, but have looked for a short-term solution , hopefully with long-term effects. (this is due to limited time)
The design is a trap made of mycelium, bamboo and the scent of pine that should help the spruce trees. By catching the Lettersetter in a trap that decays over time, you catch the creature of which there are too many and you also give nutrition back to nature. This way the spruces can grow stronger and hopefully the process of global warming will stop or slow down.
Photo credits: Bunga Noz