AKAMBA CULTURE AND RECYCLED GLASS TO CREATE AN APPEALING INTERIOR DESIGN FOR RESORT RESTAURANT, NAIROBI.

For centuries, the earth’s limited resources have been wastefully exploited in their distribution and uses, causing irreversible changes on the environment. The concept of sustainability and green design calls for the respect of the planet’s resources by its inhabitants. Designing aims at satisfying a need within a set of limits and sustainability being a need in itself demands serious consideration during the design process and in manufacturing. People must strive to engage in activities that minimally affect the state of the planet, striving to leave it the same way they found it in order to ensure resources are left for future generations. Therefore, each stage of the design process requires the consideration of a product’s life cycle to really implement sustainable practices in the product’s design. Products need to be durable, reusable, recyclable and biodegradable, minimal and efficient use of energy and waste management need to be observed during raw material harvesting, transportation, packaging and disposal and energy should be sourced from renewable sources. These guidelines act as constraints that transform the design process into a more engaging and challenging process rather than designing to put a product into the market. A designer hence needs to acknowledge the fact that sustainability is a need whose consequent constraints are non-negotiable and vital for the healthy existence of every living thing.