The biologist and marine scientist discusses the Nature Lab’s evolving mission, the hunger among RISD students for hard sciences, and externally funded research projects in the works.
RISD Showcases Sustainability Innovation During Climate Week NYC 2024
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Where does perceived value come from and how do we as a society move from an extractive/zero-sum mindset into a more generative one inspired by nature? The question was posed by RISD alum Charlotte McCurdy MID 18, a biomaterial fashion designer and researcher who participated in Haptic Futures: Sustainable Materials in Design Innovation, an event RISD presented during Climate Week NYC 2024.
RISD’s Vice Provost for Strategic Partnerships Sarah Cunningham facilitated the panel discussion at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, which also included alum Andrew Haarsager 08 ID, former founding director of the Cartier Retail Innovation Lab; climate justice activist Céline Semaan of Slow Factory; and Sangyup Lee, executive vice president and head of Hyundai and Genesis Global Design and a key player in the Regeneration Studio, the latest in RISD’s ongoing research collaboration with Hyundai Motor Group. The conversation underscored the importance of audacious material innovation in support of a more sustainable and just world.
“RISD students, alumni, faculty and staff are uniquely equipped to answer the call for climate innovation, especially when collaborating with our outstanding industry partners,” says Cunningham. “Our sustainability partnerships with scientists, engineers and humanists provide rare insights into material innovation.”
The program also highlighted work created by RISD students and recent alums for the Terra Carta Design Lab—a global competition organized by King Charles III’s Sustainable Markets Initiative that invited students from five design schools worldwide to develop high-impact and commercially viable solutions to problems caused by climate change. Ten RISD finalists in the competition presented their projects the following day at New Climate Futures, an event staged by venture platform Newlab at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The annual gathering brings together innovative entrepreneurs, industry leaders, investors and policymakers.
RISD was the only school to participate in the exhibition, which allowed design teams to share their climate solution concepts with a diverse group of professionals in the fields of mobility, energy and materials. The event was well attended, and exhibit visitors were drawn in by the student projects—a wide range of market-ready solutions focused on social impact, biodesign and sustainability.
The events represented RISD’s strongest presence at Climate Week to date, and amplified the institution’s unique voice in the climate conversation, leading the way from both an educational and an entrepreneurial standpoint and demonstrating art and design’s potential to make positive change in the sustainable design space.
“Through thoughtful research and creative practice, artists and designers imagine realities and conceive of what a just world could be,” says Provost Touba Ghadessi. “RISD amplifies this kind of radical learning, which is needed as we face the climate crisis and the vast inequities laid bare by its progress. Thankfully, visionary organizations like Hyundai Motor Group and the Sustainable Markets Initiative understand the importance of investing in art and design education as the most effective mechanism to support new sustainable and regenerative systems.”
photos by Lena Nicholson (Haptic Futures) and Matthew Watson 09 FAV (New Climate Futures)
October 10, 2024
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