RSA Great Recovery Workshops

Work-based professional workshops created to help you debate issues around material choices and product life cycles

This workshop aims to highlight the negative implications of linear systems upon business, technology and society. We will explore a number of waste streams (electronic products, textiles, food, packaging etc) and highlight how design and improved business or service models can contribute to building a more circular economy. This isn't some hippy nonsense: this is essential to securing Scotland’s economic and manufacturing future!

Both days are designed to encourage participants from any industry or part of the ‘circular network’ to meet, debate and collaborate. They complement the work of Zero Waste Scotland and Innovate UK, to help you understand the challenges and opportunities around the circular economy and to design for a closed loop system. We will kick off with an investigation into end of life challenges, using practical ‘tear down’ exercises to explore the nature of supply chains, logistics, resource efficiency, waste and business or technical challenges. After this, the focus will turn to the opportunities that exist for ‘designing up’ new products and services in different industries, and the analysis of systems thinking around a closed loop model.

You should apply:

- If you are a practicing designer, are part of an in-house design team, commission designers or work on product development for clients.

- If you fit into any of the identified sectors in our circular network (designers, waste managers, materials specialists, policymakers, manufacturers, brands, investors & academics).

- If you are interested in applying for any of the Innovate UK competitions.

Locations: University of Dundee and Gray's School of Art, Aberdeen.