FROM TRASH TO TREASURE, GOOD DESIGN AUSTRALIA TURNS PLASTIC WASTE INTO COVETABLE TROPHIES FOR THE ANNUAL AUSTRALIAN GOOD DESIGN AWARDS

Content: Freya Lombardo

Good Design Australia has just released the first images of the new 2022 Good Design Award ‘Tick’ trophy. Far from being a token gesture, these trophies are in themselves stand-out designs and show a true dedication to practicing sustainable design values.

Winners at this year’s Australian Good Design Awards held in Sydney on Friday 16 September 2022, will take home a new trophy designed by Clandestine Design Group in collaboration with Defy, Bespoke Aluminium and Vert Design who will be working on the packaging design.

Each trophy contains one kilogram of compressed Australian post-consumer plastic in which an Australian-sourced extruded aluminium tick is embedded.

This eco-accountable project does more than tick green boxes. Good Design Australia’s recycled plastic trophies make a powerful environmental statement while providing winners with an accolade they can treasure for years to come.

With 1000 trophies already in play, Good Design Australia effectively diverts one tonne of plastic waste from landfill and marine habitats through this endeavour.

It’s a welcome initiative given Australia is drowning in plastic waste, however conscientiously we fill up our yellow bins. Distressingly, only 16% of plastic packaging was recycled in 2020-21[1] and Clean Up Australia estimates about 130,000 tonnes of Australian plastic ends up in our waterways and oceans each year[2]. 

According to the CEO of Good Design Australia Dr. Brandon Gien, the new trophy embodies everything Good Design Australia stands for and the values it honours through the annual Good Design Awards – design excellence, innovation and positive impact.

“We want this trophy to promote sustainable design as an ongoing aspiration for all designers, manufacturers, and businesses,” says Dr. Gien.

“Our aim from the start of this project was for the new trophy to exemplify design excellence through sustainable practice. We hope this circular design initiative inspires positive change through the application of good design principles.”

The annual Australian Good Design Awards have celebrated Sustainable Design as a distinct category since 2007, long before it was ‘fashionable’. As well as being indicative of regenerative solutions that design out waste and pollution, the trophy is a symbol of Good Design Australia’s sustainable legacy. Ultimately, the goal is for sustainable principles to become integral in every design project and service.

Clandestine Design Group Director Neil Davidson and his team championed a truly comprehensive and collaborative design process to arrive at the final forms.

“The Good Design Australia team set a high bar for this project. In terms of sustainable criteria, they ideally wanted the trophies to be designed and made in Australia from 100% Australian sourced recycled and recyclable materials,” says Davidson, who was quick to accept the challenge.

“Good Design Australia is such an advocate for our industry and has elevated the value and recognition of design across the board. We jumped at the chance to support them through this initiative.”

“Through the design refinement process, the ‘slabset’ concept emerged as the favourite. Its authentic interpretation of the Good Design Australia logo combined with its ability to accommodate a wide range of recycled materials bound together by a precision extruded aluminium ‘tick’ embodied the meaning, value, presence and purpose the design team was looking for,” explains Davidson. 

From the outset, there was a 100% commitment to manufacturing onshore. The erosion of Australia’s manufacturing capacity and the exponential return of high-value, low-volume, and high-tech manufacturing projects meant local outfits with the capability and capacity to produce this high-quality product were in short supply.

Like knights in shining armour, Defy and Bespoke Aluminium took up the call. Through their repurposing of recycled polymer plastics and precision aluminium engineering, the trophies exemplify excellence in Australian design and proudly showcase their Australian-made status. Importantly, the trophies showcase Good Design Australia’s commitment to an environmentally responsible design future.

Good Design Australia has a history of commissioning renowned designers to create its annual award trophies. The original ‘Good Design Tick’ trophy was also designed with sustainability front of mind using recycled materials by the Evolve Group, winners of the 2016 Good Design Award of the Year for the Flow Hive.

The 2022 Good Design Awards are now open for entries and close on 29 April. Entry information here.

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[1] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/nov/19/drowning-in-waste-australia-recycled-just-16-of-plastic-packaging-last-year

[2] https://www.cleanup.org.au/clean-up-our-waste

LAVO RECEIVES GOOD DESIGN AUSTRALIA’S MICHAEL BRYCE PATRON’S AWARD FOR THEIR TIMELY INVENTION: THE WORLD’S FIRST INTEGRATED HYBRID HYDROGEN BATTERY, HARNESSING THE POWER OF ROOFTOP SOLAR.

Content: Freya Lombardo and Sandra Tan.

