Never waste a good crisis

In response to one of the greatest challenges of our time, Never Waste A Good Crisis is shining a spotlight on 31 creative optimists who are working to reinvent our relationship with waste. From building with bacteria to designing for disassembly, this book offers an exciting glimpse into the many initiatives and experiments that are bringing us closer to a circular future.

One section of the book is dedicated entirely to the 16 winners of the global No Waste Challenge, a design competition initiated by WDCD and the IKEA Foundation. All together, these ideas serve as much-needed signposts for a new economy in the making. Each one is as much a reason to be optimistic, as it is an urgent call-to-action. After all, there is much work to be done. As design writer Alice Rawsthorn reminds us: ‘This is the moment, not just to tweak at things, but to think laterally about how our world should be redesigned.’ Let’s do it well.

WHAT'S INSIDE?

The trailblazers featured in the book reflect a wide variety of disciplines and hail from more than 20 different countries. Among them are luminaries like Fernando Laposse (Mexico), whose project Totomoxtle brings together agricultural waste and indigenous crafts; the inimitable Yasmeen Lari (Pakistan), who builds with mud and lime to create shelters that are zero-carbon and zero-waste, and Studio Formafantasma (Italy), whose artwork Ore Streams explores the pitfalls and politics of electronics recycling. Never Waste A Good Crisis also highlights an array of emerging designers, including the work of recent graduates like Valdís Steinarsdóttir (Iceland) and Carvey Maigue (Philippines).  

One section of the book is dedicated entirely to the 16 winners of the global No Waste Challenge, a design competition initiated by WDCD and the IKEA Foundation. All together, these ideas serve as much-needed signposts for a new economy in the making. Each one is as much a reason to be optimistic, as it is an urgent call-to-action. As design philosopher Alice Rawsthorn puts it: ‘This is the moment, not just to tweak at things, but to think laterally about how our world should be redesigned.’

Project: Totomoxtle, Fernando Laposse (Mexico).

Project: Makli Cultural Centre, Yasmeen Lari (Pakistan).

Project: Ore Streams, Studio Formafantasma (Italy).

Project: The Slum Studio, Sel Kofiga (Ghana). Photo: Fibi Afloe.

Never Waste a Good Crisis was made possible thanks to the support of Fedrigoni Papers and Zwaan Lenoir printing.