Expo Design Academy & Dutch Design Week

Climate is high on the agenda among the 200 graduates of the Design Academy Saving the planet is no longer a delay. Their work can be seen at an exhibition in Eindhoven during Dutch Design Week.

Here are two projects.

Josha Veldheer lets consumers feel how much water is needed for coffee, tea and soft ice cream What can I personally do about the imminent water shortage? As a student at the Design Academy, Josha Veldheer (22) dealt with this question several times. She is graduating with a project that will be shown at the touring theater festival De Parade next year. Veldheer wants to make visitors aware of the water footprint of their consumption choices in a playful way. She does this with 'physical infographics': glass installations that provide insight into water waste. On three stages, she compares the amounts of water involved in producing two similar, frequently ordered drinks at De Parade: a cup of coffee or tea, a glass of beer or a glass of wine, a cookie or a soft ice cream. The differences are huge. The production of coffee, wine and soft ice cream requires much more water than tea, beer and cake. Compare a cup of coffee to tea: 140 litres against 30 litres. A lot of groundwater must be pumped up before irrigating coffee plants. The water bill for a cappuccino is even higher because of the milk: 200 litres. Part of the installation is a water purifier. Festival visitors can experience how much time and effort it takes to purify 5 litres of water. Josha Veldheer: “So for one cappuccino, they have to repeat that action forty times.”