When Kermit the Frog lamented, ‘It’s not easy being green…’, little did he know the lyric could equally surmise our collective sigh of frustration at the high cost of going green, and the slow pace of true planet-saving change.

Unless you are among the rare, self-sustaining few who happen to live totally off the grid, you will be familiar with the dull dread associated with the arrival of your power bill. No matter how efficient your home setup, how competitive or green the provider you’re with, these regular reminders of household energy consumption can tug heavily on your purse strings – and your climate conscience. 

Between bills, your eyes likely water every time you refuel your vehicle(s) – less because of the fumes and more as a consequence of the sharply escalating prices that have fossil-fuel bound drivers ‘over a barrel’.

As members of a society ruled largely by petrol- and diesel-powered vehicles – as well as digital devices in constant need of a charge point – we know we need to do better. But how?

Enter LAVO: the world’s first combined solar hydrogen hybrid battery. This unit, roughly the size of a large fridge, has the capacity to store over 40-kilowatt hours of electricity. Fully charged, it can supply enough juice to power the average Australian home for two days.

Designed in Australia and produced locally in Brisbane, the invention gives households and businesses the agency to create positive change through smart technology that significantly reduces their reliance on the grid.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

Devised with Australian climate conditions in mind, LAVO can be connected into any existing (or new) rooftop solar panel array and serves as a solar ‘sponge’ – actively collecting and capturing this abundant, renewable, passive energy source to convert to usable power. 

In simple terms, electrolysers inside the LAVO unit siphon the sun’s energy to split water (H2O) into hydrogen and oxygen, storing the hydrogen to generate electricity as needed, while emitting only oxygen. As another power plus, a LAVO battery can constantly recharge itself. This is a major advantage over lithium batteries that need to fully discharge before recharging. 

Consider LAVO an on-site power bank for your home, office and/or business, with a projected lifespan of about 30 years. Additionally, at the end of its lifecycle, each LAVO battery’s hydride component can be repurposed for use in other products – a circular initiative distinguishing it against similar units in the energy market.

RESEARCH DRIVEN

Elegantly innovative, the LAVO project was conceived with a pioneering spirit, named for ground-breaking scientist Antoine Lavoisier, who first identified Hydrogen H1. Notably, the ambitious project is the result of efficient cross-disciplinary collaboration, as well as rigorous scientific testing and creative development.

Esteemed research partners include the Hydrogen Energy Research Centre at UNSW, and the International Hydrogen Council, with GHD and Varley counted among LAVO’s world-renowned group of industrial product partners. Beyond its Australian contingent, this significant cohort of diverse global contributors is testament to the vast potential that LAVO presents, to improve energy usage and be a lightning rod for more responsible consumption, worldwide.

SUPERCHARGED FOR GOOD

“We are an enabler for positive change, empowering consumers to do good, supporting the community and contributing towards improving the environment,” says Alan Yu, CEO at LAVO.

While LAVO’s design aesthetic exudes a luxe futuristic appeal, it is priced to appeal to middle-income earners. It is not intended exclusively for the moneyed elite; as compared with the hype surrounding forerunning alternative energy heavyweights, Tesla. Adding to the must-consider factor for families and small-medium business owners, LAVO also produces a line of hydrogen-powered products for use in home and workplace settings, including a bicycle, and, fittingly for an Aussie-designed collection, a barbecue. Crucially, these will be the first of their kind made commercially available. 

AWARD-WINNING EXCELLENCE

Receiving the Michael Bryce Patron’s Award at the 2021 Good Design Awards represents an accolade of high distinction for LAVO, as an Australian-designed product with the potential to positively impact the future of our planet’s economic, social, cultural and environmental wellbeing.

CEO of Good Design Australia Dr. Brandon Gien is enthusiastic about a future powered by LAVO. “Tackling a global energy crisis, this remarkable design innovation showcases what can be achieved through university and industry collaboration and is arguably one of the best examples of ground-breaking technology coupled with world-class Industrial Design.

This product has the potential to be a global game-changer in the energy market and I can’t think of a more fitting accolade to recognise such an innovative and ground-breaking Australian designed and manufactured product,” said Dr Gien.

ABOUT THE MICHAEL BRYCE PATRON’S AWARD

The Michael Bryce Patron’s Award is presented annually by the Patron of Good Design Australia.

The Award recognises and celebrates the best Australian designed product, service or project in the annual Australian Good Design Awards and is awarded to an entry that has the potential to shape the future economic, social, cultural and environmental aspects of our planet.

The Michael Bryce Patron’s Award honours Good Design Australia’s inaugural Patron, the late Michael J.S. Bryce AM AE KStJ to recognise the enormous contribution he made to Good Design Australia and to the Australian design community over the course of his career. MORE INFO