Frank O'Connor presented at the "Making Business Sense of Sustainable Development" conference on conflicts between economic, social and environmental aspirations. He discussed how ecodesign, which aims to reduce environmental and social impacts through design, requires considering a product's entire lifecycle. However, there are conflicts because sustainable development is not always a priority in our globalized economy that promotes over-consumption. Ecodesign that considers the full lifecycle is good business practice and the only sustainable path for businesses in the long run.

2. Title: Conflicts between Wale’s Economic, Social and
Environmental Aspirations?
Presenter: Frank O’Connor
Conference: Making Business Sense of Sustainable Development
Date: 12th June
Venue: Park (thistle) Hotel, Cardiff
Organisers: IWA, Business Sense (supported by IOD, Cynnal Cymru)

3. Ecodesign Centre Wales
established in September 2006, core funding from Welsh
Assembly Government
our role
build capacity and capabilities so that effective ecodesign
can happen in Wales
please visit our website for further information
www.edcw.org

4. ecodesign is concerned with reducing
environmental &
social impacts
of a product or service through better design
80%
of environmental
impacts
of a product or service
can be locked-in at
the design stage

5. ecodesign requires life cycle thinking
most designers are concerned with these stages
take make buy/use waste
recycle re--manufacture re-use

6. WHY ARE THERE
CONFLICTS?

7. reason no.1
sustainable development
needs to be over-arching,
not an add-on.

8. 50
million tonnes
of e-waste is produced
annually. Much of this
waste is dumped in
countries such as China
and Africa
source: RSA

9. reason no.2
we live in a global
economy.

10. "Sonicare Elite 7000“
produced at 11 locations and in five time zones, comprised of 38 components,
parts supplied by Japan, France, China and Malaysia, materials and production
in Austria, Sweden, assembly in Philippines and United States, when fully
assembled and packaged in Seattle the components have travelled a full
27,880 kilometres, two thirds of the Earth's circumference.
source: SPIEGEL Magazine

11. reason no.3
over-consumption is not
on the agenda.

12. 60,000
tonnes
of Christmas decorations
were imported into the UK
from China in 2006

13. reason no.4
ecodesign is good design
which is good business
practice.

14. 1.8
tonnes
the amount of raw
material are required
to manufacture the
average desktop PC
and monitor
98% of products are
thrown away within
6 months
source: Chris Jordan and CKS recycling

15. Image www.castlereagh.gov.uk
£32
Landfill tax in the UK has
risen from £7.00 per tonne
in 1996 to £32.00 in 2008

16. “ “
The only businesses around in 20 years time will be
green and sustainable businesses
Richard Branson, Virgin, 2008

17. we see opportunity

18. thank you
www.edcw.org
frank@edcw.org