At the start of this entire module, we started to show how powerful and essential design can be in influencing future change. On the subject of sustainability, designers have a big impact on a greener future. Nowadays, there has been a huge amount of design that lends its support to the matter of sustainability. Some examples are coming from the creating of new experimental textiles introduced into the fashion economy. The discovery of using vegetable and plant-based matter to create the fibers that make leathers and fabrics has now experimented everywhere in the world. ‘Desserto’ is a vegan cactus leather for Fashion, Automotive, Aeronautics, Footwear and Furniture, made by Adrián López Velarde and Marte Cázarez in Mexico. This leather is a perfect substitute for animal leather as it has been processed without any chemicals being added, rendering it a sustainable material and 100% biodegradable. In the ‘Desserto website’ you can find a video made by the creators explaining the story and the inspiration behind the final product. After working for several years in furniture, automotive, and fashion industries, Velarde and Cázarez have identified the environmental impact that leather had in these industries where the substitute material would be made mostly with plastic, making it unsustainable. After two years of experimentation, they created ‘Desserto’ leather in 2019.
This is an example where we can take note of the power that design holds. The future can be more sustainable if we all develop a similar mindset to Velarde and Cázarez . Please find attached below, the link for the video I was discussing in this blog. Go and have a listen to this beautiful story.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4sGOYbHoXo&feature=emb_logo
