Power to the Pedal
Jun 7th, 2008 by MC
Design21, a group of socially conscious designers, recently held a competition involving the role of the bicycle as a tool for change in our society. The winners were announced just recently and can be seen here at their
web page.
One design that I found interesting as it is applicable to the industry as a whole is the second place finisher, by Joe Wentworth. The beauty of Joe’s idea here is solves more then one problem by first addressing the issue of lateral space occupied by bicycles when stored as well as integrating a lock that renders the bike un-maneuverable. The other elegant feature is that the design can be an aftermarket add-on. Solutions for sustainability should accommodate for improvement upon existing features to minimize users completely replacing their current bike. Waste cannot be discounted as an issue anymore so neither should a new design feature.
Retrofitting holds the economic stimulus of new jobs, manufacturing, and consumption while minimizing waste. When combined with scale of the retrofit productivity increase, the overall effect will be largely positive.