Dallah Design
Our definition of great design
Our definition of great design
Let’s start by saying this: The word sustain means to keep something going. If you asked anyone: Is something that falls apart designed well? They would say no. So the sustainability of something, how long it lasts, is a direct reflection of the quality of its design. Combine that with beauty and effectiveness in accomplishing its purpose, and you’re cooking with grease.
Sustainability is the act of ensuring society continues to thrive on earth. It is a simple statement, but holds a lot of substance.
The earth will continue to spin whether or not humans, or any life, is present on earth. It sounds harsh, but it is a reality, and it is important to understand that “the environment” in the context of sustainability is a state of the earth on which humans can exist and thrive. When we disrupt ecosystems, that directly throws off the balance that supports human life.
Moving onto society, it can be split into two categories, people and the economy. Without supporting the health and needs of all people, emphasis on all, society is not thriving. Furthermore, the economy is the backbone to how our society operates, so it must remain stable in order to keep structure in place.
So three is the magic number *Queue School House Rock*. Let's explore more detail on each.
Let’s start by saying this: The word sustain means to keep something going. If you asked anyone: Is something that falls apart designed well? They would say no. So the sustainability of something, how long it lasts, is a direct reflection of the quality of its design. Combine that with beauty and effectiveness in accomplishing its purpose, and you’re cooking with grease.
Sustainability is the act of ensuring society continues to thrive on earth. It is a simple statement, but holds a lot of substance.
The earth will continue to spin whether or not humans, or any life, is present on earth. It sounds harsh, but it is a reality, and it is important to understand that “the environment” in the context of sustainability is a state of the earth on which humans can exist and thrive. When we disrupt ecosystems, that directly throws off the balance that supports human life.
Moving onto society, it can be split into two categories, people and the economy. Without supporting the health and needs of all people, emphasis on all, society is not thriving. Furthermore, the economy is the backbone to how our society operates, so it must remain stable in order to keep structure in place.
So three is the magic number *Queue School House Rock*. Let's explore more detail on each.
Let’s start by saying this: The word sustain means to keep something going. If you asked anyone: Is something that falls apart designed well? They would say no. So the sustainability of something, how long it lasts, is a direct reflection of the quality of its design. Combine that with beauty and effectiveness in accomplishing its purpose, and you’re cooking with grease.
Sustainability is the act of ensuring society continues to thrive on earth. It is a simple statement, but holds a lot of substance.
The earth will continue to spin whether or not humans, or any life, is present on earth. It sounds harsh, but it is a reality, and it is important to understand that “the environment” in the context of sustainability is a state of the earth on which humans can exist and thrive. When we disrupt ecosystems, that directly throws off the balance that supports human life.
Moving onto society, it can be split into two categories, people and the economy. Without supporting the health and needs of all people, emphasis on all, society is not thriving. Furthermore, the economy is the backbone to how our society operates, so it must remain stable in order to keep structure in place.
So three is the magic number *Queue School House Rock*. Let's explore more detail on each.
People.
This pertains to you, your mom, your grandmother, your next door neighbor, an inmate, the president, someone who sleeps in a homeless shelter, and a single mother working 3 jobs to keep the lights on. The most simple way to put it is we need to maintain a certain standard of mental and physical health for everyone in society. That includes the food they eat, the exercise they get, the education they have access to, and the parties (or low key kickbacks) that they participate in. Obviously, some will choose unhealthy options (we are all guilty of picking up the cheeseburger instead of the salad from time to time) but it is about creating a space for a healthy life to be possible for all.
This pertains to you, your mom, your grandmother, your next door neighbor, an inmate, the president, someone who sleeps in a homeless shelter, and a single mother working 3 jobs to keep the lights on. The most simple way to put it is we need to maintain a certain standard of mental and physical health for everyone in society. That includes the food they eat, the exercise they get, the education they have access to, and the parties (or low key kickbacks) that they participate in. Obviously, some will choose unhealthy options (we are all guilty of picking up the cheeseburger instead of the salad from time to time) but it is about creating a space for a healthy life to be possible for all.
This pertains to you, your mom, your grandmother, your next door neighbor, an inmate, the president, someone who sleeps in a homeless shelter, and a single mother working 3 jobs to keep the lights on. The most simple way to put it is we need to maintain a certain standard of mental and physical health for everyone in society. That includes the food they eat, the exercise they get, the education they have access to, and the parties (or low key kickbacks) that they participate in. Obviously, some will choose unhealthy options (we are all guilty of picking up the cheeseburger instead of the salad from time to time) but it is about creating a space for a healthy life to be possible for all.
Economy.
