Sustainability in the education of industrial designers: the case for Australia

Abstract

PurposeThe paper intends to determine the extent to which environmental sustainability issues are integrated in the curricula of industrial design programs in Australian universities.Design/methodology/approachIndustrial design lecturers and program heads were invited to participate in a web‐based survey on their university's industrial design curricula. Online university handbooks were also examined to determine which courses cover sustainability aspects. Survey results were then tabulated and analysed using descriptive statistics.FindingsThe study shows that, while there is a concern that sustainable development issues are important and relevant to design courses, the permeation of environmental sensitivity through most industrial design curricula, and indeed among design academics, is only starting to gain ground. Comparative examination of the curricular structures in Australian universities offering degree programs in industrial and product design revealed that, on average, 12 out of every 100 credit points earned have sustainability content.Practical implicationsThe paper informs industrial design academics that much more work has to be done in order to educate the next generation of designers about their responsibilities to the planet and its people. It tells them where we currently are and the gaps that we have to bridge in order to achieve environmental sustainability.Originality/valueThe paper is original in the field of Australian industrial design education, and builds on work in other disciplines about incorporating sustainability aspects in tertiary education.