Can high technology products be sustainable?

Societal and technology changes, together with the emergence of new materials, have encouraged a change in design approach. Have we now reached a tipping point where, for example, the presence of plastics in the marine environment means we have to change how we do things for the good of future generations and the planet?

Making equipment sustainable, at least in the short term, is often less profitable than being unsustainable. Techniques and ways to minimise the additional cost of being responsible are presented.  The role of legislators in setting standards and requirements is also considered.

Chris Moller is the Director of Evonet Energy.  He is a CEng with the IET and a Research Visitor at the Open University in Milton Keynes, researching Renewable Energy in the Developing World.  He is the technical lead for the Repair Cafe community in Cambridge.