(or profit for alliteration purposes)
While different places have different economic systems, it all comes down to the allocation of finite resources. One resource is money, but it also takes into account society’s other “inventory”, drinkable water, food, energy, etc. Sustainability is maintaining resources at a level where society can function comfortably. To accomplish that, it is crucial we do not deplete our resources either directly using them or indirectly by affecting the environment in a way that destroys them. In the case of businesses, what seems to be short term profit could negatively impact the macroeconomy which in turn could negate that seeming prosperity.
While different places have different economic systems, it all comes down to the allocation of finite resources. One resource is money, but it also takes into account society’s other “inventory”, drinkable water, food, energy, etc. Sustainability is maintaining resources at a level where society can function comfortably. To accomplish that, it is crucial we do not deplete our resources either directly using them or indirectly by affecting the environment in a way that destroys them. In the case of businesses, what seems to be short term profit could negatively impact the macroeconomy which in turn could negate that seeming prosperity.
While different places have different economic systems, it all comes down to the allocation of finite resources. One resource is money, but it also takes into account society’s other “inventory”, drinkable water, food, energy, etc. Sustainability is maintaining resources at a level where society can function comfortably. To accomplish that, it is crucial we do not deplete our resources either directly using them or indirectly by affecting the environment in a way that destroys them. In the case of businesses, what seems to be short term profit could negatively impact the macroeconomy which in turn could negate that seeming prosperity.
Planet.
What most people think of when they think about sustainability. Like we stated above, in this context, planet is referring to the state of the earth on which humans can exist and thrive. This includes the water systems, the plants and animals (aquatic and land) that we share the earth with, and really all natural structures and systems that operate on earth. When we effect any of these in a way that we were not naturally supposed to, we run the risk of altering the environment in a way that is unsuitable for human life. Of course the earth will naturally change, and society will have to adapt accordingly, but when we expedite that change, we run the risk of not being able to keep up with the change or reaching a state we are not able to adapt to.
What most people think of when they think about sustainability. Like we stated above, in this context, planet is referring to the state of the earth on which humans can exist and thrive. This includes the water systems, the plants and animals (aquatic and land) that we share the earth with, and really all natural structures and systems that operate on earth. When we effect any of these in a way that we were not naturally supposed to, we run the risk of altering the environment in a way that is unsuitable for human life. Of course the earth will naturally change, and society will have to adapt accordingly, but when we expedite that change, we run the risk of not being able to keep up with the change or reaching a state we are not able to adapt to.
What most people think of when they think about sustainability. Like we stated above, in this context, planet is referring to the state of the earth on which humans can exist and thrive. This includes the water systems, the plants and animals (aquatic and land) that we share the earth with, and really all natural structures and systems that operate on earth. When we effect any of these in a way that we were not naturally supposed to, we run the risk of altering the environment in a way that is unsuitable for human life. Of course the earth will naturally change, and society will have to adapt accordingly, but when we expedite that change, we run the risk of not being able to keep up with the change or reaching a state we are not able to adapt to.
Translating it to design
You can tell there is a lot of overlap between the three sections above, which is convenient because it allows us to kill multiple birds with one stone (maybe that analogy is in poor taste based on what we just wrote…but you get the point).
So, going back to the main point, design should be beautiful, it should be effective, and it should last (aka it should align to all three buckets we talked about above). Some things people design are smaller, and it’s hard to tell how they fit into these buckets, but trust us they do. In our case, we design cities, and that is pretty straight forward.
Before we wrap up, you may have had the thought, “how do you go about achieving great design?”. There are 4 elements we believe are fundamental to any great design and can be combined to make magic
Dallah Design's 4 Fundamental
Elements
Beauty
Qualities that appeal to people.
Circularity
Zero waste, everything that is produced can be reused and/or recycled
Equity
Being fair and impartial
Health
Physical and mental wellbeing of people
A couple of call outs:
1. With beauty, customer/community feedback is vital in order to account for subjectivity
2. The key between equity and equality is being fair vs. treating everyone the same
Alone, designing with one element in mind will create a partial solution. Using all elements, combining them accordingly, results in great design.
Call to action
Incorporate this methodology into your own design practices. Our world, more than ever, needs holistic design solutions and it takes a village to make significant change.
If there is one thing you take from what we have said, let it be this: Sustainability is the direct result of great design.
Incorporate this methodology into your own design practices. Our world, more than ever, needs holistic design solutions and it takes a village to make significant change.
If there is one thing you take from what we have said, let it be this: Sustainability is the direct result of great design.
Incorporate this methodology into your own design practices. Our world, more than ever, needs holistic design solutions and it takes a village to make significant change.
If there is one thing you take from what we have said, let it be this: Sustainability is the direct result of great design.
Twitter: @_dallahdesign