RESEARCH

Design, materials & making for social change

Becky has been a design researcher since the late 90’s when she first developed her low-impact exhaust printing technique using recycled polyester. To celebrate 30 years in the business she is opening up her archives to share the wealth of design & materials knowledge that she has amassed over the years. Scroll through the research themes immediately below to access her talks, films & writing; scroll further down to find the research communication collections she has put together for easy access.

RESEARCH THEMES

Circularity needs a different approach in every country. Natural resources & waste streams, historic, political & economic contexts, landscape, cultural tastes & available technologies all determine what circularity will look like in a particular region.

GLOBAL MAPPING

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PEOPLE, SOCIETY, SELF

Design & remaking are powerful tools that can enable people - individuals & communities - to thrive in the face of adversity. Whilst we need great technological & logistical changes to reprocess and move textiles around in emergent circular systems, new initiatives are often neglecting to tackle the more human-centric challenges.

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Inspiring future visions can be powerful tools for change. Circularity can be used as a material & social framework to understand the possibilities of what a healthier tomorrow looks like. How might we design the systems that enable these globally positive futures to come to fruition?

CIRCULAR FUTURES

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BIOBASED FROM WASTE

We know that we can make materials from bio resources - from corn or wood pulp - for example. As we evolve the fashion textiles industry to become significantly less impactful, polluting, exploitative & wasteful, we can also make bio-based materials from waste resources. These include food & agricultural waste.

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Turning old textiles into new textiles is a complex but essential global challenge. Blends, finishes, quality, logistics & volumes, all need careful consideration. Designers are part of the teams that are leading the change, via new technologies & material systems.

TEXTILE-2-TEXTILE

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CIRCULAR SPEEDS

Circular products - recycled & recyclable - can be beneficial to our environmental futures. But tricky to make. So which ones should we focus on? Understanding lifecycle speeds can help us set our goals in the most useful areas.

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DESIGN EDUCATION

Translating cutting-edge research into educational experiences is one of the great privileges of working in a university context. Design educators need to fully understand the impacts of climate change & to be constantly nurturing future designers to be well informed, inspired & ready to act.

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METHODS AND TOOLS

Working with the appropriate methods & tools is essential for creating the desired results. Finding new ways to learn, act & change often requires us to think outside of our usual familiar ways. This isn’t always easy & this is where ‘how’ we do things can make all the difference.

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RESEARCH COMMUNICATION

Podcasts

Becky loves to talk about climate, creativity & change! Find the complete collection of her audio interviews here.

Keynotes

Preparing for keynote talks is Becky’s favourite way to pin down her new thinking. Making stunning visuals & finding story-telling angles, as well as preparing unique collections of hand-around materials, Becky’s keynotes are the best way to grasp the ideas & get more informed & inspired to act.