http://hdl.handle.net/10453/35198 2026-04-10T07:02:34Z http://hdl.handle.net/10453/187944 Title: Why do zip-off trousers make me cringe? Authors: Eriksson, KBE Abstract: This essay reflects on the discomfort with zip-off trousers despite their clear sustainable benefits. It critiques the current state of sustainability in fashion, arguing that the overemphasis on practicality, particularly in garments like zip-off trousers, often leads to a lack of appeal. Drawing a parallel to high-heeled shoes, which transitioned from practical items to symbols of power, societal belonging and self-expression, the essay suggests that sustainability in fashion needs to similarly transcend its practical roots. I contend that to make sustainability fashionable, it must be embedded within the practices of power, attraction and self-expression, rather than remaining solely practical. 2024-10-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10453/186493 Title: Application of the Childbirth Supporter Study to Advance the Birth Unit Design Spatial Evaluation Tool. Authors: Harte, JD; Sheehan, A; Stewart, S; Foureur, M Abstract: OBJECTIVE: Translational research to advance design criteria and apply the Childbirth Supporter Study (CSS) findings to practice. BACKGROUND: The physical design of birth environments has not undergone substantial improvements in layout or ambiance since the initial move to hospitals. Cooperative, continuously present childbirth supporters are beneficial and are an expectation for most modern birth practices, yet the built environment does not offer support for the supporter. METHODS: To advance design criteria, we use a comparative case study approach to create translational findings. Specifically, CSS findings were used as indicators to advance the Birth Unit Design Spatial Evaluation Tool (BUDSET) design characteristics in pursuit of better support for childbirth supporters in the built hospital birth environment. RESULTS: This comparative case study provides eight new BUDSET design domain suggestions to benefit the supporter-woman dyad, and subsequently the baby and care providers. CONCLUSIONS: Research-informed design imperatives are needed to guide the inclusion of childbirth supporters as both a supporter and as an individual in the birth space. Increased understanding of relationships between specific design features and childbirth supporters' experiences and reactions are provided. Suggestions to enhance the applicability of the BUDSET for birth unit design facility development are made, specifically ones that will better accommodate childbirth supporters. 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10453/186275 Title: Applied Transition Design for Socio-Ecological Outcomes: Local Movements, Incumbent Systems, and the Need for Agile Weaving Authors: Wearne, S; Lee, T; Scardifield, K; Wakefield-Rann, R Abstract: <jats:p>Researchers often seek to enable sustainability transitions by helping new technologies or practices influence and change society in deep and transformative ways. There are inherent tensions in these ambitions, but they remain underexplored in the literature and practical experiences of our encounters with these tensions are similarly underdiscussed. This paper shares reflections and insights from a transdisciplinary project in Australia which explored how a more deliberate and critically reflexive approach to research could be pursued to enable a transition toward an algal bioeconomy. Presenting the project as a case study, we highlight how issues of place, materiality, aesthetics, and history can influence the role of research in socio-technical transitions in subtle and often unacknowledged ways. In the context of a nascent and contested bioeconomic vision for Australia, we contend that there is a need for researchers to challenge themselves with speculative, normative and plausible transition design projects, to build our collective capacity for deliberate and critical engagement in the futures that we pursue, or participate in, through our work. Specific practices that might help are raised and enabling conditions, such as a gap in the structure of Australia’s National Innovation System, are addressed in the discussion. In the face of these needs, challenges and opportunities, we conclude that a ‘systems weaver’ modality can offer clarity, agency and understanding to researchers and practitioners about the potential of their work and their role in systems change.</jats:p> http://hdl.handle.net/10453/185512 Title: From bio-based to fossil-based to bio-based: Exploring the potential of hemp as a material for next-gen fur Authors: Rissanen, T; Alevato, I; Lie, S Abstract: Fur as a status-affirming adornment has been historically significant in fashion. There are three main categories of fur and fur-like materials: animal-based, synthetic, and next-generation (next-gen) fur. Animal-based fur is controversial and associated with ethical and environmental concerns, including animal welfare and the use of toxic chemicals. Synthetic fur is typically made from fossil-fuel-derived polymers like acrylic, which successfully mimic the properties of animal hairs in fur, such as aesthetics and touch. These non-renewable, fossil carbon-based fur replacements do not biodegrade, contributing to the plastics crisis in landfills and through fibre shedding. Next-gen furs made from bio-based, regeneratively sourced materials could mitigate this problem because the shed fibres would biodegrade naturally. This paper reports on preliminary findings from an ongoing study investigating the potential benefits of using hemp fibre as the hair in next-gen fur. Extensive material experiments demonstrate that hemp fibre can be used to produce a visually pleasing, appealing-to-touch, fur-like surface. Further research will investigate the base materials of next-gen furs, as well as the scalability of these new materials. 2024-12-31T00:00:00Z